Send complete details about your meetings or events! Please include the name of your group, the website and contact e-mail for your group, the date and time of the event, the event location (with a link to directions if possible), and a description of the event itself. The more information you provide, the easier it is for potential members to find you.

PlanoMUG
http://www.planomug.com
Dallas, Texas
Wednesday, December 20, 7:00 PM
Bavarian Grill "Banket Room"

MacTechnnics
http://www.mactechnics.org
Ann Arbor, MI
December 9
Ann Arbor Open @ Mack, 920 Miller Ave, Ann Arbor, MI 48103-3349

ExaMUG
http://www.examug.org.uk
Exeter, UK
December 12
ISCA College, Exeter

Greenville, SC MUG

MacPeople
http://www.macpeoplemug.org
Gainesville, Florida
Thursday, December 14, 6PM
University of Florida Campus

Double Click
http://www.double-click.org
Milwaukee, WI
Sunday, December 17th

Willing to buy a refurb? $149 and free shipping--at least for now. Refurb iPods are flying out of the Apple store as fast as they're being posted. If you're looking for a refurb, be vigilant. Keep checking the inventory on a daily (or even hourly) basis.

The Star article states that American consumers may spend as much as $21 billion on gadgets during the end-of-the-year shopping season.

According to MacWorld UK, the Copyright Office of the US Library of Congress has rejected a petition which requested that owners of iPods and other portable media players be allowed to rip the CDs and DVDs they own to their own playback devices. You'd imagine, wouldn't you, that you should be allowed to transfer material you own so long as you make sure that multiple copies would never be played simultaneously. But no. The RIAA strenuously disagrees. Apparently space-shifting and format-shifting do not count as non-infringing uses.

You can read the Electronic Freedom Foundation's reply to the ruling here.

Once again, let me apologize for the lateness of this update. But how often do your parents celebrate their fiftieth wedding anniversaries? (Hint: if you add a note of congratulations to the comment section, I'll be sure to forward it on to them!)

US Video

US: American Gangster, Episode 101
Think crime pays? This searing BET original program will demand that you think again. Six hour-long episodes chronicle the lives and demises of the nation's most ruthless and newsworthy kingpins. Watch how Nicky Barnes goes from heroin druglord to merciless snitch; uncover the links between "Freeway" Rick Ross, crack cocaine, the U.S. government, and the Contras; and find out more about some of Black America's most notorious criminals.

US: Frisky Dingo/Meet Killface Episode
Killface, the most evil villain of all time ever, is halfway bent on destroying the Earth. Meanwhile his nemesis, Awesome-X, is ambivalent about stopping him, as it might just crush toy sales.

US: 2006 PGA Grand Slam of Golf: Episode 1, Golf Strategies, Tough Shots and Around the Green
The PGA and iTunes have paired up to bring you exclusive access to professional golf's hardest tournament to qualify for: The 2006 PGA Grand Slam of Golf. This season-ending showcase of major champions features 4 of golf's elite as they vie for a $1.25 million purse and recognition as the "best of the best." Competing will be the reigning British Open and PGA champion Tiger Woods, 2006 U.S. Open champion Geoff Ogilvy, Major Champions Points List leader and winner of the 2003 U.S. Open and 2003 PGA Grand Slam of Golf Jim Furyk, and Canadian Mike Weir, who finished third in the Major Champions Points List and won his first major championship when he captured the 2003 Masters.

US: Real World Casting Special, Season 18
We're heading to the Mile High City where our 7 strangers will not only discover a Rocky Mountain high in the trendy nightlife scene, but will work as Outward Bound counselors for kids who were affected by Hurricane Katrina. Get ready for a season packed full of adventure as The Real World reaches new heights, literally, as the roommates scale mountains and learn how to live in the wilderness.

US: 30 Rock, Episode 103
Jack plays matchmaker, setting Liz up on a blind date - Confident he can fix both Liz Lemon's (Tina Fey) sketch show and sex life, overbearing boss Jack (Alec Baldwin) sets Liz up on a blind date with his friend Thomas. With Liz readying herself for her blind date, Jack infiltrates the writers' weekly poker game.

More freebies after the jump...

Good news for iMovie 6 users. Gee Three has updated several of their Slick plug-in volumes. These plug-ins add all sorts of visual effects to iMovie for the amateur video enthusiast. Apparently, the reason for the updates is that the iMovie/QuickTime interface wasn't too happy handling flash animations. The Gee Three developers created work-arounds for the affected volumes, namely volumes 5, 7, 8, 9 and 10. If you've bought any of these products, you can download the Slick 2.0.2 updates at the GeeThree site.

