Join Our Free Monthly Meetings
The Austin Adobe User Group has been meeting monthly since it was founded in 1993 as the Austin Macromedia User Group. It supports the use of the Adobe Creative Cloud with free presentations by experts in a wide variety of Adobe applications.
With the start of the pandemic, our meeting moved from being in-person to being on Zoom. We use the same Zoom room for every meeting. To get the address, please write to austinadobegroupmgr@gmail.com.
Recordings of each meeting are posted a few days after the meeting. Here are the topics we have recently covered and news of our next gathering.
Monthly Programs
from the Austin Adobe User Group
Sept 13: Playing in Illustrator
What? Presenter Tammy will lead you through an digital illustration project - a finished page for a children’s book illustration project. Who is this for? This will be a presentation for intermediate-level Illustrator designers, those interested in pursuing digital illustration, or anyone wanting to get more comfortable creating their own digital content for their design projects. Especially for creatives who enjoy watching someone else go through their creative process. Since this is an...
July 12: Illustrator Variable Data Techniques
In the March CC2018 update to Illustrator, Adobe finally brought the variable-data feature to everyday users by implementing a very basic CSV-import function. They followed the path trail-blazed by Vasily Hall’s script, the VariableImporter. Evidently, as witnessed through his various literature and research there was user demand for performing data-merge in Illustrator, but why? Let’s take a look at the features which differentiate Illustrator variable-data workflows from others such as...
June 14: Convert a Regular Web Site Into a Mobile App Using Adobe Phonegap
Instead of learning how to program in a native mobile app language (e.g., Java for Android or Swift for iOS), you can create simple apps using standard web technologies (e.g., HTML, CSS, and Javascript). In 2015, designer Frances Berriman and Google Chrome engineer Alex Russell coined the phrase Progressive Web Apps (PWAs) to describe this new trend. In the presentation you will learn how to convert a traditional website into a mobile app using Phonegap Built. Handout with details Since this...
May 10: Fix photos with Photoshop
Presenter and Photoshop expert Kenneth Lobenberg will be going over tips and tricks for photo restoration and photo retouching. He will cover how to scan a photo properly and repair damage digitally using Photoshop to final color correction. He will also provide basic and advanced techniques for editing photos: such as replacing skies and fixing smiles. If you have any photos you want Kenneth to show you how to fix, please post them on the Austin Adobe User Group Facebook group,...
April 12: Review 12 Adobe mobile apps
During this meeting we'll take a look at Adobe's apps for mobile devices. There are more than 12 of them, but we'll take a look at these 12. Some of them we'll only describe and take a glance at; others we'll spend more time on. If there's something specific you'd like to see, or specific questions you have, post them to the group or on our Facebook page. Except as noted below, all of the apps are available for iOS and Android. All of them are free, and do not require a Creative Cloud...
March 8: How to create a simple mobile/web app using AngularJS and Dreamweaver 2018
Dreamweaver is an Adobe development tool for creating, managing and publishing websites and mobile content. AngularJS is a free easy-to-use open source JavaScript framework that is used to create dynamic web sites. Why use AngularJS? HTML is great for static web sites. AngularJS is a JavaScript framework that extends HTML attributes with built-in or user-defined DIRECTIVES that offers more functionality to an application or web site. It is mainly maintained by Google and by a community of...
Feb 8: Large file InDesign workflows taking advantage of Photoshop and Bridge
For many good reasons, placed images in InDesign documents are stored as external links, not inside the InDesign documents themselves. When working with lots of photos or illustrations, you face a number of challenges, like where are the images stored, what file format, resolution and color model are they, what pages are the linked files placed on, and so on. And if you find yourself wanting to replace a bunch of low-resolution images with their high-resolution counterparts, you may be in for...
Jan 18: All About Photoshop Actions
Join us on January 18 as presenter Kenneth Loebenberg explains one of the most powerful tools in Photoshop for editing large quantities of images, Photoshop Actions. He will cover everything from the basics to some of the most advanced techniques. Since this is dinnertime, we'll have pizza available. The meeting starts at 6:00. The doors are locked at 6:30; if you arrive and they are locked, knock - there will be someone at the New Horizons front desk and they will let you in. About the...
Dec 14: Photoshop – Learning Selections, Layers, and Masks from the Rapping Professor
In this presentation you will learn these basic Photoshop concepts through raps. For example, when learning about selections, you can remember, "You know when you have a SELECTION defined, when you see the digital ants marching in a line." "When nothing is SELECTED, the whole canvas gets AFFECTED." "The layer that is SELECTEDis the ONLY layer that gets AFFECTED." Since this is dinnertime, we'll have pizza available... and holiday goodies Note: The doors are locked at 6:30; if you arrive and...
