Only a few file compression programs have been constantly at the top of the crowd for the last ten years and WinRAR is without doubt one of them. WinRAR has evolved in that time and is now able to not only handle rar files but also other compression formats like zip, 7z, gz, lzh, cab or iso which makes it an all around tool for file compression needs.
WinRAR offers an option to integrate tightly into the Windows operating system during installation. This includes a very handy Windows Explorer entry which can be used to unpack or pack files directly in Windows Explorer.
The WinRAR interface has been streamlined for ease of use. The professionally looking theme can be changed easily to one of the other themes that are offered on the WinRAR website.
The interface itself can be divided into an header that contains the menu and program icons that lead to the most important functions of the file compression software and the file browser which displays files and contents of archives.
A right-click on any file in the file browser opens a context menu with several options ranging from viewing, renaming or deleting files to repairing archives or setting passwords.
Some of the functions are also available directly in the header like the ability to test the archive or view a specific file in an archive. The Wizard comes in handy for first time users as it directs the user through the process of creating or unpacking archives in the program.
Other direct options include performing a virus scan of the files contained in an archive or folder. WinRAR tries to discover installed virus scanners automatically which can then be selected from a pulldown menu. The user does have the option to browse the computer for a specific virus scanner and use that to scan the files which is handy for portable virus scanners or those that are not recognized by the automatic scan.
It is furthermore possible to add comments to archives and make them self extracting. The latter option can be handy in situations if no file compression software is installed on the target system or if the user of the target system wants (or requires) the easiest way of unpacking archived files (which self extracting archives are as they can be extracted with a simple double-click).
The Tools menu contains several advanced options like the tool to convert archives into rar or zip format. This is actually a very handy solution to convert multiple archives (that might have been compressed with different file compression algorithms) into a standard format like rar or zip. An option to add all archives of a specific format to that menu would be very handy. As of now it is only possible to add archives manually to the list.
Advanced users will like the amount of options that are provided during archive creation. The six-tabbed interface comes with so many options that it might look intimidating to some users although it is possible to simply click on the OK button to create the archive. Those users who look at the options provided on the other hand will find handy ones including the ability to change the compression level, splitting the files into several archives, adding a recovery record to the archive, setting passwords (that use the 128-bit Advanced Encryption Standard algorithm), wiping files after archive creation, storing full or relative paths or sending the archive by email.
WinRAR features
- WinRAR provides complete support for RAR and ZIP archives and is able to unpack CAB, ARJ, LZH, TAR, GZ, ACE, UUE, BZ2, JAR, ISO, 7Z, Z archives.
- WinRAR offers a graphic interactive interface utilizing mouse and menus as well as the command line interface.
- WinRAR is easier to use than many other archivers with the inclusion of a special “Wizard” mode which allows instant access to the basic archiving functions through a simple question and answer procedure. This avoids confusion in the early stages of use.
- WinRAR offers you the benefit of industry strength archive encryption using AES (Advanced Encryption Standard) with a key of 128 bits.
- WinRAR supports files and archives up to 8,589 billion gigabytes in size. The number of archived files is, for all practical purposes, unlimited.
- WinRAR offers the ability to create selfextracting and multivolume archives.
- Recovery record and recovery volumes allow to reconstruct even physically damaged archives.
Verdict:
WinRAR is a powerful file compression program for the Windows operating system that is suited for both inexperienced and advanced users. Especially advanced options like batch converting archives, adding recovery information to archives or the command line options make WinRAR a prime choice for all archiving needs. Interested users can download a trial version at the WinRAR download page.
Christmas Giveaway
Readers who leave a comment get the chance to win a WinRAR licenses. We have ten licenses for WinRAR 3.90 in this giveaway. Please tell us why you use WinRAR, if you use it, or why you don’t use WinRAR, if you don’t use it. We will select the best 10 insightful comments as our winners, regardless whether they use WinRAR or not.
Raju is giving away licenses for Speedbit Video Accerlerator today, be sure to check out his giveaway as well.
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I use Winrar because of the its high level of compression, support for recovery record and since it works both under Windows and Linux.
WOW, What do I need to do to get this license?
Thanks
Dror
i’ve been a fan since I stumbled across multi-RAR files in a newsgroup. owuld love to have full version.
Hi, I use 7-zip currently because it’s free and open source.
But 7-zip does lack some features that commercial alternatives have.
What I like about WinRAR is that it can repair corrupted archives and that it supports batch conversion.
Hopefully I will be among the winners this time!
Hi,
WinRAR is my prefered de/compression tool.
Faster than others, pro-interface and advanced features.
I use it almost daily, witha lot of satisfaction.