Man. How the time passes. Sometimes the TUAW posts flick by so fast that it's just too easy to miss a gem or two. Here's our favorite posts of the week brought together for your enjoyment. If you're looking for a nice post to read as you kick back and enjoy your early Sunday cappuccino, consider these offerings. Try not to spill the cappuccino on your Apple keyboard.

Rumor: Apple iPhone could be sold unlocked?
David considers competition in the mobile phone market and suggests that your Apple iPhone service might just be a SIM card away.

iPod's glow helps rescue lost mushroom picker
Once again we learn that iPods save lives. Don't go out without one.

Most. Effusive. MacBook Pro. Review. Ever.
Laurie tracked down a very amusing review.

New Mac OS X Exploit?
A possible Safari/Denial-of-Service exploit surfaced this week. Or not. The debate rages on.

Is Apple Doomed?
Check out the "humor" tag on this one, dudes.

Five blogging apps I'm thankful for
It wouldn't be Thanksgiving without a TUAW thankful post. Here's Scott's post about his favorite blogging apps. Me? I'm thankful for plentiful antacids and the ability to return home safely after family reunions.

MacBook Marionette
Dan tracked down this super-cool video of an animated figure controlled by a PowerBook's motion sensor.

US: Nothing at All by Wired All Wrong
Wired All Wrong is the project of Jeff Turzo (God Lives Underwater) and Matt Mahaffey (Self). "Nothing at All" is taken from their debut, Break Out the Battle Tapes. This track shows that the group knows how to chop and stutter beats under a layer of scratched-up dirty guitars.

US : Tamacun by Rodrigo y Gabriela
Rodrigo y Gabriela helps to bridge that divide between Dublin and Meixco with its fluid, acoustic workouts. The group (who is from Mexico Citym, but has been in Ireland for years) has a sense of drama inherited from its love of both classical and metal.

US : Via Lactea by Zoe
Mexico's Zoe gives us this free Single of the Week. "Via Lactea" starts with a moody underpinning of atmospheric sounds before lurching into a detached glam-rock stomp. This track takes a cue from the spacier side of the Brit-pop world, but infuses its own murky noise into the blend.

Now, now boys. Can't we just all get along?

As for me, I saw Cars at Walmart for just over 13 bucks and snatched up a copy rather than download the $12.99 version at iTunes, which I'd actually been planning to do. iTunes may cost less, but you don't get that nifty actual disk and all the extras. (Of course, you don't get all the stupid can't-forward-through-the-FBI-warnings either.)

We're always proud of our work here at TUAW but we understand that you have lives. You have to work. You have to sleep. You have to eat. And other stuff. Lots and lots of others stuff. You can't be here 24/7 the way you want to. Or at least the way we wish you'd want to. Or even the way our advertisers wish that we wish that you'd want to. Or...well, you get the idea. So keeping that in mind, here's a round-up of our favorite TUAW articles this week in case you blinked and missed them the first time 'round. Enjoy!

• Universal Music CEO says iPods are "repositories for stolen music"
  CEO Doug Morris slung mud at the entire installed iPod customer base as he promoted his protection money extortion innovative Zune royalty scheme.
• TUAW Tip: How to enable Front Row on the Mac Pro
  It's a bit of a hack, but your Mac Pro really can run Front Row properly.
• Neat iSight trick - Seeing you, seeing me
  Laurie found us this great little trick to embed video from your iSight into your web page.
• iTunes: Free Tuesday
  Erica's weekly Free Tuesday post made its TUAW debut this week. Everything listed is still free until this coming Tuesday, so take a look and download some great free tracks and videos.
• TUAW Mythbusting: Core 2 Duo with 3GB RAM slower than with 2GB?
  TUAW readers compared the myths and merits of dual channel memory and possible system performance enhancements.
• Taiwan manufacturer gets order for Apple "iPhone" handset
  All the iPhone rumors suddenly became more plausable as information about Hon Hai, aka Foxconn Electronics, came to light.
• TUAW Podcast #15: The Delicious Cast
  Did you miss this week's podcast? No worries as there's still plenty of time to download this episode and catch up with the TUAW crew as they chat about the "Delicious Generation".
• Zune software review
  Dan brings us up to date about what he thinks of the Zune. No, really!
• Chat with Woz
  Here's your chance to spend some time with the great one himself. The Woz.

Fortunately for you, you're not alone. Website the mini Blog offers a great how-to today that guides you through the steps of getting your Apple keyboard shiny and clean and fluff-free.

Don't forget to take a picture of your keyboard before disassembling it. It will really help when you need to reattach all your keys.