“A.J. is an excellent trainer and very knowledgeable. He is always up to date on current developments.”
Gene McCullagh, Adobe Community Professional, Lightroom Secrets

“I worked with A.J. at SECURUS Technologies while he was a contractor being utilized as a Trainer for the Facility Manager application. A.J. was always professional and became very knowledgeable of the application in a very short amount of time. I was able to travel with him to a few sites to witness him in action and was very impressed. Our customers came to call for him because of his ability to train them to their satisfaction. I would recommend him to any organization needing his expertise.”
Micheal Miller, Implementation – Project Manager, Securus Technologies

“Probably the best instructor I’ve seen. Though he mainly instructs on Adobe and MS-Office products, his teaching style can be applied to any program.”
David Krein, Operations Officer, GUILD – Graphic Users Interactive Learning & Development

“A.J. is a member of the DFW North Photoshop/Digital Photography Meetup www.photoshop.meetup.com/219. His assistance and advisory counsel to our meetup is stellar. Meetings he has led have always been the most popular and beneficial to our membership. The meetings have highlighted his command of Photoshop and All Adobe products. To anyone wanting corporate education in Adobe products, A.J.’s ability to teach is incomparable. He teaches from his ability to understand composition and talent for creating superior art. A.J. is an amazing talent and we are most happy to have him not only as a resource but as a member of our group.”
Cliff Weaver

“I have known A.J. Wood since May 1, 1995. As team leader of systems administration at Alexsis, Inc., I found A.J. to be a valuable asset to the group. His technical strengths and attention to details were augmented by an eagerness to learn and assume new responsibilities. He was often called upon to step up to sometimes daunting challenges in a very difficult work environment and always rose to the challenge.”
Christopher Zygmunt, System Administrator Team Lead, Alexsis

“A.J. has a wealth of knowledge about a great variety of software products, including but not limited to all the Adobe/Macromedia products. He imparts this knowledge to students in a way that is both interesting and informative. He has a nice speaking manner and doesn’t talk down to anyone. A.J. is a certified Adobe Instructor. I highly recommend A.J. and Media Cats for continuing education and specific software training needs.”
Dana Weitz

“A.J. is a remarkable artist and instructor. He produces eye-catching results regardless of the medium. His advanced knowledge of and experience with Adobe products, and his approachable and easy demeanor engages and holds his audience. He exemplifies all the traits of excellence and professionalism.”
Terry Wooten

“AJ is very professional, friendly and efficient. He does the job he says he’ll do and always gives more than he promises. I would highly recommend AJ for any job. Annette Maxberry-Carrara Publisher Wisdom House Books”
Annette Maxberry-Carrara

“Here is a person who gives back. No concept goes unanswered. He has a solution for every question. Personable, easy to work with and brings value to team. I will use his services anytime!”
Robert Neff

“A.J.’s expertise in Adobe products are evident in the displays of his skills in items like Photoshop and other creative-based software and is a great contributor to the DFW Adobe User’s Group (dfwaug.net). We are very fortunate to have him available as a resource.”
Kevin Stagg, Manager, Dallas/Fort Worth Adobe User Group

While I haven’t started on the job yet, I’m certain the next few months will be extremely busy as I ramp up on new technologies (Adobe is more than just the Creative Suite). It is my intention to continue producing regular content, and I hope you’ll continue to help me grow our community of creatives. Remember, videos are derived from your questions, so keep them coming and please share the content with your friends.

I am extremely thankful for everyone who has supported me through the years. Whether it’s online via social media, in person at events, or simply as a fan, all of you have been the well I’ve turned to time & time again, through good times and bad.

2012 is shaping up to be one helluva year. Who’s ready for some more adventures?

One of the leading topics leading up to this announcement has been the addition of subscription model pricing to Adobe products. CNET has a review on why you might like subscription pricing. Here are some clarifications on what the subscription model means to consumers:

1. Adobe’s subscription pricing does not mean you cannot purchase a box copy of the full Creative Suite 6 or individual software such as Photoshop. You can choose a Creative Cloud subscription OR buy the box product as before.

