Compressing ratio

[Guest miracle]

It looks that WinZIP is useless to compress big EXE files. For example, it

almost cannot reduce size of big setup file, the compressed file size

remains the same(almost).

Looks like using WinZIP is useless for compressing big executable files. Am

I correct?

[Guest Pegasus \(MVP\)]

Re: Compressing ratio

 

 

"miracle" <miracle@microsoft.news> wrote in message

news:%23%238GFHl9IHA.4820@TK2MSFTNGP06.phx.gbl...

> It looks that WinZIP is useless to compress big EXE files. For example, it

> almost cannot reduce size of big setup file, the compressed file size

> remains the same(almost).

> Looks like using WinZIP is useless for compressing big executable files.

> Am I correct?

 

Sorry, you aren't. If you cannot compress certain files then it's

usually because they are already compressed. I'm sure you know

that trying to compress a file twice won't reduce the size any

further on the second attempt.

 

However . . . many years ago there was a tool called pklite.exe,

issued by PKWare. It was specifically designed to compress

executable files. Its successor was pklite32.exe. Maybe it still

exists and maybe it can do a better job than WinZIP.

[Guest miracle]

Re: Compressing ratio

 

can the compressing a file twice with WinZIP cause any problems? (damaging

file integrity, etc)

 

-----------

 

 

"Pegasus (MVP)" <I.can@fly.com.oz> wrote in message

news:ermujMl9IHA.4628@TK2MSFTNGP06.phx.gbl...

>

> "miracle" <miracle@microsoft.news> wrote in message

> news:%23%238GFHl9IHA.4820@TK2MSFTNGP06.phx.gbl...

>> It looks that WinZIP is useless to compress big EXE files. For example,

>> it almost cannot reduce size of big setup file, the compressed file size

>> remains the same(almost).

>> Looks like using WinZIP is useless for compressing big executable files.

>> Am I correct?

>

> Sorry, you aren't. If you cannot compress certain files then it's

> usually because they are already compressed. I'm sure you know

> that trying to compress a file twice won't reduce the size any

> further on the second attempt.

>

> However . . . many years ago there was a tool called pklite.exe,

> issued by PKWare. It was specifically designed to compress

> executable files. Its successor was pklite32.exe. Maybe it still

> exists and maybe it can do a better job than WinZIP.

>

[Guest Pegasus \(MVP\)]

Re: Compression ratio

 

Re: Compression ratio

 

 

"miracle" <miracle@microsoft.news> wrote in message

news:%23GmimVl9IHA.4952@TK2MSFTNGP03.phx.gbl...

> can the compressing a file twice with WinZIP cause any problems? (damaging

> file integrity, etc)

>

 

No, but the file will grow . . . (as a quick experiment

would show you).

[Guest Ken Blake, MVP]

Re: Compressing ratio

 

On Mon, 4 Aug 2008 19:47:18 +0300, "miracle" <miracle@microsoft.news>

wrote:

> It looks that WinZIP is useless to compress big EXE files. For example, it

> almost cannot reduce size of big setup file, the compressed file size

> remains the same(almost).

> Looks like using WinZIP is useless for compressing big executable files. Am

> I correct?

 

 

This has little to do with Winzip. It has to do with the file. How

much a file *can* be compressed depends on what type of file it

is, as well as what it contains.

 

It's primarily the file itself that determines how much it can be

compressed, not so much the program that's doing the compressing. You

might find a program that did a *slightly* better job, but that's all.

 

 

--

Ken Blake, Microsoft MVP - Windows Desktop Experience

Please Reply to the Newsgroup

[Guest Tim Slattery]

Re: Compressing ratio

 

"miracle" <miracle@microsoft.news> wrote:

>can the compressing a file twice with WinZIP cause any problems? (damaging

>file integrity, etc)

 

You won't do any harm, but the product of the second ZIP will probably

be larger then the product of the first ZIP. And you'll have to unzip

it twice, of course. The first time will yield a zip, the second time

whatever was zipped in the first place.

 

--

Tim Slattery

MS MVP(Shell/User)

Slattery_T@bls.gov

http://members.cox.net/slatteryt

[Guest Big_Al]

Re: Compressing ratio

 

Tim Slattery wrote:

> "miracle" <miracle@microsoft.news> wrote:

>

>> can the compressing a file twice with WinZIP cause any problems? (damaging

>> file integrity, etc)

>

> You won't do any harm, but the product of the second ZIP will probably

> be larger then the product of the first ZIP. And you'll have to unzip

> it twice, of course. The first time will yield a zip, the second time

> whatever was zipped in the first place.

>

The overhead to record the zip directory, normally stored at the end of

the file, and other header info causes the 2nd and successive files to

grow larger. The files themselves in the 2nd zip will not be any

different probably.

[Guest HeyBub]

Re: Compressing ratio

 

miracle wrote:

> It looks that WinZIP is useless to compress big EXE files. For

> example, it almost cannot reduce size of big setup file, the

> compressed file size remains the same(almost).

> Looks like using WinZIP is useless for compressing big executable

> files. Am I correct?

 

Some EXEs are compressed by the program's developers who add an uncompress

program to the front of the file. When the resulting "program" loads, it

executes in two stages: the first uncompresses the remainder and transfers

control to the result.

 

Inasmuch as these programs are already "compressed," further compression

attempts are usually futile.

