Is It Possible...

[Elanos]

...that a much smaller file could contain exactly the same things as a much larger file? For example, could a 200meg pc game be just as whole and complete as 700meg version, even if both claim to be complete and whole, without errors, viruses, omissions, or bugs? Does the file extension have a lot to do with it? For example, could an iso file be a 700meg download, when the self-extracting exe file is only 200?

[Leech_Killer]

Yes, a self-extracting file is just a compressed file with the un-compressing software added. Once uncompressed it'll revert back to it's original size, so a 200Mb file can revert back to 700Mb.

Just run the compressed file through a good virius scan before trying it.

[Nightwolf]

They'd have to use a hell of a lot of compression to get 700MB down to 200, but it's possible. It's also likely that the smaller version is missing some of the extra game files, like animated cut scenes, background music, speech, etc.

[Lamsey]

It also depends on the type of compression.

ZIP is the standard method of file compression, but isn't too good.
RAR offers a good balance between speed and compression ratio.
ACE has best compression but is slow.

[Supernatural]

Originally posted by Lamsey@1 March 2003 - 14:27
It also depends on the type of compression.

ZIP is the standard method of file compression, but isn't too good.
RAR offers a good balance between speed and compression ratio.
ACE has best compression but is slow.

Zip is better than RAR IMHO. Less compression, but faster and more stable.