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ghacks christmas 2009 giveaways

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mouser:
Ah I understand.. you assumed it meant that anyone who comes to the site can get it.  I suppose that could be confusing.  We use the same term "giveaway" sometimes when we really mean that we have some copies to give away for free, but not everyone will get one.

It brings up an interesting issue in terms of words though -- because "raffle" and "lottery" are not really appropriate -- they usually imply to most listeners that one has to PAY to have a chance, and this is not like that.  And a contest implies that the "winner(s)" will be chosen based on some criteria, rather than randomly.

So for the wordsmiths.. is there a term would you use to identify an event where things were being given away for free but only a few people were going to be chosen randomly to receive them?

I think in general, i've used "giveaway" for this purpose.. and *not* used it when there is an unlimited supply of something.. in the case of an unlimited supply i think one is usually more explicit and says something like "we have a free X for everyone who stops by".

Dormouse:
Actually it's not a real giveaway, it's a kind of lottery:

We have ten Winzip 14 Pro licenses for you. If you want to win one of the licenses reply to this thread and let us know why you’d like to win the license.
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-yksyks (December 01, 2009, 05:09 AM)
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It's neither a lottery (everyone in the pot, winner(s) chosen by lot) nor a giveaway (stuff given away for free), it's a competition. There's a requirement to say 'why you'd like to win the license'. Definitely a competition.

yksyks:
It brings up an interesting issue in terms of words though -- because "raffle" and "lottery" are not really appropriate -- they usually imply to most listeners that one has to PAY to have a chance, and this is not like that.  And a contest implies that the "winner(s)" will be chosen based on some criteria, rather than randomly.-mouser (December 01, 2009, 01:19 PM)
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You don't pay, but you have to enter a valid email address, and this is not a zero value. So isn't this a raffle?

On the other hand you're required to write why you’d like to win the license. It implies that somebody would evaluate the answers. So isn't this a contest?

 :P

Anyway, my understanding of the term "giveaway" was also supported by the Giveaway of the Day policy: everyone has a chance to get the item, no drawing lots, no probability involved.

EDIT: Dormouse beat me to it.

Curt:
- the proper term is a drawing.
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To double your chances: http://techpp.com/giveaway/

wanderer:
Always a great read with something for everyone. Many thanks as always..

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