************ ARCHIVE COMPARISON TEST (A.C.T.)  -  MAY 1995 ************
*                       Author:  JEFF GILCHRIST                       *
***********************************************************************
*   A.C.T. may be re-posted or distributed only if the contents are   *
*   not changed under any circumstances and the contents are posted   *
*   in their entirety.                                                *
***********************************************************************

########################## NEW - PLEASE READ ##########################
A.C.T. is now on the World Wide Web (WWW)!  It can be accessed at:
                 http://www.mi.net/act/act.html
This is the best way to view A.C.T. since it is in a graphical format
and most authors have a link to their e-mail address.  There are also
links to FTP sites to download most of the archivers.  Finally, there
is a link to my e-mail address to send me any comments or suggestions.
#######################################################################

The following is a little test I did on several archivers to compare
their performance against others.

For the following tests with single file types, I used a 486DX4-75 with
8 megabytes of RAM.  No CACHE was used at all!  For the timing, Ultra
Precision Command Timer v1.6 by Erik de Neve was used.  The operating
system used was DOS 6.22.  I compressed the tested files from my hard
drive to a 2 megabyte RAM drive.


                    ***  PART 1 - SINGLE FILE TESTS  ***


TEXT File Test     -     Uncompressed Size 768,771 bytes


    ARCHIVER        SWITCHES       CREATION TIME  COMPRESSED SIZE  RATIO
    --------        --------       -------------  ---------------  -----

NB  ACB 1.03b       f               2 m 59.6 sec   231,344 bytes   69.9%
    HA 0.999b       e2              0 m 34.1 sec   235,767 bytes   69.3%
 N  X1 0.90 ->HA    (none)          0 m 34.3 sec   235,767 bytes   69.3%
 O  HAP 3.14e11     3               0 m 14.1 sec   260,103 bytes   66.2%
    QUANTUM 0.96    -c5             9 m 42.6 sec   271,960 bytes   64.6%
    QUANTUM 0.96    (none)          1 m 37.0 sec   287,179 bytes   62.6%
    HPACK 0.79a0    -df             0 m 48.5 sec   299,072 bytes   61.1%
 N  ARJZ 0.15       -mp9 -jh        0 m 27.2 sec   301,771 bytes   60.7%
    UC2 v2.0        (Max Compress)  0 m 35.3 sec   302,026 bytes   60.7%
    ARI 1.12        -n              2 m 20.5 sec   302,200 bytes   60.7%
 N  ARJZ 0.15       (none)          0 m 18.0 sec   304,182 bytes   60.4%
 N  YAC 1.01.05     (none)          0 m 31.9 sec   307,708 bytes   60.0%
    LIMIT 1.2       -mx             0 m 21.2 sec   310,872 bytes   59.6%
    LIMIT 1.2       (none)          0 m 19.6 sec   311,187 bytes   59.5%
    AMGC 2.2        -mm             0 m 50.2 sec   311,279 bytes   59.5%
    UC2 v2.0        (Default)       0 m 16.5 sec   311,884 bytes   59.4%
    HA 0.999b       e1              0 m 26.4 sec   312,016 bytes   59.4%
 N  X1 0.90 ->HA    m1              0 m 32.1 sec   312,016 bytes   59.4%
