Some of you may know already that when I’m not scouring the web looking for sales, I work as an IT consultant in Florida. Florida is a particularly good place to be an IT consultant due to the particularly bad storms we get on a regular basis. It also happens to be a bad place to be anything electronic… but that’s another story. The past couple weeks have seen a number of lightning storms.

Every storm season I receive lots of calls from a clients about dead computers which won’t power up, have blinking lights, etc. Yesterday was no exception, I received a frantic call by one of my clients who complained that their computer wouldn’t power on. I scheduled an emergency appointment and was was promptly at their house soon after. Once I got there to assess the situation, both the power supply and motherboard had been blown by a surge.

They were immediately worried about losing their family pictures. I assured them that with my specialized arsenal of tools and software, I can usually retrieve any lost data in most cases. Most likely the procedure will finish without a hitch, but it is a time consuming process.

As I explained to them that there could be no guarantees until it was done, I reminded them of our conversation a few weeks ago. At that time, I recommended that they purchase a copy of goodsync, and a removable hard drive. I would then configure it to make automatic backups when they plugged it in. As most people who haven’t suffered data loss, they declined, and I left.

Had they made a different decision that day, they would have had an up to date backup of all their critical files, and I would have had them up and running yesterday. Because they didn’t however, they now have to pay for data recovery which, as I mentioned before, is a time consuming task.

Long story short… I have a feeling that they will have a different answer the next time I suggest a backup routine.

I recently heard from a friend of mine that he had a horrible experience reinstalling windows recently. His computer was running slow, and he wanted to erase it all and start over from scratch. Someone had told him about some elite hacker program that securely erases your computer and he couldn’t wait to do it so that he could call me and tell me how awesome it was. In hindsight, I bet he wishes he would have known I was completely familiar with DBAN already.

Unfortunately for my friend, the person who told him about the program neglected to mention that it would erase every hard drive connected to the computer. I bet you all just gasped, for good reason too. As most of you already guessed, when he ran the program he still had his external usb drive connected which contained his one and only “secure” backup.

At this point, he’s lost everything on his computer, including the backup he just finished making. In addition to the obvious losses of priceless photos, and other personal documents, this person had managed to rack up user accounts on hundreds of websites. He foolishly saved all this vital information, in a text document hidden away where he thought it was safe (which, it wasn’t, but thats another story). That text file is now gone, and he has a LOT of work ahead of him

You’re probably thinking, wow, it would be awful if that happened to me, but I bet it would be a whole lot worse than you’re even imagining. Losing that one file is pretty much the same thing as losing your wallet, so let’s play a game. Get out a piece of paper, and write down everything that you carry in your wallet/purse, and who you would have to contact to replace each one. When you’re sure you’ve got it all, check your wallet. I’ll wait…

…

…

Ok, so how did you do? If you’re like most people the first things on your list were probably credit and debit cards. Somehow they are always on our minds, right? You’re next couple items might be your drivers license, and maybe a membership card or two… after that I bet everything got a bit fuzzy, right?. You start asking yourself questions like, did I have a discount card to AMC or Regal? CVS or Walgreens? Who do I call to get a new birth certificate? Will they need my drivers license before they give me my birth certificate? Will I need my birth certificate to get my drivers license? I’m sure you get the idea… It get’s messy quick!

The same thing happens with your online accounts… you always remember a few basics, like who your email provider is (gmail, hotmail, yahoo); what portal do you use as your home page (google, yahoo, msn); your favorite social networking site is (facebook, twitter, myspace); you might even get a few more. However, once you get past 5-10 sites, you start forgetting them completely. You ask yourself things like “when I had a problem with my car last year I found a forum that really helped and seemed very well informed, but what was the name” or, “My ex’s friend told me about this really cool site, but we don’t talk since the breakup… what was it called?” That is all forgetting the obvious fact that most people don’t even remember their login data if they manage to GET to the website they want.

So, what’s the solution? Well, Roboform itself is a great start. It remembers all your passwords securely… but it only goes so far if you wipe your hard drive like my friend did. SiberSystems makes another product, GoodSync, that works perfectly in this situation. GoodSync will backup sections of your hard drive to other locations that you choose. Most of the time this would be to an external drive. However, when you lose your main copy, AND the backup simultaniously… this STILL doesn’t help you, by itself.

