WinZip
A Microsoft Windows archiving and compression program, distributed by Nico Mak Computing, Inc. WINZIP has a graphical user interface front end and is compatible with PKZIP. WINZIP can be obtained as shareware, on evaluation, or as a licenced copy. It is much easier to use then PKZIP for DOS, and includes a helpful, help file. In 2004, WinZip was the first to support the 256-bit AES cipher for encrypting files. It also did away with previous ZIP
file size restriction. Using the Windows version for this example, WinZip can open more than 30
file formats (top). In addition to encryption, it can reduce photo sizes and change photo formats, convert images and Office files to PDF when added to an archive as well as eliminate personal data. WinZip can also add a custom watermark to various image files.
WinZip is the best-known software for creating and opening compressed file archives, but it's not the only option and there are many superb free alternatives worth investigating before you open your wallet.
FEW ALTERNATIVES FOR WINZIP could be :
1. 7-Zip
7 ZiP is free software with open source. The most of the code is under the GNU LGPL license. Some parts of the code are under the BSD 3-clause License. Also there is unRAR license restriction for some parts of the code. Read 7-Zip License information.
You can use 7-Zip on any computer, including a computer in a commercial organization. You don't need to register or pay for 7-Zip.
The main features of 7-Zip
• High compression ratio in 7z format with LZMA and LZMA2 compression • Supported formats:
o Packing / unpacking: 7z, XZ, BZIP2, GZIP, TAR, ZIP and WIM o Unpacking only: AR, ARJ, CAB, CHM, CPIO, CramFS, DMG, EXT, FAT, GPT, HFS, IHEX, ISO, LZH, LZMA, MBR, MSI, NSIS, NTFS, QCOW2, RAR, RPM, SquashFS, UDF, UEFI, VDI, VHD, VMDK, 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 WinZip
• Strong AES-256 encryption in 7z and ZIP formats
• Self-extracting capability for 7z format
• Integration with Windows Shell
• Powerful File Manager
• Powerful command line version
• Plugin for FAR Manager
• Localizations for 87 languages
7-Zip works in Windows 10 / 8 / 7 / Vista / XP / 2016 / 2012 / 2008 / 2003 / 2000 / NT.
2. PEAZIP
PeaZip is another open source WinZip alternative, but with a few more features in a considerably larger package (around 10MB compared to 7-Zip's 1MB).
PeaZip's standard installation will make file associations and add context menu options automatically, which you might not want if you're trying it for the first time. Select 'Custom' if you want to make your own choices.
PeaZip is compatible with pretty much every compressed file format there is. PEA, its own format, prioritizes security over compression, with optional integrity check and authenticated encryption. Unlike 7-Zip, it can repair damaged archives.
Its handy extra features include the ability to convert archive formats and test archives for errors. It can't batch compress or watermark images as some of the other tools here can, but can rotate and crop them for you.
3. Ashampoo Nearly all computer users come across file archives in different formats, e.g. the wide-spread ZIP format. Compressed files are easy to store and share. A shampoo ZIP Free bundles essential features like reading and writing of archives in a single free application.
Ashampoo ZIP Free supports comfort features such as jump lists and the display of progress on taskbar icons for Windows 7 and Windows 8. The user interface employs the Windows 8 tile-based design with quick access to all essential features. And just like in Windows 8, tiles can be rearranged for personalization.
4. Zipware
Zipware is simple and free zip software for Microsoft Windows that supports all major archiving formats including the new RAR5 format. Zipware has been designed to be simple, fast and stable to handle both small and large archives with millions of files.
Since Zipware is a free tool designed to create and extract zip files, let’s first talk about the formats it supports. The current version of Zipware supports all major archive formats, including ZIP, ISO, MSI, GZIP, WIM, RAR, 7Z, DMG, UDF, CBZ, TAR and the new RAR5. It supports creating archives in ZIP, 7-ZIP, and EXE. The ability to convert popular archives formats to zip, 7z, or exe is probably the best feature of Zipware, and it makes this free utility one of the must-have tools.
Besides that, it allows you to create password-protected archives using AES-256 encryption, along with options to create self-extracting arch
5.Hamster Free ZIP Archiver
It is a compression tool that, just like Winrar and Winzip, lets you reduce the size of any file by compressing it into a smaller file. It can also unzip files.The program has a really easy-to-use interface that lets you compress and decompress files by just dragging them on the window. Once there, you can change the compression settings and the number of packages you want to create, though it creates only one by default.
Hamster Free ZIP Archiver supports almost all compression formats, including RAR, ZIP, 7Z, ARJ, and ISO, as well as the lesser-known IHA, IZH, BZ, and CAB formats.Hamster Free ZIP Archiver is an excellent alternative to Winrar. It offers a more polished and intuitive interface, and it has a higher speed of compression and decompression.