 N  X1 0.90 ->TGZ   (none)          0 m 24.2 sec   312,158 bytes   59.4%
    SQZ 1.08.3      -q(ALT236)      0 m 26.3 sec   312,330 bytes   59.4%
    INFO-ZIP 2.0    -9 -j           0 m 18.0 sec   312,371 bytes   59.4%
    PKZIP 2.04g     -ex             0 m 14.8 sec   312,604 bytes   59.3%
 N  CODEC 3.21      -c9             0 m 19.5 sec   312,653 bytes   59.3%
    CODEC 3.10      -c9             0 m 19.7 sec   312,653 bytes   59.3%
    RAR 1.53        -ep -m5 -s      0 m 30.3 sec   312,726 bytes   59.3%
 N  RAR 1.54beta    -ep -m5 -s      0 m 30.6 sec   312,726 bytes   59.3%
 N  GZIP 1.2.4      (none)          0 m 12.9 sec   313,379 bytes   59.2%
    INFO-ZIP 2.0    -j              0 m 14.6 sec   313,466 bytes   59.2%
 N  CODEC 3.21      (none)          0 m 15.9 sec   313,787 bytes   59.2%
    CODEC 3.10      (none)          0 m 16.1 sec   313,787 bytes   59.2%
    AIN 2.2         /m1             0 m 10.4 sec   314,299 bytes   59.1%
 N  BSArc 1.9.5     (none)          0 m 18.0 sec   314,875 bytes   59.0%
    SQZ 1.08.3      (none)          0 m 18.2 sec   315,028 bytes   59.0%
    BSArc 1.9.3     (none)          0 m 21.2 sec   315,482 bytes   59.0%
    RAR 1.53        -ep             0 m 16.9 sec   315,851 bytes   58.9%
 N  RAR 1.54beta    -ep             0 m 17.0 sec   315,851 bytes   58.9%
    PKZIP 2.04g     (none)          0 m 10.2 sec   316,113 bytes   58.9%
 N  QUARK 1.0beta   (none)          0 m 17.7 sec   317,195 bytes   58.7%
    AIN 2.2         (none)          0 m 08.3 sec   317,659 bytes   58.7%
    ARJ 2.41a       -jm -e          0 m 17.0 sec   318,939 bytes   58.5%
    ARJ 2.42b BETA  -jm -e          0 m 17.0 sec   318,939 bytes   58.5%
    ARJ 2.41a       -e              0 m 15.7 sec   319,172 bytes   58.5%
    ARJ 2.42b BETA  -e              0 m 15.7 sec   319,172 bytes   58.5%
    AMGC 2.2        (none)          0 m 16.7 sec   327,646 bytes   57.4%
    LHA 2.55b       -we:            0 m 17.0 sec   339,110 bytes   55.9%
    AR 0.02         (none)          0 m 30.7 sec   339,118 bytes   55.9%
    SAR 1.0         (none)          0 m 31.8 sec   339,118 bytes   55.9%
    ZOO 2.10        h:              0 m 30.1 sec   339,245 bytes   55.9%
    PUT 3.41        (none)          0 m 21.5 sec   339,642 bytes   55.8%
    HYPER 2.5       (none)          0 m 09.8 sec   345,887 bytes   55.0%
    PAK 2.51        (none)          0 m 10.9 sec   347,608 bytes   54.8%
 N  SQWEZ 2.2       /s              0 m 31.0 sec   365,224 bytes   52.5%
    SQWEZ 2.1       /s              0 m 31.3 sec   365,224 bytes   52.5%
    ARX 1.0         (none)          0 m 10.3 sec   369,545 bytes   51.9%
    DWC 5.01        (none)          0 m 09.0 sec   380,301 bytes   50.5%
 N  MDCD 1.0        (none)          0 m 05.8 sec   391,703 bytes   49.0%
    ZOO 2.10        :               0 m 13.0 sec   391,750 bytes   49.0%
    JRCHIVE 1.02    -v              0 m 09.7 sec   416,982 bytes   45.8%
 F  ARC 6.02        (none)          0 m 05.3 sec   418,511 bytes   45.6%

