# Changing the compression ratio in WinZip



## C5John (Feb 26, 2005)

Hello, I've used winzip before to unzip files but never to compress them. I just downloaded winzip version 10.0 and am trying to zip a file. In the winzip window it shows a comression ratio of 1%. I did a compression but the size of result was almost as large as original. I cannot find a way of changing that 1% percent to something that would be of use. Can anybody tell me how to change the compression ratio?


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## Jimmy the Hand (Jul 28, 2006)

The compression ratio depends on the file type you want to compress. Images or media files are generally compressed very badly with winzip or any other file compression utility. If you want to compress such things, there are other applications for the purpose, but the process usually involves sacrificing quality of the image, sound, etc.

As for file compression, there are better progs than WinZip, and better archive formats than zip. In my experience 7zip's own archive format (7z) provides the best compression ratio.


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## C5John (Feb 26, 2005)

Ok, thanks. I was just experimenting around anyway. Trying to learn new stuff. I dont really need to compress anything, so if its going be a pain in the arse I'll forget about it and play around with something else. I guess there's no way of changing that 1% to something worthwhile then.


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## ChuckE (Aug 30, 2004)

If a file does not compress that much with WinZip, the chances are it is already a very compressed file. Many program (.EXE) files are already pretty much as compressed as you are going to get them. Sure, there are some compressors that might get another percent or two better than WinZip in some situations, but there often is not a heck of a lot of difference. Even if you found a tool that compresses better than WinZip it may not compress better in all situations.

I am not saying that WinZip is the best compressor around, because it isn't. But I'd rather not worry about small gains by compressing with some obscure compressor that other people don't have the tool to un-compress on the other end.

Since the ZIP file compressor is pretty much considered a standard, and even Windows XP has an automatic ZIP un-compressor built in, why not just stay with that? (OK, so you may have reasons, I really don't want to hear it. You figure out what works well for you, and be happy you're happy. I don't want to start of a "compressor's war" .)

As for the 1% figure you are seeing, that is just information for you. It is not something you can adjust. (This is not JPG compression.) That number is just the result, not something for you to do anything with.

A long time ago, I seem to recall some WinZip command line options (if you had the WinZip command line package) that you could used with compressing a file(s) that would provide for a bit more "tighter" compression, but the trade-off was that using it took a bit more time. Way back then, time was an important consideration to some people with slow old computers. But today's computers are so sufficiently fast, that perhaps the default compression method is already set for the maximum compression. With these new fast computers, an improvement of even 50% more in TIME, really doesn't impact the user that much anyway, since compression usually is done in a second or two anyway. (Oh boy! my compressor now only takes one second to do its work... before, I used to have to wait around for a whole TWO seconds!  )


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## C5John (Feb 26, 2005)

Thanks ChuckE

Thats pretty much what I wanted to know (that you cant change that 1% thing). I was just toying around trying to learn something new (compressing files) in case someday I might need to. I was trying to compress an mp3, but I guess they are already compressed. Oh well, toy around and learn.


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## ChuckE (Aug 30, 2004)

That is a good trait to have. That is exactly how I have learned about 90% of my computer knowledge. Sure, I have attended classes and schools and read lots of articles and books, but what makes my best teacher is just experience and a curiosity of "what if?" and "what just happened?"

I can't tell you how many times I do something, see some oddity that just happened, something that other people just shrug off, where they think nothing about it, but I dig a little deeper and discover not just a better understanding of the tools I am using, but it also builds my base of knowledge to understand other things as well.

Cograts on your inquisitiveness!!


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## blaqDeaph (Nov 22, 2005)

As a side note, stuff that is encrypted tends not to compress very well too, due to the nature of compression that tries to look for patterns, and encryption trying not to have any pattern ^.^


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## hewee (Oct 26, 2001)

I got the free Winrar last week and it does compree things well or it did on what I used it for.
I save a report from Everest and SWI that were .html and they were 213 KB compressed to 25 KB and 419 KB compessed to 49 KB.
So it sure got the size way down on a simple .html file.
I never changed any setting either so it was the default setting.


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## ChuckE (Aug 30, 2004)

.html files are just text files. Text files almost always compress greatly. 10>1 ratio is fairly typical. 

Test a zipping compressor against those same .html files and I would expect somewhat similar results.


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## hewee (Oct 26, 2001)

OK thanks chuck. Can you tell I have never done much compressing?


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