i use the syringe to put some on, spread it out, and then put a little more on top to spread it evenly with pressure as well.

i used arctic silver ceramique and it does a great job

use white spirit (Testbenzin) to remove the old stuff, and use a very fine, dry cloth to very gently clean off the spirit after all of the old gunk is off. Do the same on both the heatsink and the CPU.

apply a line to the CPU, if it has a metal shield (Intel usually), apply it to that. If it's on the die itself that's also fine. also put a very small bit onto the heatsink and spread it SUPER THIN. This makes the fine texture of the heatsink get filled completely with paste, and makes the connection even better.