What I neglected to mention, is that when you combine the two products, you can instead backup to RoboForm’s online backup service– FOR FREE! That way, if my friend ever suffers another a catastrophic loss… he will rest soundly with the knowledge that his login data will be safe. It also serves the dual purpose of easing multiple roboform installations. Mine is set up to automatically sync up login data between my desktop, laptop, and my android phone instantly over the internet. That way I always have the information I need on the go. Depending on what information you store, it might just help you with that wallet problem as well!

• NEVR2 on Roboform.com
• NEVR3 on Goodsync.com.

Keep in mind that you still need to click the “Buy RF Pro” link in their top navigation in order for the coupon code box to show up. If you click the main banner to purchase you will not be given the option.

Happy shopping, and be sure to pass the word on…

For a limited time, you will only pay $9.95 for each additional license! Even better still, you CAN combine this special with our exclusive coupon code NEVR1 during checkout.

Normal price: 29.95+29.95 = 59.90
Sale price       : ( 29.95+9.95 ) -  20% = 31.91

That is an effective savings of almost 50%!!!! To put it another way, when you combine these two offers, you actually get your second copy for about 2 dollars!!! As you continue to purchase additional licenses, your discount will get even larger.

Don’t miss out, because this is one heck of a deal.

To start off, if you’re like me, you’re probably subscribed to dozens of store newsletters… that is, in addition to being an avid reader of my site for the select deals I think deserve being posted. I don’t know if you noticed …but my email has been blowing up with a mass of back to school sales lately.

Most of it is trash that you really don’t even want; however the one or two really nice deals are usually gone before you get a chance to read them. So, using a form filling program like roboform may make the difference between catching, or missing the sale of a lifetime. You even get a discount from SiberSystems just for being a reader of our website.

When you go to roboform’s website, just enter the coupon code NEVR1 and you will receive 20% off your entire order. That can really add up if you’re a proud parent buying it for all your college-bound kids… you can even grab yourself a copy while you’re there!

The one problem I had with RoboForm has been that I have so many computers (not their fault of course). I would be out on a job with my laptop, and be missing a passcard from my desktop. This often happened in reverse as well. If I needed to sign up for something while I was on a job, I would rarely get it synced up to my desktop for weeks.

The guys at SiberSystems tried to make our lives easier by creating GoodSync. With it, I was able to effortlessly sync my roboform data to and from my usb flash drive between all my desktops and laptops. However, it was still tedious, because if I had forgotten my usb drive, I would still not be up to date.

But… Once again SiberSystems comes to the rescue. They are now offering a free webdav server to all roboform Pro license holders. This WebDAV server is compatible with goodsync, and easily configurable through roboform.

For further information on this great new FREE feature check out this page out. Also, it is only free for roboform Pro owners. If you haven’t already bought this awesome program, be sure to get 20% off your entire order with the coupon code NEVR1 during checkout.

IMHO roboform is an essential piece of software for anyone, and the pro version makes it possible to save more passwords and more profiles than the rather limited free version. Personally, I own a copy for every pc I own, AND a roboform2go license for my u3 flash drive!

Thanks to the generous people at sibersystems, we are able to give 3 lucky people this software at the UNBEATABLE PRICE OF… well.. free. Someone would have to PAY YOU for it to be any cheaper!

For those of you who were in the first contest for goodsync pro, the same rules apply. We will be giving out 3 licenses to 3 lucky readers. These are 100% authentic, and you can contact us, or SiberSystems directly if you have any problems activating. After you are up and going you will need to contact SiberSystems for technical support, but they are very responsive.

All entries will be accepted in the form of a comment posted below.

The first license will be given away door prize style to the FIRST eligible person to leave a comment. Basically, if you are reading this and there is no comment yet… post one quick! The second and third licenses will be given away with a mixture of a contest/drawing.

The drawing method will work exactly how you might imagine. Leave a comment, and at the end of the giveaway I will randomly choose two winners. Any entry that appears to have substantial thought/content will get preferential treatment (contest style). This sounds pretty vague… because it is. Impress me. If half the entries say "hey give me free stuff", then try to put a bit more effort into yours.