Nov 16: Intro to After Effects
Ever wonder what is under the hood in After Effects? Well, wonder no longer. Jacob Stone will present and describe the overall basics of After Effects to get you started with animating and creating basic motion graphics in no time. In this presentation, he will cover the interface, layers, keyframes, how to create and animate shapes, how to create and animate text, how to import assets, and how to create fire. There will be a practice file with everything in the presentation so you can follow...
About the Austin Adobe User Group
Become a member of the Austin Adobe User Group
Membership is free! Simply attend a live event online.
Management – Join Mailing List – Site Credit
Meetings
Each month, at 6 pm on the Second Thursday, an Adobe-related topic or demonstration is presented by a variety of group members (share your knowledge) or visiting experts. The meetings are free and open to anyone interested in learning about Adobe products and meeting other Adobe enthusiasts. Before the Covid Pandemic, our meetings were hosted at the New Horizon Learning Center, 300 East Highland Mall Boulevard #100, Austin, TX 78752; (512) 349-9555.
Now we meet on Zoom. For access details, please send an email to karen@austinadobeusergroup.com.
Miss a meeting?
Check the Presentations page and/or our YouTube channel. When possible we record our presentations.
Membership advantages
Why join the Austin Adobe User Group? Besides meeting other Adobe enthusiasts and learning how to use Adobe software (through demonstrations at meetings), there are
- special discounts that are available only for User Group members on
- Adobe products
- training:
- discounts from some of our training sponsors
- discounts on books from PeachPit and O’Reilly (request the discount)
- Members are eligible to win door prizes provided by sponsors and one of the twice-yearly Adobe software drawings; see below for details. Questions? Email austinadobegroupmgr@gmail.com
Management Team
The Austin Adobe Users Group is made possible through the continued service from volunteer coordinators and others.
Cornelius Chopin of Rich Media Services, Group Co-manager, Presenter
Jon Merrifield of Peli Studio, Group Co-manager, Presenter
Karen Kreps of Net Ingenuity Group Co-manager, Google Distribution List Manager/Website host
Join the Mailing List for News and Announcements from the Austin Adobe User Group.
The group maintains a “many-to-many” email list on Google Groups. Anyone may join. The list is used for official group announcements and members are welcome to use it to post news of interest to other Adobe users and well as provides a forum to pose questions and comments. Messages and replies sent to the list will go to all members. There are approximately 500 members on the list at any time.
Share your Skills and Talents
Showcase your skills by volunteering your skills and talents with website design, email management, and event coordination. Gain visibility for yourself and your company. Contact us about how you’d like to contribute.
Get Involved
Give a Presentation at a meeting
Speaking Opportunities for Adobe Users. Want to share tips and tricks of how you use Adobe products? Besides helping others learn, you can network with other Adobe enthusiasts. And you – and your contact info/website – will be listed as a presenter on this site. Contact us about your presentation
About the Group
Our mission is to:
- Provide a helpful and supportive environment for individuals who want to learn about web and multimedia design and development using Adobe products
- Provide opportunities for Adobe users to share information, tips, and tricks.
- Provide networking opportunities for web and multimedia professionals in the Austin, TX area.
Find other Adobe User Groups
All Adobe User Groups are listed at https://aem-augs.adobe.com/adobe-user-groups/
Twice-yearly Drawing for Adobe Software
To encourage people to join and participate in the local user groups, Adobe allows each user group to have a drawing twice a year for one Adobe software package valued up to $2,100. The Austin Adobe User group holds the drawings at the June and December meetings. All members who are present at the drawing are eligible to win their choice of an Adobe product that retails for up to $2,100.
How to increase your chances to win
- Attend the meetings. You must attend at least one meeting before the drawing to be a member and be eligible for the drawing. Each meeting you attend increases your chances.
- Do something that benefits the group – review a book, give a presentation, or contribute in another way. Giving a presentation at a meeting gives the most “bonus” tickets.
If you want to volunteer and earn extra tickets toward the drawing or have any questions, contact Karen Kreps, austinadobegroupmgr@gmail.com.
Website Credits
All work on the Austin Adobe User Group site is done by group members who volunteer their time. Many thanks to the following folks:
Karen Kreps, Net Ingenuity – hosting the site, maintaining the domain name, design team member
Jon Merrifield, Peli Studio – graphic design team member