Hard Light Productions Forums

Off-Topic Discussion => General Discussion => Topic started by: Stealth on February 27, 2004, 11:11:19 pm

Title: Most Powerful File Compression Type - ?
Post by: Stealth on February 27, 2004, 11:11:19 pm
I've got several files that are between 702 and 725 MB.  Unfortunately, they're just barely too big to fit on a 700MB CD :-/

I've tried Winzip and Winrar compression, but even with Winrar, a 720 MB file becomes 706 MB or thereabouts.  Is there any powerful compression that i don't know about that would help get below the 700MB mark?  anyone?
Title: Most Powerful File Compression Type - ?
Post by: Thorn on February 27, 2004, 11:14:57 pm
ACE possibly.. but I cant be sure... rarely use it....
Title: Most Powerful File Compression Type - ?
Post by: Stealth on February 27, 2004, 11:18:35 pm
oh, ok.  i'd also like to have one that doesn't take 6 hours to compress a 700 MB file... preferably in less than 20 minutes if at all possible ;)
Title: Most Powerful File Compression Type - ?
Post by: an0n on February 27, 2004, 11:45:55 pm
There's that one that all the warez people use. ARC or something.

But it has to be compiled to the specifications of the file IIRC.
Title: Most Powerful File Compression Type - ?
Post by: Thorn on February 27, 2004, 11:48:07 pm
Quote
Originally posted by an0n
There's that one that all the warez people use. ARC or something.

But it has to be compiled to the specifications of the file IIRC.

ACE... I dont think it requires anything special...
Title: Most Powerful File Compression Type - ?
Post by: Rictor on February 27, 2004, 11:48:27 pm
Try overburning using Nero. Usually, if you try to record something in Nero and its too big, it will either tell you "Too big" or it will ask you to finalize the CD and then it will fit.

There's probably a more advanced approach to overburning, but this is the layman way :D:D
Title: Most Powerful File Compression Type - ?
Post by: Kamikaze on February 28, 2004, 12:38:26 am
Try bzip2.

http://sources.redhat.com/bzip2/
Title: Most Powerful File Compression Type - ?
Post by: Liberator on February 28, 2004, 12:47:36 am
I have seen a compressed file, usually an ACE, archived inside a RAR.  I don't know what the compression on the RAR is but the ACE is usually about 3-1.  ~600 goes down to ~200.  Of course, these may have been secondary compression, but there you go.
Title: Most Powerful File Compression Type - ?
Post by: mikhael on February 28, 2004, 01:05:22 am
I'll second the Bzip2 idea.

Liberator, the reason that people put other archives inside RARs is not for additional compression. The mathematics of compression algortihms virtually guarantees that any well-compressed data stream will only benefit trivially from a second compression pass.

The reason they put other archives into RARs is that RAR has a tighter password protection scheme than most other archive formats.
Title: Most Powerful File Compression Type - ?
Post by: an0n on February 28, 2004, 01:06:21 am
Quote
Originally posted by Thorn

ACE... I dont think it requires anything special...
No, not ACE. There's a one they use that extracts using a DOS window.
Title: Most Powerful File Compression Type - ?
Post by: Starfury on February 28, 2004, 01:24:43 am
Split it into 2 rar files.  :P
Title: Most Powerful File Compression Type - ?
Post by: Setekh on February 28, 2004, 01:51:42 am
Quote
Originally posted by mikhael
I'll second the Bzip2 idea.


And thirded. My brother has fallen in love with Bzip2, hardly ever uses anything else. :)
Title: Most Powerful File Compression Type - ?
Post by: Xelion on February 28, 2004, 03:32:45 am
Quote
Originally posted by an0n
No, not ACE. There's a one they use that extracts using a DOS window.


That compression software is commercial grade and would be hard to get online. Try Kazaa or contacting one of those dudes that does that stuff :D
Title: Most Powerful File Compression Type - ?
Post by: Fury on February 28, 2004, 04:01:35 am
7zip is supposed to be pretty good.
http://www.7-zip.org/

I wish it would have a user friendly interface for SFX archiving... :(
Title: Most Powerful File Compression Type - ?
Post by: vyper on February 28, 2004, 09:40:51 am
Cool, the guy who did bzip works at Glasgow Uni.
Title: Most Powerful File Compression Type - ?
Post by: Stealth on February 28, 2004, 09:41:01 am
ok thanksguys
Title: Most Powerful File Compression Type - ?
Post by: Taristin on February 28, 2004, 09:52:42 am
Quote
Originally posted by Xelion


That compression software is commercial grade and would be hard to get online. Try Kazaa or contacting one of those dudes that does that stuff :D


Is that the UART or whatever it's called that can compress gigabytes into *0Mb?
Title: Most Powerful File Compression Type - ?
Post by: TopAce on February 28, 2004, 09:59:57 am
Put all files into an ARJ. Put the ARJ into a ZIP. And put the ZIP into a RAR. . . .

Just kiddin'. :D
Title: Most Powerful File Compression Type - ?
Post by: JC Denton on February 28, 2004, 11:17:29 am
Quote
Originally posted by an0n
No, not ACE. There's a one they use that extracts using a DOS window.

Nono, that's the ARJ format.  ACE has a GUI program (WinACE) for archive manipulation.

Though, there's a plugin for WinZip that lets it open ARJ files...but why would anyone need that, since Winrar and WinAce already have native support for it? :p
Title: Most Powerful File Compression Type - ?
Post by: diamondgeezer on February 28, 2004, 12:16:37 pm
Quote
Originally posted by an0n
No, not ACE. There's a one they use that extracts using a DOS window.

You thinking of the one that the ripped Renegade* came in? Claimed to be some uber industrial-strength compressor and indeed, the entire Renegade package was zipped down to about 250mb...


*This is not to say that I downloaded the rip. Seriously.
Title: Most Powerful File Compression Type - ?
Post by: Stealth on February 28, 2004, 06:46:03 pm
some people can't comprehend that there's a limiti to how much you can compress something.  it's the basic idea of compressing a file.
Title: Most Powerful File Compression Type - ?
Post by: Stryke 9 on February 28, 2004, 06:52:36 pm
Sitting on it usually compresses things pretty well.
Title: Most Powerful File Compression Type - ?
Post by: Setekh on February 29, 2004, 06:45:19 am
Quote
Originally posted by JC Denton
Nono, that's the ARJ format.


Oh man, seeing those three letters sure brings back some memories... back in the days of shareware gaming and 300 baud modems... :)
Title: Most Powerful File Compression Type - ?
Post by: Carl on February 29, 2004, 06:36:01 pm
something along the lines of this. (http://www.hard-light.net/forums/index.php/topic,4493.0.html)
Title: Most Powerful File Compression Type - ?
Post by: Xelion on March 01, 2004, 11:38:48 pm
Quote
Originally posted by Raa Tor'h
Is that the UART or whatever it's called that can compress gigabytes into *0Mb?


Don't know :nervous:

Quote
Originally posted by Stryke 9
Sitting on it usually compresses things pretty well.


:lol:
Title: Most Powerful File Compression Type - ?
Post by: mikhael on March 01, 2004, 11:43:26 pm
Quote
Originally posted by Carl
something along the lines of this. (http://www.hard-light.net/forums/index.php/topic,4493.0.html)


I remember that article!

I love the sig I had back then. :lol: I forgot that one:

"Your guy was a little SQUARE! You had to use your IMAGINATION! There were no multiple levels or screens. There was just one screen forever and you could never win the game. It just kept getting harder and faster until you died. JUST LIKE LIFE." --Ernie Cline