Everything you need to know about .zip files and .rar files.

Nearly all the files found on FileFront are compressed/or packed when you download them off the site, so this tutorial will cover how to compress and extract all the files from both a .zip and .rar compressed file.

.zip files.

.zip files simply put are files that are zipped or compressed down to a smaller size for faster transfer, and every windows machine is capable of creating and unpacking a .zip file, this is why they are the recommended compression method on FileFront. 

To create a .zip file simply right click on your desktop or in my computer and find the ‘new’ tab, in the side options find new WinZip option and create the folder, then copy all the documents you want to be compressed into the .zip folder and it will automatically compress the files.

Now to extract a WinZip folder, again right click on it and select the extract all option. A new window (the extraction wizard) will appear, click next and a box will appear showing the current destination for the extracted files, click the browse button to find a place you want the extracted files to go. When you have found a suitable destination click next in the extraction wizard and it will proceed to the last page showing an option to view the extracted files.

.rar files.

Now a .rar file is different in the fact that they have better compression than a .zip file, alas they require a program to use though, fear not as there are many programs available freely, of worthy note is 7zip which will allow you to compress and unpack any .rar file.

To create a .rar file, again right click on the desktop or in my computer and select the ‘new’ tab, then find the WinRAR option, this like a .zip file will compress any file or document inside the .rar folder.

Unpacking a .rar file is a little bit different then a .zip file as the .rar works through a program instead of through windows. Double click on the .rar folder and the program you use for .rar files should open giving you the option to do multiple things with the files inside, find the extract files option and find the destination you want the files to be extracted to.

And there you have it, a beginner’s guide to .zip and .rar files. As always any questions just email me or comment and I will try my best to help you.
Some links to 7zip.
http://www.7-zip.org/
http://www.7-zip.org/download.html