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Those ZIP & PDF files
by By Bob Elgines, Editor for the Colorado River Computer Club user group located in Lake Havasu City, Arizona, , elginesz@redrivernet.com. - March 26, 2001 at 20:20:16:
Trouble with some of those attachments and downloads? What do I do with those *.zip ( a data compressed file ) and *.pdf ( Portable Document Format compressed file) files ?One of the most important things we need is a program to unzip compressed files labeled as Zip files. There are several programs out there such as Aladdin, Winzip, etc. Winzip is the easiest and most widely used and a trial version can be downloaded free from the internet: www.winzip.com
After downloading Winzip (winzip80.exe is the latest version) save it to a folder such as “My Downloads” or what ever folder you want, where you can find it. If you have an older version remove it first by going to START/SETTINGS/CONTROL PANEL, then double click on ADD/REMOVE PROGRAMS. If Winzip is on the list, then click on it to high- light, then click on the Remove button to uninstall it.
Now, you are ready to install Winzip by finding your file using Windows Explorer ( file management tool) and doing a double click on your downloaded file (winzip80.exe), or go to START/RUN, type in C:\My Downloads\winzip80.exe and click on OK. The program called WINZIP will install itself and put icons on the Start Up menu, the Desk Top and in the Program listing. (I delete the one on the Desk Top with a right click and selecting Delete). Now we are ready to unzip those compressed files received from email, web, etc.
To unzip a file is very easy, just select your file and do a double click, Winzip will automatically come up showing you what is in the zip file. Go to the top right and click on EXTRACT, which will bring up the menu that allows you to select the folder you wish to extract and save the file(s). After you have the folder selected, click on the EXTRACT button. That’s all there is, now you can go to your folder and use your extracted or unzipped file(s).
If your unzipped files are picture files and you double click on them, they will come up in Windows Paint (*.bmp) or Internet Explorer (*.jpg, *.gif, etc), unless you have a photo program. If the files are text files your will see them in Notepad or wordpad, or you can view them in your word processor. If they are PDF (Portable Document Format) files then they require a special program called Acrobat Reader by Adobe.
To get your free Acrobat Reader, go to the Adobe web site at: www.adobe.com/products/acrobat/readstep.html Save your file (ar40eng.exe) in your special folder such as “My Downloads”. Before installing this program be sure you remove the old version (this is version 4) just like we did for Winzip. Now go to your special folder and locate the acrobat file and double click to install it, or go to START/RUN and enter C:\My Downloads\ar40eng.exe, then click on OK. Restart windows!
Once this is installed and windows is back up, you can double click on any PDF file and the Acrobat Reader will come up automatically.
I hope this helps people to read those email attachments and program manuals!
This article is brought to you by the Editorial Committee of the Association of Personal Computer User Groups (APCUG), an International organization to which this user group belongs. There is no restriction against anyone using the article as long as it is kept in context, with proper credit given to the author.
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