This drawing will probably go on for a week or two depending on the demand. I want to make sure that anyone who would like to enter has a chance. I will announce via a comment when the contest is over, and who the winners were.

Ideas for posts:

• Simple ‘give me free stuff’ or ‘enter me in the drawing’
• Have you used roboform before? Did you like it?
• Are you still using roboform now? Do you have any tips or tricks for new users?
• Have you tried any competitors software? How does it compare?
• Do you think we have an awesome website, that gives away awesome software awesomely? That’s awesome!

Standard boilerplate legalese aside, don’t try to cheat the contest. You MAY leave more than one comment, however you will only be counted once. You are not eligible if you are affiliated with this website, roboform, or any employees thereof. If you think you may not be eligible… you probably aren’t. Shoot me an email if you aren’t sure.

Most importantly… You MUST use a valid email address to enter . However, you will NOT receive any spam from us. The email address is necessary to send you your license keys, we can not be held responsible for sending your free license to the wrong person because you decided to use a fake email address.

Ebook readers have been around for years. I remember seeing ebook readers selling for almost the same as a full computer just a few years back. However, even at the excessive price they demanded, they were plagued with issues. Heavy, Short battery life, clumsy interfaces, difficulty to load books, as well as the overall scarcity of ebooks in general. After you ignore ALL of their problems, they still wanted almost the same amount for a digital copy as the paperback. They really were not a very good deal back then.

A couple years back Amazon saw all these problems, and revolutionized the ebook industry. They released a relatively light ebook reader named the kindle. The price was pretty reasonable, considering the going rate, and the relative hassle of some of their competitors.

One of the kindles revolutionary ideas Amazon had was the absolutely free internet access that they include in the purchase price. The internet access is limited to the kindle store; however you can subscribe to your favorite blogs for a monthly cost. With that being said, the convenience that an always-available connection affords you is amazing. ‘Competitor’ ebook makers would expect you to find a wifi hotspot– Worse yet, some would have you drive home, and plug in to your computer to sync! How is that convenient at ALL?

The second feature that sets the kindle apart from the competitors is what they call ‘e-ink.’ E-ink, also known as electronic paper, is basically a very thin display technology that consumes virtually no power when displaying static images. Most of the time when reading a book you are only looking at static images. You read a page for a minute or two, then you flip the page. Using E-ink allows their device an astonishing 2 weeks with wireless off.

What also helped the success of the original Kindle was the backing of amazon. One of our nations largest suppliers of books. They used their industry position to bring together one of the largest collections of ebooks in one location as well. On top of that, nearly every book, magazine, or other publication they sell is significantly less expensive than their hardcover, and often softcover counterparts. If you are a big book buyer, you will save a fortune and no longer be limited to library left overs to get a discount.

Amazon is continuing their innovation with the Kindle2. Here’s a quick rundown of the new features and improvements:

• Slim & Lightweight : Just over 1/3 inch and 10.2 ounces
• Books in under 60 seconds : Get books delivered in less than 60 seconds; no PC required
• Improved Display : Reads like real paper; now boasts 16 shades of gray for crisp images and text; even reads well in bright sunlight
• Longer Battery Life : 25% longer battery life; read for days without recharging
• More Storage : Take your library with you; holds over 1,500 books
• Faster Page Turns : 20% faster page turns
• Read-to-Me : Text-to-Speech feature means Kindle can read every book, blog, magazine, and newspaper out loud.
• No Wireless Bills : No monthly wireless bills, data plans, or commitments. Amazon pays for Kindle’s wireless connectivity so you won’t see a monthly wireless bill.
• Large Selection : Over 230,000 books, plus U.S. and international newspapers, magazines and blogs available
• Low Book Prices : New York Times Best Sellers and New Releases $9.99, unless marked otherwise

Firstly, a big thank you to all our loyal readers who have continued to check in with us over the past few weeks. The holidays ended up overloading us over here, more than expected. However things are starting to slow down, and we’re finally starting to get caught up. A while back, we promised you some articles on getting good deals locally, and they’re still coming. Unfortunately we did not get them ready to post before the holiday rush.

