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5 things you didn’t know about WinRAR

5 things you didn’t know about WinRAR
Patrick Devaney

Patrick Devaney

  • Updated:

If you are a Windows user you probably have WinRAR installed on your computer. WinRAR is the best solution you can find on the internet that will take care of file compression with ease. It is fast, reliable, and in a way, free to use. Let’s have a look at some interesting facts and things you probably didn’t know about WinRAR.

1. The 40 day trial period for WinRAR actually never ends.

This software is regarded as annoyware by most internet users, a term not used very often. Annoyware is a type of software that constantly reminds users that their trial period has expired and that they should activate it for a small fee. This is not mandatory, just a friendly reminder. Just like freeware software, you can pay if you want to and feel the need to support the developers, or you can choose to use it for free with no consequences. Officially, WinRAR is a Trialware.

This business model allowed WinRAR to become the most widely used file compression software on the market.

2. You can see how big the compressed file will be and how long the compression will take.

To do this you have to:

  • Select one or multiple files that you want to compress, then in WinRAR look for an “Info”
  • Click on Info and you will get another window with 4 tabs.
  • The first tab contains an “Estimate” If you click on it you will get an estimated time of compression and the file size after compression.

3. WinRAR can split compressed files into multiple parts.

This is useful if you are moving a large chunk of data via USB.

  • Choose a file or folder you want to split.
  • Right clicking on it and choose “Add files to archives”.
  • In the new tab find “Split to file, bytes” in the drop-down menu.
  • You will be presented with choices to split the files according to the storage device like 1.44 Mb floppy, CD Rom, DVD or even auto detect. Auto detect will determine how much space you have left on the storage device you are using and split the file accordingly.

4. WinRAR is 22 years old and the creator of the software, Eugene Roshal, isn’t the owner of the compression algorithm.

It is actually owned by his older brother because Eugene has “no time to concern himself with software development and copyright-related issues at the same time.”

5. Winrar hides two easter eggs.

If you open it and click on Help and then About WinRAR you should see the logo in front of a sea. Clicking on it will make the waves move. Below it there is a symbol that looks exactly the same as the WinRAR icon. If you click on it it will start to bounce and create some very familiar sounds.

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Patrick Devaney

Patrick Devaney

Patrick Devaney is a news reporter for Softonic, keeping readers up to date on everything affecting their favorite apps and programs. His beat includes social media apps and sites like Facebook, Instagram, Reddit, Twitter, YouTube, and Snapchat. Patrick also covers antivirus and security issues, web browsers, the full Google suite of apps and programs, and operating systems like Windows, iOS, and Android.

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