Path: utzoo!attcan!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!cs.utexas.edu!rutgers!cmcl2!uupsi!sunic!news.funet.fi!uwasa.fi!ts
From: ts@uwasa.fi (Timo Salmi)
Newsgroups: comp.binaries.ibm.pc.d
Subject: Re: maximal compression utility sought
Message-ID: <1990Dec23.221745.12865@uwasa.fi>
Date: 23 Dec 90 22:17:45 GMT
References: <8DNHu3w163w@brainiac.raidernet.com>
Organization: University of Vaasa
Lines: 32

In article <8DNHu3w163w@brainiac.raidernet.com> sophist@brainiac.raidernet.com (sophist) writes:
>I have searched through various archive indices and have not seen
>anything resembling this:
>
>What I am after is a utility which offers MAXIMAL compression (i.e.,
>significant improvement over 'compress', 'zip', or 'lzh') while
>operating at a much slower speed.  Of course a fast utility like this
>would be nice, but the point is that speed is not an issue.  Maximal
>compression is.  Does such a program exist?  Is it even possible to
>compress files much more than zip or lzh?  What I'd like to compress is
>binary executables for long-term storage (archival purposes).  Perhaps
>some text as well.  Any ideas?

I don't think that the differences between the best archivers are
not significant nor quite consistent enough for the time being for
this idea.  Rather it is the other issues that are significant at
the moment in selecting a compressor.  Since this subject has been
discussed so often, I am not going to try to recount what has
already been said.  
   The only idea that comes to mind is that there is a new
compressor around which _claims_ better copmpression that zip and
lharc, the current leaders in that respect.  It is called
/pc/pd2/arj015a.exe still at a beta test phase.  You might take a
look.  You can obtain it by anonymous ftp from uwasa.fi archives. 
   I haven't tested arj enough to judge if its claim is warranted. 
I'll leave that to others who have a better motivation to look for
the best compression ratios in archivers.

...................................................................
Prof. Timo Salmi        (Moderating at anon. ftp site 128.214.12.3)
School of Business Studies, University of Vaasa, SF-65101, Finland
Internet: ts@chyde.uwasa.fi Funet: gado::salmi Bitnet: salmi@finfun