We also had planned a special gift which was never even announced. It was originally planned to be either the week before or the week of Christmas. However, because of the holidays, there was an unexpected delay  in processing the licenses. So, unfortunately by the time they were in-hand, it was too late to be either a Christmas or Hanukkah gift. Once we missed the holidays it seemed less urgent, and got side tracked… sorry. We were going to wait for another holiday, but decided a gift is better late than never!

Some time within the next week or so, we are going to be announcing a drawing for 3 free licenses of GoodSync! The drawing will work as follows. Each of the licenses will be given to the people who post comments in the next post about the drawing which will be coming soon. This will likely be the very next post, however if we see something that is just too good to pass up, we will post it first.

The way the drawing will work is as follows: The first person to comment will receive one license. The remaining two will be given to either the best comment (see below, chosen by us), or chosen by random. Which of these two methods we use will be loosely based on the quality and quantity of the comments posted.

When you make your post be SURE to include a VALID email address. This address will not be shown publicly, and you will not receive any spam from us; however, if you do not include a real email address, we will have no way to send you your registration information.

For anyone who doesn’t win, does not want to wait, or needs more than one license; you can always go to the goodsync website and apply the coupon NEVRG during checkout and you will receive 20% off your whole order.

The most popular uses for GoodSync, in my experience, is the ability to sync your My Documents and/or RoboForm data to a external/flash drive automatically. This is absolutely critical if you make frequent use of the ‘generate’ function in RoboForm when creating new logins. If you do not have your roboform data backed up, a hard drive crash could be even more devastating! It is also quite useful to sync your data between RoboForm desktop and RoboForm2Go (usb/u3), so that you have the same information at home and on the road.

My two favorite features are the ability to run when you insert a usb drive, and the option to to ‘tag’ the sync directories. This makes routine backups nearly completely automated. The tagging is to prevent syncing to an incorrect drive that has stolen the original drive letter.

For those who want to prepare for the drawing could do a couple things.

1. You should add our feed to your favorite rss reader.
2. You should either check it, or our site, frequently to make sure you are the first one to comment on it.
3. Download GoodSync from their site and give it a try. The trial version works quite well, and gives you a very good feel for the program. When you register it (or win the drawing) it will remove all the various file/size limitations which come with the free version.
4. If you would like to do a simple ‘give me free stuff’, or ‘NeverPayeTail is so awesome’ comment, that is perfectly acceptable. You may still win that way. However those who posted a detailed comment will be given priority.
5. Telling us how awesome our site is will certainly not hurt; but it will likely not be the deciding factor.

The request at the end of the post announcing the drawing will be to write a comment detailing why you like, or would like to have GoodSync. You could also post about what you plan on using it for. We would also love to hear your comparisons (both positive and negative) between GoodSync and other competing products.

If a post stands out as being especially detailed, useful, thought out, or any other consideration we may make up… That person will likely win one of the licenses before any one line comment. Again, you do not HAVE to post a detailed comment, and writing one does not GUARANTEE you to win the drawing. However, those who do will get extra brownie points, and we all know that everybody loves brownies

Finally, we have to get to the sticky stuff. If you are in any way related to anyone who helps maintain this site, anyone at SiberSystems, or any affiliate thereof, you ARE NOT eligible to enter, or win this drawing. Please refrain from doing so.

PS Feel free to comment below, but this is NOT the post to comment on, to win the drawing! It should be in the next week.

While normally, RoboForm makes things much easier to create an account, or update an existing one… Today is the BEST time to get RoboForm. The reason? Let’s face it, the best sales on black friday do not last long at all. On more than one occasion I have purchased something online at a sale price, later finding out the retailer will not honor the sale because they ran out of stock. This has even happened on major retailers websites, even when the purchase was done while they supposedly had plenty in stock.

So how does RoboForm help you? Well, with RoboForm’s help you can finish your checkout faster. When a etailer runs out of a product, the available stock is given on a first-come first served fashion. Normally a 1-2 minute delay while you find all your information is simply a unnecessary inconvenience. On black friday, it could be the difference between getting a product on time, getting it late, or never getting it at all!

ALRIGHT! Now that you’re all psyched up about getting roboform and blowing your savings on a new iphone, or big screen tv for you or your lucky family members… just remember to use the coupon code NEVR1 when you check out. Why? Because then the people at sibersystems will give you 20% off… What is better than saving money on something that helps you save money? The answer: nothing!