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Open-source software rated: Ten alternatives you need

By Nate Lanxon on 19 November 2007, 9:00am

Paid-for version: WinZip
Open-source alternative: 7-Zip

7-Zip is a file archiver that handles not only its own file compression format, but also the common .zip format, meaning it's ideal for everyday home and office use. It'll also unzip other popular archiving formats such as RAR, CAB and ISO. 7-Zip can be integrated into the Windows Shell for easy right-clicking compression of desktop files and folders.

The Good: Zipping and unzipping .zip files is the main function of the popular commercial application WinZip. 7-Zip performs this task without requiring any purchases. For this reason, it's a solid alternative for most people. It's also capable of encrypting archives for that added peace of mind.

The Bad: WinZip offers a vast array of features for advanced users, such as intelligent compression, which chooses the most efficient archiving method based on the type of files being compressed. WinZip will also let you schedule backups and periodic and automatic updating of existing backup archives.

Conclusion: Home users won't use most of the features in WinZip, so 7-Zip is highly recommended. It's lightweight, easy to use and will let you send batches of photos to friends as well as back up archives to DVDs.

Download it here: 7-zip.org

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