Cinch for Mac

Cinch, developed by Irradiated Software, is an elegant, mouse-driven solution to window management. Inspired by Microsoft's Windows Explorer, Cinch is based off the idea of "hot-zones". Once you drag a window into one of the zones (either left, right, menubar), an outline of your resized window will appear on the screen. Just drop the window into the hot-zone and the application window will be resized. Cinching to the right or left side of the screen will resize the window to exactly half the screen's resolution. The top hot-zone resizes to will the entire screen. Dragging a window away from its cinched position will restore the window to its original size.

Drag a window to a "hot-zone" to see a preview of the resize.

Cinch automatically resizes your window to the desired length (determined by "hot-zone").

You can download the free version (occasional pop-up), or purchase a license for yourself over at the Irradiated Software store. I will be posting a video review of Cinch on my YouTube channel, which can be found here.

SyncMate

Syncing and backing up your contacts, calendars, music, photos, videos, and other data between multiple devices can be challenging. Of course, you can copy each item manually between multiple computers, phones, and MP3 players, but that can be a real headache and cost you time… time that you can save.

With SyncMate, developed by Eltima Software, you can easily sync your data between multiple Macs, PCs, Google accounts, flash drives, and even online storage systems! SyncMate is offered in two editions: Free and Expert. With the free download provides options for syncing your iCal and Address Book data with other Macs and/or Google services.

Those looking for more advanced features should look towards the Expert version, which is available for $39.95 at the Eltima online store. Such a license adds support for syncing iTunes and iPhoto libraries, bookmarks, emails, and even specified folders on your computer. SyncMate even supports the automatic real-time synchronization of files and folders throughout your devices (via AutoSync options).

As you can tell, I am quite a fan of SyncMate myself. Not only does it eliminate the need for Dropbox and other syncing services, but it provides a simple solution to keeping all of my devices up-to-date. You can download the free version and/or purchase an Expert license for yourself here.

Also, be sure to check out the ReviewLocker blog, where I will soon be hosting a giveaway of an Expert license for SyncMate! Subscribe to the RSS feed to be notified when the giveaway article is posted!

Elago L2 Stand

Direct link: http://bit.ly/elagoL2

The Elago L2 Stand for notebook computers helps elevate your laptop to a more comfortable eye-level while providing a simple cooling system. It's sleek, unibody aluminum design dissipates heat efficiently and gives the stand a modern look. The construction is very sturdy; the grips on the top and bottom of the unit ensure that the stand and your laptop stay securely in place.

You can learn more and/or order one for yourself here.

How To Host a Successful Giveaway

This article was originally posted on the ReviewLocker blog, which can be found here.

A successful giveaway should be beneficial for everyone – the host, the sponsor(s), and the reader. There are multiple steps to achieving this, and hopefully, the following bits of advice should help ensure that you profit from your next giveaway.

Choosing the Right Item - Whether you buy the prize yourself or receive one from the sponsor, you must make sure that it is right for your audience. Remember this crucial tip: “the bigger the prize, the more suspicious it seems”. Choose your item based off the size of your audience. If you have a low number of (unique) site visitors, it would be better to stick to a gift card or other “low-value” item. Giving away an expensive item (ie. iPad, iPhone, $100+ gift card) can raise suspicion from your viewers who no longer trust you. (After all, who can afford to give away something that expensive in return for a few votes/comments?) However, the opposite goes for larger community websites. A giveaway of a $15 iTunes gift card on a YouTube channel with 25000 subscribers will only lower your reputation. Just remember to keep it realistic. More is not always better.

Setting Requirements - Having too many requirements will only cause your viewers to feel as though the amount of work is too much when compared to the chances of winning. On the other hand, having only one step to enter (ie. follow, subscribe, vote) will not allow you to benefit as much as you possibly can from the giveaway. One of the biggest mistakes I see in giveaways would be what I call the "comment on this video" technique. While this can cause a lot of user interaction, it can be a major problem for you, the host, down the road. Your giveaway video will soon become your most viewed, commented, and "liked" video, thus the number 1 result on search results. This is a problem, as the giveaway is most likely closed by then; this gives a bad "first impression" to your new viewers.

How I Do Things - One strategy I like to use involves some planning with the sponsor(s) beforehand. My method involves redirecting viewers to another blog post/video. Instead of telling your viewers to "comment on this video", link them to your best/most-recent video and have them do any of their commenting/"liking" there. This will cause your best video to also become your most popular, which gives you a better reputation and results in more new viewers/readers.

Choosing a Winner - Choosing a winner can actually be quite unfair in some cases. In reality, you are giving the comment "cool" the same chance of winning as a well thought-out compliment. Provide an incentive to spend time writing a nice comment. Not only will this help you in SEO (keywords!), but it will result in more user interaction, which sponsors love.

Presenting the Giveaway - Make sure that you write a well thought-out blog post that lists the requirements clearly (bold text usually does the job). If you are making a YouTube video, keep it quick and to-the-point. Also, never "film your hands holding a gift card against a wood table backdrop for 5 minutes". Be creative! Try placing the requirements in text over images of the prize. Your video should never be over 3 mins, or it will become to boring for the viewer.

Conclusion - I hope this collection of tips has helped you out in one way or another. if you are thinking of hosting a giveaway (or are currently hosting one), feel free to leave a comment with a link to the blog post/video. Speaking of giveaways, I will be hosting one of the Richard Solo Mini-Boom Speakers on my YouTube channel.

RichardSolo E-Smooth Ebony Headphones

Direct link: http://bit.ly/ebonyRL

Since the early days of music, wood has provided the richest, best sounding instruments and audio equipment. Nothing manmade has come close to the beautiful tone of ebony wood. This is why the very best of pianos, guitars, and woodwinds are made from this material. Now, Richard Solo has come out with their own pair of exceptional headphones constructed out of real ebony wood.

The Richard Solo E-Smooth Ebony headphones are made of the highest quality materials possible, and weighing less than an ounce, they are so light and comfortable that you won't even notice that you're wearing them.

Designed to fit snugly in your ears, these earphones provide the best audio quality for their price range. Taking advantage of the 8mm drivers built in, the RS Ebony headphones resonate a powerful bass and clear highs, which cannot be found in many headphones today.

This pair of earbuds include an in-line microphone with an easy one-click answering button for phones calls. The swappable silicone tips allow you to seal out unwanted noise and enjoy your music in a noise-isolating environment. Standard headphones cannot match the Richard Solo E-Smooth Ebony headphones. Try a pair and discover what you've been missing out!

http://richardsolo.com