By Joel T. Patz

Zipping-the compression of a group of files- can reduce online time and save money. But to many people, zipping is a tough new experience, with incomplete or difficult-to-use utilities. MicroHelp Zip brings drag-and-drop simplicity to the zip world, and it's a pleasure to use.

MicroHelp builds in many of the most popular zip tools, such as the ability to create multi-disk zipped files or self-extracting files that can be expanded by simply double-clicking on the file itself. The package offers File Manager/Explorer-like management in the lower half of a resizable window; click on the folder, and it displays the list of files.

You'll also drag to the Archive pane to view the contents of a zipped archive. MicroHelp Zip serves up info about file contents, including name, original size, creation date and attributes, as well as the usual finished size, ratio of reduction and path. You can add comments to each file or to the entire archive, and filter the view to see only files with a particular extension or attribute. You can search your zipped archives without decompression, which saves time and hard drive space.

In addition to converting .TAR, G-zipped .TAR and .LZH files, there's support for UUEncode and UUDecode, all of which makes files from most any system easily readable. You have to extract only the files you need, not the entire archive.

After testing the feature-packed MicroHelp Zip, I'm hooked. This zip utility lets you do everything you'd want to do with a zipped file-and it has an attractive, easy-to-use interface to boot.

--Info File--
MicroHelp Zip
Price: $29.95
Pros: Ease of use
Platforms: Windows 95, 3.1x
Disk Space: 780KB
RAM: 4MB
MicroHelp
800-777-3322, 770-516-0899
WinMag Box Score: 4.5