Today after upgrading to the latest release of 7-Zip on my Windows 7 machine, I decided 7-Zip deserved an honorable mention since I’ve not spoken about the product here on groovyPost. (I know… long overdue!) Similar to RocketDock (which works with Windows 7 YAHOO!), 7-Zip is one of those applications I install immediately after building a new PC. Although 7-Zip is a Freeware application, it’s truly a feature-rich WinZip replacement that provides top-notch File and Folder compression and decompression for a broad range of formats, including the ability to extract files from the traditional disk image .ISO format. Here’s a complete breakdown of all the main features of 7-Zip
Supported Operating Systems (OS)Windows 98/ME/NT/2000/Xp/Vista and Windows 7 (32-Bit and x64 64-bit)Windows Server 2000/2003/2008 (32-Bit and x64 64-bit)Posix/LinuxMac OS and other OS’s (Unsupported but available for Download)Supported formats:High compression ratio in new 7z format with LZMA compressionPacking/unpacking: 7z, ZIP, GZIP, BZIP2 and TARUnpacking only: ARJ, CAB, CHM, CPIO, DEB, DMG, HFS, ISO, LZH, LZMA, MSI, NSIS, RAR, RPM, UDF, WIM, XAR, and Z.For ZIP and GZIP formats, 7-Zip provides a compression ratio that is 2-10 % better than the ratio provided by PKZip and WinZipStrong AES-256 encryption in 7z and ZIP formats Self-extracting capability for 7z formatIntegration with Windows ShellPowerful File ManagerPowerful command line versionPlugin for FAR ManagerLocalizations for 74 languages
Since the 7-Zip integrates with the Windows shell, using 7-Zip is as simple as selecting the files or folders you want to compress (or decompress) then Right Click to get the Context Menu. Left Click on 7-Zip for all the options.
Another feature I want to highlight with 7Zip is the Strong AES-256 Encryption available when compressing files/folders etc.. This is a GREAT feature when you need to send someone confidential information/files over the internet but don’t want just to send them clear text in an email. Compressing the files FIRST with encryption will significantly increase the security of the files your sending PLUS, it will allow you to send just one file instead of many since 7-Zip will create a single file. Easier to send, more secure and faster since the compression technology also reduces the amount of data sent. I talked about this method of sending data securely over the internet using Winzip a year or more ago. Winzip still works, however, 7-Zip Vs. Winzip – sorry, 7-Zip is free and Winzip is not. :) If anyone grabs a copy and needs help with a feature or understanding a concept I spoke about here, feel free to drop a comment below or join us in the Forum and post your questions! 7-Zip Download Page 7-zip is a wonderful tool, but it seems to be very difficult for developers to really get a good email intergration. Several fora have discussions going on about this so called “bug”, but no one seems to bother anyway! Okay, it’s free, but dont put features in a program if it doesn’t work at all !! 7-zip sucks at this point. Comment
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