Manage Your Files With System Navigator

If you want to move a file from folder A to folder B, or delete a few files here and there, then Windows Explorer has your basic needs covered. But if you want to do a little bit more with your files—share them on your favorite social networks, work with archived files, or secure your files—you need a file manager with a little more oomph. You need a file manager like ExeOne's System Navigator ($35, thirty-day free trial).

System Navigator features a dual-window interface that makes it easy to move and copy files.After you install System Navigator, it replaces Microsoft's Windows Explorer as your navigational system for your PC. The change does take some getting used to, as System Navigator replaces Windows' familiar folders with a more intricate interface that's full of unfamiliar icons and plenty of text. The result can be intimidating at first, as it1s hard to know where to begin. Add to that the fact that ExeOne's help is limited, and it's easy to feel lost in System Navigator.

If you're prepared to learn about System Navigator's many options through trial and error, you'll soon be impressed by just how much this utility has to offer. Its dual-window interface lets you quickly move and copy files, without the incessant dragging and dropping that Windows Explorer requires. If you want to preview the file in question, System Navigator lets you do that, too. You can even perform limited photo editing from within the preview, a nice touch if you only need to make a quick fix.

System Navigator includes plenty of advanced features, too. You can upload photos directly to social networks like Facebook and Flickr; you can create and unpack archived folders; and you can share files using the built-in FTP and SFTP client. If you want to burn files to a disc, System Navigator offers direct access to your computer's burner, and if you want to search for files, this utility offers an excellent built-in searching tool.

Getting used to System Navigator takes a bit of time, and learning your way around this full-featured file manager takes a bit of effort. But if you want to have complete control over your computer and its many files, you'll find that time and effort well spent.

—Liane Cassavoy

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Manage Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter With Sobees Desktop

Folks who are unhappy with TweetDeck's decision to eliminate support for LinkedIn should take a look at Sobees Desktop. This slick-looking application offers an easy way to manage Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn accounts. Still in beta, this "social media manager" still has some kinks to work out, but shows plenty of potential.

Sobees Desktop lets you customize its layout so you can see the information you want, where you want it to be.Sobees Desktop features a customizable layout that you can easily tailor to your liking. You can decide how much information to see--whether that's one social media account or three, plus a search field and an RSS feed--and how you'd like to see it. You can choose side-by-side columns, top-and-bottom boxes, or a combination of both. And it's easy to switch between different layouts until you find one that meets your needs.

What you can't do is devote more than one area of the layout (whether it's a column or a box) to the same social media account. You can place your Twitter account in only one area, and the same with your accounts on Facebook account and LinkedIn. That means you can't view different types of information from that one account--such as Twitter @replies and direct messages--side by side. Sobees does include icons that make it easy to switch between these views, but rival TweetDeck lets you view them at the same time, in neighboring columns.

Sobees makes it easy to update your status across one or more of the networks at the same time, and includes tools that allow you to search Twitter. In addition, Sobees points you in the direction of trending topics on Twitter.

Like TweetDeck, Sobees Desktop has a Web-based counterpart. But unlike TweetDeck's two versions, which sync with one another, the two Sobees social media clients are standalone products, with no syncing features. A connection between them would be nice. (The company also offers a host of mobile apps, including sobees Lite and sobees MyFriends for iOS, which focus on Facebook; sobees Social Media, an iPad app that handles Twitter and Facebook; and an Android application called sobees for Twitter/Facebook. None of the mobile apps offer the support for multiple social media services offered by Sobees Desktop and its Web-based counterpart.) Overall, Sobees Desktop is off to a good start. This is an easy-to-use social media manager that offers plenty of customization options.

--Liane Cassavoy

From PCWorld. Visit Amazon Computer and Notebook Center here

Manage Twitter and Facebook Accounts With TweetDeck

TweetDeck bills itself as a Twitter management app for power users, and this app has long been a favorite of those folks looking to manage multiple Twitter accounts. But its latest version is lacking some of the appeal that made earlier versions of this app a perennial favorite.

With its latest update, TweetDeck is now available in two versions: a Web-based version that runs on Apple's Safari or Google's Chrome browser and a desktop counterpart (which no longer runs on Adobe Air, as past versions did). The versions sync nicely, so that the information you enter when using the Web version appears when you log into the desktop version, and vice versa.

