Let's see step by step how easy is to use this tool.
*To decompress a zipped file:
A) Right-click on the file
B) Select "Extract to folder <pathname>"
C) Click "I Agree" on the license information window
WinZip in a few seconds will have decompressed the file in the same exact location as the compressed file was stored.
In case you have a zipped file on a floppy, copy it to the hard disk of your PC first, then right-click on the copy so WinZip will decompress the file on the same folder.
*To compress your files:
If you want to create your own zipped files, since for instance the presentation you want to carry with you doesn't fit on a floppy disk, you have to do one of the following:
a) Open Windows Explorer and locate your presentation file
b) Right-click on it. If you have WinZip properly installed, you will find the option to "Add to <filename>.zip"
c) Click "Add to <filename>.zip"
d) Click on "I Agree" on the license information window
e) Search for your zipped file, that has been created in the same folder where the original file was located. The new zipped file will have the WinZip icon and the name will be the same as the original file plus a .zip extension.
Your compressed file is now ready to be copied on a floppy disk or sent by email like a normal file. If you want to check the new size of this compressed file (to see for instance if it fits in a floppy disk), right-click on it and choose "Properties": it will tell you exactly how many bytes it is (consider that a standard floppy disk capacity in bytes is around 1,4 Mb).
*Advanced features*
*Self-extracting file:
You can create, using WinZip, a file that can decompress itself without having WinZip installed.
What is the advantage?
If you are not sure whether the person who will receive your zipped file has WinZip installed or not, you can use this feature to create a file that will be able to decompress itself automatically. The new type of file, technically called a "self-extracting" file, will have an .exe extension, and not the typical .zip extension. As soon as you double-click it, it decompresses itself automatically.
Pretty smart, isn't it?
Do you want to know how to create a self-extracting zipped file?
1) Zip your file first (see above)
2) Once the zipped file has been created, right-click on it and choose "Create Self-Extractor (.EXE)"
3) Click "OK" to the license information box
4) Click "OK" also to the next dialog box so you will create a self-extracting file on the same directory where you have your original file
5) Once the file is created, WinZip asks you whether you want to test your new self-extracting file: choose NO and close the little window.
6) A new file with the same name but a different extension will be created in the same directory as the original zipped file was.
If you want to be sure your new self-extracting file is working, you can now double-click it and see if extracts automatically the file that was previously zipped in it.
Now that you know this, if you're not sure whether your email recipient has WinZip installed or not, you can send a self-extracting zipped file instead and be sure that s/he will be able to decompress it.
*Disk spanning:
When you have a presentation file bigger than a standard floppy disk (1.44 Mb) you can utilize WinZip to split your original file across several diskettes.
What to do:
1) Go to Start >> WinZip and run the program
2) Click "I Agree" on the license information box
3) Drag your file (or even a whole folder) from Windows Explorer or My Computer directly into the WinZip main window
4) Where it says: "Add to archive:", clear the box and type exactly as from this example (A:\filename.zip) replacing "filename" with the real name of your presentation
5) WinZip will start compressing the file, and as soon as the first floppy is full, it will ask you to insert the second one, and so on (Remember to label one by one all the floppies with a progressive number. When decompressing the file you will need to insert them once again in the proper order)
It's done. You have now compressed your original file and copied it across several diskettes.
To decompress your file(s), insert the last floppy, and utilize the same method we have seen at the beginning of this article.
!!!PROS:
- The software can always be downloaded for free from the Internet, so even if you have to show your presentation on a computer that has no WinZip installed, you can download it in 5 minutes and install it in even less.
And what if the computer does not have an Internet connection?
I would suggest you to bring with you a floppy with the downloaded WinZip program (the installation files). WinZip fits exactly on a floppy disk, so in case you cannot access the Web, you can always install it in a few minutes from your own floppy.
- You can compress single files or even entire file folders.
- It's easy to use, quite intuitive and user-friendly.
- It is the standard for compression, it's used all over the world.
- It's good also for saving space in your hard drive since you can keep your data in this compressed format, especially old data that you rarely use.
- It even lets you compress files bigger in size than a floppy disk, spanning them among several diskettes.
CONS¡¡¡:
- It cannot compress all file formats, since some of them are already compressed (e.g. PDF, GIF, JPG, BMP, etc.).
- Sometimes, depending on the file type, the compression rate may be low or anyway insufficient to compress your file(s) in one floppy disk. In this case you need to use the disk spanning function and zip again your file saving it directly on a diskette.
- WinZip must be installed on the PC where you want to decompress the file. So, in case you don't have it installed, you will not be able to unzip the compressed file unless you created before a self-extracting zipped file (see above).
If you still have problems with file size and neither the back up tool nor WinZip helped you, there's something else you might want to try out to work around these problems...
You can read this article in the original issue of MasterView.