[Guest Ken Blake, MVP]

Re: Compressing ratio

 

On Mon, 4 Aug 2008 20:13:17 +0300, "miracle" <miracle@microsoft.news>

wrote:

> can the compressing a file twice with WinZIP cause any problems? (damaging

> file integrity, etc)

 

 

Three points:

 

1. Any time you manipulate a file in any way, there is *always* a

potential for file corruption or other problems. That said, the great

majority of the time when we manipulate files, we don't have problems,

and there's no reason to expect one here either. Any such occurrence

should be extremely rare.

 

2. Compressing a compressed file can not possibly make it any smaller

than it already is. The compressing program doesn't suddenly get

smarter and do a better job.

 

3. In fact, compressing an already-compressed file will actually make

it slightly bigger. That's because you add the overhead of the extra

compression.

 

 

> "Pegasus (MVP)" <I.can@fly.com.oz> wrote in message

> news:ermujMl9IHA.4628@TK2MSFTNGP06.phx.gbl...

> >

> > "miracle" <miracle@microsoft.news> wrote in message

> > news:%23%238GFHl9IHA.4820@TK2MSFTNGP06.phx.gbl...

> >> It looks that WinZIP is useless to compress big EXE files. For example,

> >> it almost cannot reduce size of big setup file, the compressed file size

> >> remains the same(almost).

> >> Looks like using WinZIP is useless for compressing big executable files.

> >> Am I correct?

> >

> > Sorry, you aren't. If you cannot compress certain files then it's

> > usually because they are already compressed. I'm sure you know

> > that trying to compress a file twice won't reduce the size any

> > further on the second attempt.

> >

> > However . . . many years ago there was a tool called pklite.exe,

> > issued by PKWare. It was specifically designed to compress

> > executable files. Its successor was pklite32.exe. Maybe it still

> > exists and maybe it can do a better job than WinZIP.

> >

 

--

Ken Blake, Microsoft MVP - Windows Desktop Experience

Please Reply to the Newsgroup

[Guest Twayne]

Re: Compressing ratio

 

> "miracle" <miracle@microsoft.news> wrote in message

> news:%23%238GFHl9IHA.4820@TK2MSFTNGP06.phx.gbl...

>> It looks that WinZIP is useless to compress big EXE files. For

>> example, it almost cannot reduce size of big setup file, the

>> compressed file size remains the same(almost).

>> Looks like using WinZIP is useless for compressing big executable

>> files. Am I correct?

>

> Sorry, you aren't. If you cannot compress certain files then it's

> usually because they are already compressed. I'm sure you know

> that trying to compress a file twice won't reduce the size any

> further on the second attempt.

>

> However . . . many years ago there was a tool called pklite.exe,

> issued by PKWare. It was specifically designed to compress

> executable files. Its successor was pklite32.exe. Maybe it still

> exists and maybe it can do a better job than WinZIP.

 

Since that's PKWare, and the forerunniner to WinZip, probably not. exe

files just don't contain much compressible data, period. The process of

making an executable file already has it pretty well compressed. Only

the text portions of the file would compress at all, and they make up a

very small part of an exe file.

WinZip does have sort of a "super" compression scheme, but it's

unique and proprietary, so be forewarned there.

[Guest Twayne]

Re: Compressing ratio

 

> can the compressing a file twice with WinZIP cause any problems?

> (damaging file integrity, etc)

 

No, most compression programs are good at reassembling whatever they

compressed. Shouldn't be a problem, but no benefit to compressing a

second time either.

>

> -----------

>

>

> "Pegasus (MVP)" <I.can@fly.com.oz> wrote in message

> news:ermujMl9IHA.4628@TK2MSFTNGP06.phx.gbl...

>>

>> "miracle" <miracle@microsoft.news> wrote in message

>> news:%23%238GFHl9IHA.4820@TK2MSFTNGP06.phx.gbl...

>>> It looks that WinZIP is useless to compress big EXE files. For

>>> example, it almost cannot reduce size of big setup file, the

>>> compressed file size remains the same(almost).

>>> Looks like using WinZIP is useless for compressing big executable

>>> files. Am I correct?

>>

>> Sorry, you aren't. If you cannot compress certain files then it's

>> usually because they are already compressed. I'm sure you know

>> that trying to compress a file twice won't reduce the size any

>> further on the second attempt.

>>

>> However . . . many years ago there was a tool called pklite.exe,

>> issued by PKWare. It was specifically designed to compress

>> executable files. Its successor was pklite32.exe. Maybe it still

>> exists and maybe it can do a better job than WinZIP.

[Guest Pegasus \(MVP\)]

Re: Compressing ratio

 

 

"Twayne" <nobody@devnull.spamcop.net> wrote in message

news:eg73xmp9IHA.1420@TK2MSFTNGP06.phx.gbl...

>> "miracle" <miracle@microsoft.news> wrote in message

> Since that's PKWare, and the forerunniner to WinZip, probably not. exe

> files just don't contain much compressible data, period. The process of

> making an executable file already has it pretty well compressed. Only the

> text portions of the file would compress at all, and they make up a very

> small part of an exe file.

> WinZip does have sort of a "super" compression scheme, but it's unique

> and proprietary, so be forewarned there.

 

It depends entirely on the executable. Just for fun I compressed

xiv32.exe (a binary editor), using pklite32.exe. It compressed to

about 60% of its original size. Other executables were almost

incompressible.