Winner for best compression   :  ACB 1.03b B
Winner for fastest compression:  ARC 6.02 F
Winner for best overall       :  HAP 3.14e11 O

N Indicates a new version of the software tested since the last posting
  of these tests.


EXE File Test      -     Uncompressed Size 425,488 bytes


    ARCHIVER        SWITCHES       CREATION TIME  COMPRESSED SIZE  RATIO
    --------        --------       -------------  ---------------  -----

 B  QUANTUM 0.96    -c5             3 m 22.2 sec    97,315 bytes   77.1%
    ARI 1.12        -n              2 m 41.1 sec    98,831 bytes   76.8%
    RAR 1.53        -ep -m5 -s      0 m 13.6 sec   100,295 bytes   76.4%
 N  RAR 1.54beta    -ep -m5 -s      0 m 14.0 sec   100,295 bytes   76.4%
    QUANTUM 0.96    (none)          0 m 21.4 sec   101,443 bytes   76.2%
 N  YAC 1.01.05     (none)          0 m 16.8 sec   101,445 bytes   76.2%
    HA 0.999b       e1              0 m 13.8 sec   101,496 bytes   76.1%
 N  X1 0.90 ->HA    m1              0 m 15.0 sec   101,496 bytes   76.1%
 O  RAR 1.53        -ep             0 m 04.9 sec   101,625 bytes   76.1%
 N  RAR 1.54beta    -ep             0 m 05.1 sec   101,625 bytes   76.1%
 N  CODEC 3.21      -c9             0 m 10.5 sec   103,042 bytes   75.8%
    CODEC 3.10      -c9             0 m 10.5 sec   103,042 bytes   75.8%
 N  QUARK 1.0beta   (none)          0 m 18.5 sec   103,213 bytes   75.7%
    UC2 v2.0        (Max Compress)  0 m 25.6 sec   103,502 bytes   75.7%
    LIMIT 1.2       -mx             0 m 13.0 sec   103,645 bytes   75.6%
 N  CODEC 3.21      (none)          0 m 05.2 sec   103,710 bytes   75.6%
    CODEC 3.10      (none)          0 m 05.2 sec   103,710 bytes   75.6%
    AMGC 2.2        -mm             0 m 22.7 sec   103,811 bytes   75.6%
    INFO-ZIP 2.0    -9 -j           0 m 15.7 sec   103,929 bytes   75.6%
    LIMIT 1.2       (none)          0 m 04.8 sec   104,147 bytes   75.5%
    PKZIP 2.04g     -ex             0 m 06.7 sec   104,249 bytes   75.5%
    AIN 2.2         /m1             0 m 04.0 sec   104,857 bytes   75.4%
    ARJ 2.41a       -jm -e          0 m 14.6 sec   104,976 bytes   75.3%
    ARJ 2.42b BETA  -jm -e          0 m 14.7 sec   104,976 bytes   75.3%
    SQZ 1.08.3      -q(ALT236)      0 m 30.0 sec   105,088 bytes   75.3%
 N  ARJZ 0.15       -mp9            0 m 14.4 sec   105,120 bytes   75.3%
 N  GZIP 1.2.4      (none)          0 m 05.5 sec   105,367 bytes   75.2%
 N  ACB 1.03b       f               1 m 04.8 sec   105,367 bytes   75.2%
    INFO-ZIP 2.0    -j              0 m 04.9 sec   105,454 bytes   75.2%
    AIN 2.2         (none)          0 m 03.4 sec   105,515 bytes   75.2%
    PKZIP 2.04g     (none)          0 m 04.3 sec   105,547 bytes   75.2%
    UC2 v2.0        (Default)       0 m 06.7 sec   105,570 bytes   75.2%
    ARJ 2.41a       -e              0 m 05.5 sec   105,657 bytes   75.2%
    ARJ 2.42b BETA  -e              0 m 05.7 sec   105,657 bytes   75.2%
 N  BSArc 1.9.5     (none)          0 m 05.3 sec   105,772 bytes   75.1%
    PUT 3.41        (none)          0 m 09.3 sec   105,863 bytes   75.1%
    BSArc 1.9.3     (none)          0 m 06.2 sec   105,900 bytes   75.1%
    LHA 2.55b       -we:            0 m 07.0 sec   105,949 bytes   75.1%
    AR 0.02         (none)          0 m 13.4 sec   105,957 bytes   75.1%
    SAR 1.0         (none)          0 m 13.9 sec   105,957 bytes   75.1%
 N  ARJZ 0.15       (none)          0 m 04.7 sec   105,995 bytes   75.1%
    SQZ 1.08.3      (none)          0 m 05.7 sec   106,023 bytes   75.1%
    ZOO 2.10        h:              0 m 13.1 sec   106,084 bytes   75.1%
    HPACK 0.79a0    -df             2 m 37.8 sec   107,956 bytes   74.6%
    AMGC 2.2        (none)          0 m 05.8 sec   108,678 bytes   74.5%
    HYPER 2.5       (none)          0 m 04.7 sec   109,587 bytes   74.2%
 N  X1 0.90 ->HA    m4              0 m 35.9 sec   112,172 bytes   73.6%
 N  SQWEZ 2.2       /s              0 m 17.3 sec   112,393 bytes   73.6%
    SQWEZ 2.1       /s              0 m 17.6 sec   112,393 bytes   73.6%
    HA 0.999b       e2              0 m 39.4 sec   113,013 bytes   73.4%
    HAP 3.14e11     3               0 m 12.4 sec   113,738 bytes   73.3%
    ARX 1.0         (none)          0 m 08.9 sec   118,701 bytes   72.1%
    PAK 2.51        (none)          0 m 07.2 sec   122,829 bytes   71.1%
    DWC 5.01        (none)          0 m 03.6 sec   157,188 bytes   63.1%
    JRCHIVE 1.02    -v              0 m 05.6 sec   157,909 bytes   62.9%
 N  MDCD 1.0        (none)          0 m 03.7 sec   158,402 bytes   62.8%
    ZOO 2.10        :               0 m 07.5 sec   158,449 bytes   62.8%
 F  ARC 6.02        (none)          0 m 03.0 sec   161,589 bytes   62.0%

Winner for best compression   :  QUANTUM 0.96 B
Winner for fastest compression:  ARC 6.02 F
Winner for best overall       :  RAR 1.53 O

N Indicates a new version of the software tested since the last posting
  of these tests.


