April 15^th is just around the corner.  This year, instead of bemoaning our confiscatory federal and state tax rates (I worked until March 13^th of last year to pay my taxes – how ‘bout you?), let’s do something positive.  Next Tuesday, April 15^th, join us at MMOOS (Maine Macintosh Owners & Operators Society), our local Apple User Group, for our monthly meeting.  We’ll gather at 6:30 P.M. in the large meeting room in Bldg. 25 at Thornton Oaks Retirement Community in Brunswick.  See our web site at mmoos.net for directions.

Next week, after we get caught up on the latest hardware and software updates and rumors of upcoming goodies, we’re going to discuss Spring Cleaning.  Yes, it’s finally Springtime in Maine.  By the way, in the event of a blizzard or ice storm, be sure to check our web site for updates or postponements.  Just kidding.  Maybe.

Anyway, next week we’re gonna talk about all kinds of cleaning.  We’ll tackle physical cleaning.  We’ll answer burning questions like “What’s the best stuff to use on my computer’s display to rid it of fingerprints, food, and sneeze remnants?” and “Cat hair – computer friend or foe?”

We’ll also discuss file cleaning.  Over time your computer builds up a moldy, disgusting residue of unneeded, unwanted files that can get in the way and muck up the works.  There are many ways, manual and automatic, to combat these dirty dabs of data.

If you’re like me, sometimes “cleaning” means simply “moving stuff around”.  Therefore, we’ll also delve into tips on file management, backing up and storing data.  We’ll even try to answer the age-old question “Is it safe to throw this away?”  Hope to see you there.

Now, on to some real technology news.  A few short weeks ago, I reported in this space that Apple’s iTunes Store had moved into second place in retail music sales, just behind Wal-Mart.  Well, last week industry watchdog The NPD Group reported that iTunes has surpassed Wal-Mart in retail sales, garnering 19% of the market.  Since Wal-Mart deals almost entirely in CD sales, The NPD Group arrived at its conclusion by dividing iTunes’ individual song sales by 12, the number of songs on many CDs.

Any way you massage the numbers, CD sales are in trouble.  According to NPD’s research, 48% of U.S. teens didn’t buy a single CD in 2007, compared to 38% in 2006.