WinZip 6.3 opens Internet downloads with one click also features built-in disk spanning.

MANSFIELD, Conn.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--April 28, 1997-- WinZip 6.3, the leading Windows Zip utility, now lets users download and open Zip files from the Internet with one click via Microsoft's Internet Explorer or Netscape Navigator. There is no need to "Save to disk" and then switch to WinZip or to the Windows Explorer or File Manager to open the downloaded file. In addition, all files that have been downloaded are automatically copied from the Internet browser's temporary folder to a folder of the user's choice. This ensures that a permanent copy of the download is saved on the user's system, even if the downloaded file is automatically deleted by the browser.

"WinZip's new one-click download-and-open feature can save time for anyone who downloads software from the Internet", said beta tester Chris Sells. "There is just no need for downloading to be a three step process."

WinZip 6.3 also features automatic built-in disk spanning support for multi-disk Zip files. Other enhancements include better Windows 95/NT shell integration and improvements to the built-in WinZip Self-Extractor Personal Edition.

"Files keep getting bigger and bigger but most people are still using 1.4 meg floppies", said developer Nico Mak. "WinZip's new support for multi-disk Zip files helps solve this problem by letting users compress large files that won't fit on one diskette."

Key product features include:

-- Built-in PKZIP-compatible ZIP and UNZIP, including support for multi-disk Zip files. (PKZIP and PKUNZIP are not required for any zipping or unzipping operations.) -- Internet Support, including "one-click download and open" from Microsoft Internet Explorer or Netscape Navigator, and built-in support for many Internet file formats, including UUencode, XXencode, BinHex, MIME, TAR, gzip, and Unix compress. -- Windows 95 features, including long filename support and shell integration. (All other features work on Windows 3.1, Windows 95 and Windows NT.) -- An optional Wizard interface that steps the user through the process of unzipping and/or installing software distributed in Zip files. -- Support for self-extracting files, which are ideal for sending Zip files to users who may not have an unzip utility.

About WinZip

Best known for providing a familiar Windows interface for Zip files, WinZip allows users to manipulate Zip files and other popular archival/compression formats without a complex command line interface. The first Windows 3.x version was released in 1991, the first 32-bit Windows NT version was released in 1994, and the first Windows 95 version was released in August 1995. Recent WinZip awards include:

1997 Home Office Computing "Editor's Pick" Award

1996 PC Week Labs "Analyst Choice" Award (December 9)

1996 PC Magazine "Best Utility" Shareware Award

1996 Windows Magazine "Win100" Award

1996 PC Computing "Best of the Internet" Award for compression

1996 Microsoft Certified Professional Magazine "Readers Choice

Award"

In previous years WinZip was a finalist for the PC Computing 1995 "MVP" Award, was voted "Best Utility" at the 1994 annual Shareware Industry Awards, and won the Windows Magazine "Win100" Award in 1993.

Requirements

Internet Browser support requires Microsoft Internet Explorer 3.0 or Netscape Navigator 3.0. The 32-bit version of WinZip requires Windows 95 or Windows NT 3.51 or later; the 16-bit version requires Windows 3.1 or Windows for Workgroups. WinZip has built-in support for all operations involving Zip files. No other programs are required to process Zip files. WinZip also has built-in support for extracting the contents from gzip, tar, and Unix compress files, for UUencoding Zip files, and for decoding any file encoded using the UUencode, XXencode, BinHex, and Base64 (including MIME) encoding methods. Some optional features (virus scanning, for example) require one or more external programs. Details are included in WinZip's online help.

Pricing and Availability

Pre-release beta test versions of WinZip 6.3 are available now from the WinZip home page (http://www.winzip.com) on the Internet. The official release is scheduled for late Q2 of 1997. Anyone purchasing WinZip now will receive WinZip 6.2 and can download a free upgrade to WinZip 6.3 when it is released. Individual copies are priced at $29, including postage and handling. Both the Windows 95/NT and Windows 3.1 versions are shipped on the same disk and are covered by the same license agreement. To place a credit card order, visit the WinZip home page (http://www.winzip.com) or call the Public Software Library at 800-242-4775. Quantity discounts and site licensing are available.

For further information about WinZip, contact Nico Mak Computing, Inc. at P.O. Box 540, Mansfield, CT 06268 USA, send Internet mail to [e-mail], or visit the WinZip home page: http://www.winzip.com .

WinZip is a registered trademark of Nico Mak Computing, Inc. Other product and company names are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective holders.

CONTACT: Nico Mak Computing Inc.

Nico Mak, 860-585-5376

[e-mail]

Media Inquiries: 860-429-3539 (voice)