Hi, Bernie,
You already had one good answer on using executable file compressors such as
PKLite, Diet, Ice, and other such programs.
Depending on the packer and the executable file, .com .exe or .sys that is
being compressed, the file could be anywhere from less than ten percent
smaller after packing to 80 percent smaller. This means less disk space
used by the file, and since it uncompresses in fast memory, it can actually
mean faster load time. You might not notice it on a Pentium, but on a slow
80386 machine or slower, or a machine without amath co-processor, it might
actually be noticeable.
The admonition to save a backup copy of that uncompressed executable file
just in case is a good one. So, when would you not want to use an
executable file compressor program?
If the file calls other executable files in its program suite, of uses
overlay files with extensions such as .ovl and .ovr you don't want to
compress it. If the executable file actually needs to update itself or
write changes to user-configurable settings directly into the executable
file, you don't want to compress it. If the compressor warns you that the
file "may contain overlays," and then asks if you still want to compress it,
"Y/N?" you probably don't want to conpress it. Sometimes, they might work,
sometimes they might not. Sometimes, part of the program will work, but you
will invoke a certain menu option that will return an error if the file is
compressed.
Don't compress command.com or the main executable file of any command.com
replacement or DOS shell program. NetTamer.Exe does not like to be
compressed according to the documentation. That's another reason to not
compress, if the program documentation or technical information file warns
against it.
Some of those executable file packers think they are really smart and may
claim that the file you're about to compress was previously compressed by
what it thinks is an inferior program. If you just let him decompress it
first he can then offer to compress it smaller and tighter. PKLite is the
champion at that game. With some programs, results can be wildly
unpredictable if you let him uncompress the file first, and sometimes the
resulting compressed file is reduced to the status of garbage.
If you compress many files and uncompress them later, the uncompressing
routine may add an extra byte or two to the end of the uncompressed file.
You'll know if that happened when you try to compress it again later, and
PKLite warns, "File grew in size and cannot be compressed."
If you're running an antivirus program's utility designed to monitor files
for suspicious virus-like signs, that program may notice the file has
changed and flag it as suspicious, tampered, or possibly infected with
something that should not be there.
Now after all those warnings, I'd guess that about three fourths of the .com
.exe and .sys files in my c:\utils directory have been carressed by PKLite.
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Brent Reynolds, Atlanta, GA USA
Net-Tamer V 1.12 Beta - Registered
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