2. Using the Creative Cloud service does not mean you have to be connected to the Internet 24×7. Adobe software is still loaded & run locally on your computer. Subscriptions are simply verified online at the end of each billing cycle (every 30 days).

3. If you purchase Photoshop or other Creative Suite software you must buy it for the OS platform of your choice, either Mac or PC. A single purchase allows for a two computer install. Creative Cloud subscribers will be allowed to install on one Mac & one PC simultaneously.

4. Creative Cloud subscribers get access to the ENTIRE suite of Adobe software including iPad & Android apps.

5. Subscription pricing is available on a month-to-month basis, one year option (still paid monthly), student & teacher option AND current CS3-CS5 owners can subscribe at an intro discount.

In the upcoming weeks I’ll be detailing features in the Creative Suite 6. So are you going to purchase CS6 or give the subscription service a try?

onOne Software has updated Perfect Photo Suite to version 6.1 improving overall performance of the suite. Current PPS 6.0 users can download the 6.1 update directly from onOne’s website. Enhancements include faster performance with Perfect Portrait, brush improvements in Perfect Mask, and various performance options that can be set by the customer. onOne has listened to you providing stability, speed, and compatibility with Lightroom 4 & the recently released public beta of Photoshop CS6. They have also made Perfect Layers 2 & Perfect Effects 3 FREE to the public. NOTE - if you own the Perfect Photo Suite 6 you already have a copy of Perfect Layers & Perfect Effects.

Mashable has provided two Apple Scripts you can download to check and see if your Mac is infected. CNET has instructions on how to manually remove the malware. Currently, anti-virus providers have not updated their software with an automatic removal solution. Also note, Apple released a security update on April 3^rd, but it only applies if you are running OS X Lion. Snow Leopard users are STILL vulnerable to the Flashback malware. Apple’s update closes the vulnerability it does not clean infected computers.

While Mac users are not plagued with as many attacks as PC users, this should not prevent Mac users from being proactive in securing their computers. Here are some guidelines to help secure your Mac:

1. Do not logon with an Admin account. The default user account installed account on a Mac has complete Admin rights. You should create a new user account with limited privileges and only use the Admin account when you need to perform tasks such as installing software.
2. Disable Java. This is not the same thing as JavaScript. In Safari go to Safari>Preferences>Security and uncheck “Enable Java”. For the OS go to the Applications folder then Utilities then  Java Preferences. Uncheck everything in the General tab. (Java is not installed on OS X Lion by default)
3. Check for updates. Set OS X to check for updates at least once a week.
4. Turn on OS X’s firewall.
5. Consider third party anti-virus tools. This is an often debated topic, but there are many free utilities that do little to slowdown Mac system performance.

Preventing malware & virus infections starts with smart computing habits. Be alert & aware as you surf the Internet, and before you open that image ask yourself, “Would my mom really send me a nude picture of Snooki?”

It was great to catch up with so many folks I know primarily through Facebook, Twitter & the Interwebs. Folks like Rich Harrington Brian Matiash, Dave Clayton, David Kelly, Lindsay Adler & Calvin Hollywood, were great to finally meet in person. It was excellent to see good friends Erik Bernskiold, Kevin Stohlmeyer, Dawn Camp, Glyn Dewis, David & LaDawn Ziser, Mel Reyes-Abbey & Michelle Hedstrom. I met a lot of new folks including Robert Herrera & Michael Mueller, and truly I could have spent another week just catching up with folks. As it was I barely had a chance to speak with Joey Wright, David Cuerdon & the Kelby crew, e.g., Nancy, Stephanie, Rob Sylvan (thanks again for the referrals–that’s SO COOL!), RC, MattK & of course Mr. Scott Kelby.

If you’ve never been to Photoshop World, you’ll have another chance to go September 5-7. You won’t be disappointed.