Jean Hanson

Why do we zip files?  Large files and packages of multiple documents are often "zipped" into one file so that they can easily be downloaded from thejanitorialstore.com to your computer.  Zipped files are actually condensed so that the file size is smaller. A software program is used to compress one or more files into a "zipped" file. To read and/or work with the file you have to download it to your computer and then unzip it.

To unzip files you need a zip program: Winzip (http://www.winzip.com/) is very popular and costs around $30.00.  Another popular program is Stuffit (http://www.stuffit.com/win/index.html).  There are also several free unzip programs available.  Go to your favorite search engine and look for "free unzip programs" or "free unzip software".  The free programs will most likely not have all of the capabilities of a program that you buy; however, if you are just using the program to unzip files it may be all that you need.  Windows XP has a built in program to unzip files.

How to Unzip Files:

If you are using Windows XP. 

After you have downloaded the file to your computer, double click on the file and a window panel will open up with thumbnails of the contents of the zipped file (The zipped file will look like a folder with a zipper on it). Then to access these files extract them by clicking on the "Extract All Files" link under the Folder Tasks pane.

Clicking on the extract all will bring up the extraction wizard.  The first click on the wizard will bring up a welcome screen.  Just click next. 

The next screen gives you a choice of where you want the unzipped files.  Make sure you have the files are unzipped where you can easily find them.  Hit next and your files will be unzipped.