669 File Test  -  (8 bit, 8 Channel)  Uncompressed Size 1,314,481 bytes


    ARCHIVER        SWITCHES       CREATION TIME  COMPRESSED SIZE  RATIO
    --------        --------       -------------  ---------------  -----

NB  X1 0.90 ->HA    (none)          1 m 55.0 sec   636,442 bytes   51.6%
 B  HA 0.999b       e2              2 m 04.4 sec   636,442 bytes   51.6%
 N  ACB 1.03b       f               6 m 42.3 sec   642,925 bytes   51.1%
    UC2 v2.0        (Max Compress)  2 m 25.7 sec   684,686 bytes   47.9%
    HPACK 0.79a0    -df             2 m 30.8 sec   691,175 bytes   47.4%
 O  HAP 3.14e11     3               0 m 35.4 sec   704,531 bytes   46.4%
    QUANTUM 0.96    -c5            46 m 51.3 sec   719,128 bytes   45.3%
    QUANTUM 0.96    (none)          2 m 20.5 sec   738,987 bytes   43.8%
    ARI 1.12        -n              3 m 44.2 sec   756,636 bytes   42.4%
    RAR 1.53        -ep -m5 -s      0 m 40.6 sec   769,910 bytes   41.4%
 N  RAR 1.54beta    -ep -m5 -s      0 m 40.7 sec   769,910 bytes   41.4%
    HA 0.999b       e1              0 m 42.9 sec   769,923 bytes   41.4%
 N  X1 0.90 ->HA    m1              0 m 46.3 sec   769,923 bytes   41.4%
    LIMIT 1.2       -mx             0 m 50.1 sec   770,759 bytes   41.4%
    LIMIT 1.2       (none)          0 m 45.4 sec   770,880 bytes   41.4%
    RAR 1.53        -ep             0 m 25.2 sec   771,679 bytes   41.3%
 N  RAR 1.54beta    -ep             0 m 25.2 sec   771,679 bytes   41.3%
    UC2 v2.0        (Default)       0 m 27.5 sec   773,316 bytes   41.2%
 N  ARJZ 0.15       -mp9            0 m 35.9 sec   773,318 bytes   41.2%
    PKZIP 2.04g     -ex             0 m 27.7 sec   774,780 bytes   41.1%
 N  ARJZ 0.15       (none)          0 m 23.5 sec   775,005 bytes   41.0%
    AIN 2.2         /m1             0 m 20.0 sec   776,613 bytes   40.9%
    SQZ 1.08.3      -q(ALT236)      0 m 38.1 sec   778,244 bytes   40.8%
    AIN 2.2         (none)          0 m 14.8 sec   779,886 bytes   40.7%
    ARJ 2.42b BETA  -jm -e          0 m 25.0 sec   780,613 bytes   40.6%
    ARJ 2.42b BETA  -e              0 m 21.2 sec   780,662 bytes   40.6%
    SQZ 1.08.3      (none)          0 m 25.8 sec   780,831 bytes   40.6%
 N  QUARK 1.0beta   (none)          0 m 26.0 sec   780,863 bytes   40.6%
 N  BSArc 1.9.5     (none)          0 m 28.1 sec   781,103 bytes   40.6%
    BSArc 1.9.3     (none)          0 m 31.1 sec   781,375 bytes   40.6%
    PKZIP 2.04g     (none)          0 m 18.4 sec   782,772 bytes   40.5%
    PUT 3.41        (none)          0 m 34.5 sec   784,604 bytes   40.3%
    INFO-ZIP 2.0    -9 -j           0 m 26.4 sec   785,102 bytes   40.3%
    LHA 2.55b       -we:            0 m 26.8 sec   786,069 bytes   40.2%
    AR 0.02         (none)          0 m 49.4 sec   786,077 bytes   40.2%
    SAR 1.0         (none)          0 m 51.5 sec   786,077 bytes   40.2%
 N  CODEC 3.21      -c9             0 m 23.1 sec   786,097 bytes   40.2%
    CODEC 3.10      -c9             0 m 23.4 sec   786,097 bytes   40.2%
    ZOO 2.10        h:              0 m 48.4 sec   786,204 bytes   40.2%
 N  CODEC 3.20      (none)          0 m 21.9 sec   786,352 bytes   40.2%
    CODEC 3.10      (none)          0 m 22.3 sec   786,352 bytes   40.2%
 N  GZIP 1.2.4      (none)          0 m 17.0 sec   786,673 bytes   40.2%
    INFO-ZIP 2.0    -j              0 m 20.6 sec   786,760 bytes   40.1%
    AMGC 2.2        -mm             2 m 26.2 sec   788,463 bytes   40.0%
 N  YAC 1.01.05     (none)          0 m 44.8 sec   803,255 bytes   38.9%
    ARX 1.00        (none)          0 m 20.2 sec   815,339 bytes   38.0%
    PAK 2.51        (none)          0 m 17.9 sec   817,011 bytes   37.8%
 N  SQWEZ 2.2       /s              0 m 49.9 sec   817,479 bytes   37.8%
    SQWEZ 2.1       /s              0 m 50.4 sec   817,479 bytes   37.8%
    HYPER 2.5       (none)          0 m 18.5 sec   821,782 bytes   37.5%
    AMGC 2.2        (none)          0 m 30.1 sec   833,738 bytes   36.6%
    DWC 5.01        (none)          0 m 11.1 sec   871,519 bytes   33.7%
 N  MDCD 1.0        (none)          0 m 10.6 sec   880,229 bytes   33.0%
    ZOO 2.10        :               0 m 23.9 sec   880,276 bytes   33.0%
    JRCHIVE 1.02    -v              0 m 16.5 sec   899,525 bytes   31.6%
 F  ARC 6.02        (none)          0 m 09.9 sec  1,067,359 bytes  18.8%

