Zipping Mystery

[billybiker]

Maybe there is a good explaination for this. I decided to make some room by burning stuff onto cds.

I have 2 versions of Office xp.

1/ folder containing virgin officexp about 448mb
2/ folder containing slipstreamed officexp about 621mb

I zipped both copies up with winrar (separately)and the result were

1/ virgin xp 400mb
2/ slipstreamed 356mb........nearly half of its former self

So then I tried with winzip and the results were the same

Can anyone give me any pointers or is there an explaination for this ......cheers

[Dave]

The reason why the slipstreamed version began much larger is because all the files get extracted during the preperation of slipstreaming.
That also explains why it compressed so much more than the virgin copy, the uncompressed version could get re-compressed much more than the compressed version.

Not sure why the slipstreamed version ended up smaller though, maybe some of the updates or replaced files are smaller than the original.
Dave

[unicorn]

Not very likely...
...but maybe M$ found some of that obsolete and lost code in Office and actually removed it from the updates?
:P

[billybiker]

Unicorn:.... if the obsolete code was done away with .....surely the folder would be less in the first place after slipstreaming and not 200mb more, got me puzzled ........but then most things do......try and upload screen shot , maybe you can see the answer I cant.......oh cant upload..ok made a link....


Yea Dave you seem pretty confident in that reason you gave, so its not as mysterious then as I thought then........I was thinking maybe I had better burn all 4 copies just in case



http://members.lycos.co.uk/billbiker/xp1.gif

slipstreamed version......

http://members.lycos.co.uk/billbiker/xp.gif

ok guys what u reckon

[unicorn]

billybiker: Why? After reading Dave's harmonic and explaining answer I don't see that. Of course I don't really think m$ are removing (or even finding) all the obsolete code, but it should be a possibility in theory. The slipstreamed and zipped version is smaller than the original one, right. So compared during the same circumstances (compressed that is) the slipstreamed version is smaller. Something has gone allright.

Or am I doing some logical mistake here?

[billybiker]

Unicorn, I dunno ......I have never seen something reduced to nearly half by zipping......even if the files were all extracted, that's why I am puzzled......I am going to burn the slipstreamed zipped and see if it extracts to the full 621mb .......I was thinking maybe M$ had a anti zip widget in there but what do I know