I would be even more satisfied it I could use a registerd version, rather than the demo ;)
T_g
PS : did I say I would be grateful to be one of the ten ;)
I have used Winrar trial until now. I like its ability to compress files much better than Winzip and I would be happy to get a license. Thank you.
Buon giorno a tutti
Trovo winrar uno dei migliori software nel suo genere
consuma poche risorse del sistema ed e molto intuitivo .
In oltre offre la possibilita’ di usare svariate soluzioni sia come compressione file che come motore di crittografia file.
Non dispongo di una licenza valida per winrar e devo dire che me ne servirebbe una . Sia per lavoro che per svago .
Sono riuscito a provare questo soft una volta per qualche giorno e ne sono stato sopreso dalla facilita’ d’uso
Ciao a tutti.. Andy ( IT )
Winrar is the good example of the combination of power, details and easy to use, and both newbies and power users could feel the ease and the pleasure.
WinRAR its a little very good software, I don’t find any alternative so good.
I have been waiting for a WinrRAR promotion for a long time.Today is my lucky day.
I tried other free well known alternatives but the shell extensions of those programs made my explorer.exe crash.I am using the trial version of WinRAR which ,integrates into my system without any problems and easy to use at the same time.This would be the best Christmas present for me.Thanks.
Eu uso o winrar e gosto bem dele, como gostaria de ter uma licença espero ter mais sorte desta vez,obrigado.
Great giveaway. I would like to win a license.
I use winrar every day. It’s fast and powerfull!
I use WinRAR because it´s skinnable.
I’m using WinRar for years.
What I like about WinRar ist the good combination of speed and compression. Where 7Zip often seems to compress better, i always had the impression it took way too long for my purposes (and my lack of patience).
I don’t know if the repair functionality is really good working, i never had an archive, which was corrupt AND which i could repair. I think there are only very few situations, where you need this, but i may be nice.
What I like is the nice integration in the windows explorer, and some handy features like the simple updating of existing archives, etc. It just fits all my needs for a compression tool and ist very simple to use.
Great offer! Put me in the draw.
the quintessential archiving software. come to papa :P
wow, great product, could be incredibly useful.
WinRAR is the second compression that I met and current I’m using it (version 6). From my own experience .rar has better compression compared to .zip. It also can compress, extract and load fast enough. I love it because it not eat my PC resource much compared to a freeware that i used before~
I used to use winzip since it came out pretty much. I believe that I switched to WinRar because it had a more intuitive interface. It was easier and faster to use. Once I switched, I never looked back.
It is the only program which helps me to edit comments in a EASY way inside archived files.. I would love to have the latest version..
I use 7zip because its free and If I got WinRAR I would change. Since the main reason I have 7zip is that it can atleast open RAR archives.
WinRAR has high compression and is almost universally known. Please add me to the giveaway.
the thing i like on winrar is that it is able to repair files with breeze. it also has nice ui and it is easy to use. the license would be great…
I have not used WinRAR yet but am urgently looking for a good archiver/compression program. I share a computer with others in the family much less fluent in proper and secure use of the system, so I would love to be among the winners of a license for WinRAR.
please count me in
I would like to have a WinRAR 3.9 liscence..it has a good compression ratio..i can extract lot of file formats using winaRAR..earlier i used 7 Zip..it is not powerful like winRAR..WinRAR’S encryption is superb..i don’t think those,trash RAR password recovering softwares can make a challenge to WinRAR3.9.. frankly,now i’m using a pirated version of winRAR which in downloaded from piratebay…actually,i don’t like pirated software…can’t help,because,i can’t afford to buy genuine winRAR..that’s why i like to have licsence…thankz..
This is a difficult question and I probably can not answer. I never use a paid file compression or even try it’s trial version because in the end I’ll never be able to buy it. I use other file compression because it was freeware. Makes sense right? But still I try my luck here.
I’m using 7zip and jzip now because they are free. As these free programs serve my needs, I see no reason to pay for WinRAR. However, I would love to get my hands on WinRAR if its free as I believe that it is an excellent compression program with advanced features. Thanks for the opportunity to win a license.
sir,I would like to have one license….winRAR 3.9 is awesome..i saw my friend is using it..i just tried a trial…i don’t have lot of knowledge about softwares..so,will tell about WinRAR as i feel & seen, in simple terms…i compress files in a greater speed..it’s user friendly..nobody teach me how to use it..i myself learnt…that’s why i called it user frienly..i can put passwords to those files..it’s very good feature…i can unzip files using this quickly..so,i like to have a license…,plz,count me in..
Do I have the blacklist in here? This is my fifth comment, and none of my previous comments listed here. This really makes me sad.