Winner for best compression   :  X1 0.90 & HA 0.999b B
Winner for fastest compression:  ARC 6.02 F
Winner for best overall       :  HAP 3.14e11 O

N Indicates a new version of the software tested since the last posting
  of these tests.


BMP File Test  -  (24bit, 620x300x16M)  Uncompressed Size 558,054 bytes


    ARCHIVER        SWITCHES       CREATION TIME  COMPRESSED SIZE  RATIO
    --------        --------       -------------  ---------------  -----

 B  UC2 v2.0        (Max Compress)  0 m 59.3 sec   209,606 bytes   62.4%
 N  X1 0.90 ->HA    m4              0 m 53.7 sec   222,930 bytes   60.1%
 N  ACB 1.03b       f               1 m 38.8 sec   225,019 bytes   59.7%
    HA 0.999b       e2              1 m 01.4 sec   228,372 bytes   59.1%
    QUANTUM 0.96    -c7            26 m 08.2 sec   248,992 bytes   55.4%
    QUANTUM 0.96    -c5             6 m 15.4 sec   249,954 bytes   55.2%
    QUANTUM 0.96    (none)          0 m 33.8 sec   257,768 bytes   53.8%
    HPACK 0.79a0    -df             1 m 29.9 sec   258,766 bytes   53.6%
 O  ARI 1.12        -n              0 m 09.3 sec   259,047 bytes   53.6%
 N  RAR 1.54beta    -ep -m5 -s      0 m 12.0 sec   259,657 bytes   53.5%
    RAR 1.53        -ep -m5 -s      0 m 12.1 sec   259,657 bytes   53.5%
 N  RAR 1.54beta    -ep             0 m 07.4 sec   261,549 bytes   53.1%
    RAR 1.53        -ep             0 m 07.5 sec   261,549 bytes   53.1%
    UC2 v2.0        (Default)       0 m 10.0 sec   261,860 bytes   53.1%
 N  YAC 1.01.05     (none)          0 m 20.4 sec   262,310 bytes   53.0%
    HAP 3.14e11     3               0 m 15.5 sec   262,589 bytes   52.9%
    AMGC 2.2        -mm             0 m 22.5 sec   264,513 bytes   52.6%
 N  QUARK 1.0beta   (none)          0 m 16.8 sec   265,504 bytes   52.4%
    SQZ 1.08.3      -q(ALT236)      0 m 18.7 sec   266,007 bytes   52.3%
    AIN 2.2         /m1             0 m 06.5 sec   267,891 bytes   52.0%
    SQZ 1.08.3      (none)          0 m 08.1 sec   267,935 bytes   52.0%
 N  ARJZ 0.15       -mp9            0 m 10.9 sec   268,173 bytes   51.9%
    AMGC 2.2        (none)          0 m 09.0 sec   269,254 bytes   51.8%
    AIN 2.2         (none)          0 m 05.2 sec   269,691 bytes   51.7%
    PKZIP 2.04g     -ex             0 m 10.0 sec   270,073 bytes   51.6%
 N  ARJZ 0.15       (none)          0 m 06.7 sec   270,404 bytes   51.5%
    PKZIP 2.04g     (none)          0 m 06.4 sec   271,355 bytes   51.4%
 N  BSArc 1.9.5     (none)          0 m 07.3 sec   271,706 bytes   51.3%