TweetDeck's interface is slick and attractive, and its features--such as the ability to schedule tweets for future posting--are easy to access.TweetDeck offers a nice array of features. It lets you manage an unlimited number of Twitter accounts, lets you schedule tweets for future posting, and offers a customizable layout that lets you view a good deal of information. I like its column-based format, which lets you organize the information you want to see--such as your Twitter timeline, @mentions, lists, messages, trends, tweets, and more--into easy-to-read columns. I wish you could view more than three columns at a time: TweetDeck limits you to that number, leaving an expanse of empty gray screen rather than letting you fill that space with another column.

TweetDeck was acquired by Twitter in mid-2011. Since then, the app's focused has narrowed: It now supports just Twitter and Facebook, whereas earlier versions included support for LinkedIn and other social networks. Users who relied on TweetDeck to manage various social networks are rightfully annoyed with this change--and may have better luck with HootSuite instead--but anyone who's looking to manage accounts from Twitter and Facebook only will appreciate its narrowed focus. Note, however, that while you can use TweetDeck to manage multiple Twitter accounts, it supports only one Facebook account. That means you can't use it to manage both personal and business Facebook accounts, should you have them. TweetDeck does make it easy to post an update to either Facebook, Twitter, or both services at once, though.

If you relied on TweetDeck's support for LinkedIn or another network, the latest version of this Twitter management tool is not for you. And despite its Facebook support, TweetDeck's focus is clearly on Twitter. That said, it does offer a comprehensive set of Twitter management tools, all laid out in an attractive interface. And it's free, too.

Note: The Download button takes you to the vendor's site, where you can download the latest version of the software.

--Liane Cassavoy

From PCWorld. Visit Amazon Computer and Notebook Center here

Manage All Your Social Media from HootSuite

Plenty of people turn to social networks like Facebook and sites like Twitter for fun. And plenty of folks turn to these tools because of the boost they can give their business. These business-oriented users, especially the ones who manage multiple Facebook pages, Google + Pages, and Twitter accounts, are the ones who will benefit most from HootSuite, a cloud-based service that offers a potent set of social media management tools.

HootSuite organizes your social media accounts into tabs, and within those tabs, it presents information in streams.HootSuite is available in two plans: Basic, a free (but ad-supported) version that includes five social profiles and two RSS/Atom feeds, as well as quick reports, and Pro, a $6/month ad-free plan that includes unlimited social profiles, one free team member, one free enhanced analytics report, integration with Google Analytics and Facebook Insights, and the ability to archive tweets. Rival TweetDeck, which is available in both a desktop and Web-based version, is free, while Web-based SocialOomph offers a free version and a paid version that starts at about $30 per month.

Not only does HootSuite's price compare favorably with its rivals, so, too, does its feature set. Like both of these competitors, HootSuite makes it a breeze to update your status across multiple services, schedule updates for future posting, track your @mentions, and more. It also includes support for a variety of social networks, such as Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, Ping.fm, Wordpress, MySpace, Foursquare, and mixi. TweetDeck, meanwhile, recently discontinued support for LinkedIn, leaving it with Twitter and Facebook only. SocialOomph's free version supports only Twitter, but its paid subscription adds support for Facebook and various blogging services.

Using HootSuite is quite easy. You add the accounts you'd like to include, and the browser-based HootSuite creates a tab for each one. Within those tabs, HootSuite features a column-style interface that's similar to the layout of TweetDeck, though instead of columns, HootSuite calls them "streams." You can add streams of information for each of your social network, such as your Twitter Home Feed, incoming Direct Messages, outgoing Direct Messages, and more. Streams can be rearranged simply by dragging and dropping them to a new location.

Where HootSuite really sets itself apart from the competition is in the analytics tools that it offers. It allows you to see how well your social media campaigns are working by letting you track clicks, see referring Web sites, and measure the impact of individual tweets. You can use this information to create reports that can be shared with others, which is helpful for business users.

HootSuite is an attractive, easy-to-use, and powerful social media manager. Its full suite of tools will likely prove too much for casual Facebook or Twitter users, but social media pros will appreciate all that it has to offer.

-- Liane Cassavoy

From PCWorld. Visit Amazon Computer and Notebook Center here