    BSArc 1.9.3     (none)          0 m 08.3 sec   271,849 bytes   51.3%
    ARJ 2.41a       -jm -e          0 m 10.8 sec   273,371 bytes   51.0%
    ARJ 2.42b BETA  -jm -e          0 m 11.3 sec   273,371 bytes   51.0%
 N  CODEC 3.21      -c9             0 m 08.0 sec   274,017 bytes   50.9%
    CODEC 3.10      -c9             0 m 08.3 sec   274,017 bytes   50.9%
 N  CODEC 3.21      (none)          0 m 07.1 sec   274,263 bytes   50.9%
    CODEC 3.10      (none)          0 m 07.4 sec   274,263 bytes   50.9%
    ARJ 2.41a       -e              0 m 06.7 sec   274,510 bytes   50.8%
    ARJ 2.42b BETA  -e              0 m 07.3 sec   274,510 bytes   50.8%
    LIMIT 1.2       -mx             0 m 15.4 sec   276,374 bytes   50.5%
    HA 0.999b       e1              0 m 15.7 sec   276,919 bytes   50.4%
    LIMIT 1.2       (none)          0 m 10.6 sec   277,646 bytes   50.2%
 N  X1 0.90 ->TGZ   (none)          0 m 15.1 sec   278,065 bytes   50.2%
    INFO-ZIP 2.0    -9 -j           0 m 11.7 sec   278,139 bytes   50.2%
 N  GZIP 1.2.4      (none)          0 m 07.6 sec   280,125 bytes   49.8%
    INFO-ZIP 2.0    -j              0 m 07.2 sec   280,212 bytes   49.8%
    LHA 2.55b       -we:            0 m 11.2 sec   284,728 bytes   49.0%
    AR 0.02         (none)          0 m 19.6 sec   284,736 bytes   49.0%
    SAR 1.0         (none)          0 m 20.8 sec   284,736 bytes   49.0%
    ZOO 2.10        h:              0 m 19.4 sec   284,863 bytes   49.0%
    PUT 3.41        (none)          0 m 14.3 sec   285,321 bytes   48.9%
 N  SQWEZ 2.2       /s              0 m 19.1 sec   294,491 bytes   48.9%
    SQWEZ 2.1       /s              0 m 19.3 sec   294,491 bytes   47.2%
    PAK 2.51        (none)          0 m 07.4 sec   299,270 bytes   46.4%
    HYPER 2.5       (none)          0 m 07.9 sec   299,652 bytes   46.3%
    ARX 1.00        (none)          0 m 12.5 sec   305,944 bytes   45.2%
    DWC 5.01        (none)          0 m 05.6 sec   345,441 bytes   38.1%
 N  MDCD 1.0        (none)          0 m 04.8 sec   352,285 bytes   36.9%
    ZOO 2.10        :               0 m 10.2 sec   352,332 bytes   36.9%
    JRCHIVE 1.02    -v              0 m 07.8 sec   371,531 bytes   33.4%
 F  ARC 6.02        (none)          0 m 04.4 sec   374,737 bytes   32.8%

Winner for best compression   :  UC2 v2.0 B
Winner for fastest compression:  ARC 6.02 F
Winner for best overall       :  ARI 1.12 O

N Indicates a new version of the software tested since the last posting
  of these tests.


                  ***  PART 2 - MULTIPLE FILE TESTS  ***


I compressed a directory containing 21 files totalling 3,255,838 bytes
on my hard drive to a 2 megabyte RAM drive.  This directory contained
the original files from the Calgary Corpus archive (CALGARYCORPUS.ZIP)
which contains text, binary and graphical files.  I used a 486DX4-75
with 8 megabytes of RAM to do this test.  No CACHE was used at all!
For the timing, Ultra Precision Command Timer v1.6 by Erik de Neve was
used.  The operating system used was DOS 6.22.

Here are my results:

    ARCHIVER      SWITCHES   EXTRACT TIME  COMPRESS TIME  COMPRESSED SIZE
    --------      --------   ------------  -------------  ---------------

NB  ACB 1.03b     f         11 m 21.1 sec  11 m 15.5 sec    848,493 bytes
 N  X1 0.90 ->HA  m4         2 m 42.6 sec   4 m 13.0 sec    880,677 bytes
    HA 0.999b     e12        2 m 39.8 sec   4 m 29.0 sec    883,651 bytes
 N  CODEC 3.21    -c10       3 m 22.8 sec   3 m 07.9 sec    920,927 bytes
    QUANTUM 0.96  -c5        1 m 00.0 sec  34 m 29.5 sec    934,429 bytes
    HAP 3.14e11   3          1 m 17.5 sec   1 m 02.5 sec    969,576 bytes
    QUANTUM 0.96  (none)     1 m 01.5 sec   4 m 55.7 sec    981,470 bytes
    HPACK 0.79a0  -df        0 m 35.3 sec  11 m 38.4 sec  1,023,107 bytes
 N  YAC 1.01.05   (none)     0 m 27.9 sec   1 m 48.6 sec  1,024,518 bytes
    ARI 1.12      -n         0 m 16.3 sec   9 m 23.7 sec  1,024,569 bytes
    UC2 2.0       (Max Comp) 0 m 15.3 sec   2 m 04.7 sec  1,026,666 bytes
    CRUSH 1.8+UC2 -n -u      0 m 27.9 sec   2 m 13.5 sec  1,032,742 bytes
NQ  ARJZ 0.15     -mp9       0 m 11.3 sec   1 m 23.7 sec  1,038,458 bytes
 N  RAR 1.54beta  -ep -m5 -s 0 m 14.9 sec   1 m 53.1 sec  1,046,073 bytes
NO  ARJZ 0.15     (none)     0 m 11.4 sec   0 m 52.3 sec  1,047,169 bytes
    RAR 1.53      -ep -m5 -s 0 m 14.6 sec   1 m 51.5 sec  1,047,783 bytes
    LIMIT 1.2     -mx        0 m 13.6 sec   1 m 07.3 sec  1,054,168 bytes
 N  X1 0.90 ->HA  m1         0 m 54.2 sec   1 m 35.9 sec  1,054,533 bytes
    HA 0.999b     e          0 m 35.1 sec   1 m 31.8 sec  1,054,534 bytes
    UC2 2.0       (Default)  0 m 15.6 sec   0 m 53.7 sec  1,054,814 bytes
    LIMIT 1.2     (none)     0 m 13.6 sec   0 m 56.4 sec  1,056,022 bytes
    CRUSH 1.8+HA  -n -h      0 m 49.5 sec   1 m 50.7 sec  1,057,050 bytes
    CODEC 3.10    -c9        0 m 22.9 sec   1 m 07.9 sec  1,062,145 bytes
    SQZ 1.08.3    -q(ALT236) 0 m 16.1 sec   1 m 48.2 sec  1,062,520 bytes
 N  X1 0.90 ->TGZ (none)     0 m 17.6 sec   1 m 34.6 sec  1,062,882 bytes
    INFO-ZIP 2.0  -9 -j      0 m 15.8 sec   1 m 05.3 sec  1,063,059 bytes
    AMGC 2.2      -mm        0 m 18.0 sec   2 m 21.4 sec  1,063,358 bytes
    CRUSH 1.8+ZIP -n         0 m 24.8 sec   1 m 18.6 sec  1,063,540 bytes
 N  TAR 3.20+GZIP cvf.9      0 m 41.0 sec   1 m 29.0 sec  1,063,558 bytes
 N  RAR 1.54beta  -ep        0 m 14.0 sec   0 m 49.7 sec  1,064,522 bytes
    RAR 1.53      -ep        0 m 16.1 sec   0 m 50.1 sec  1,064,522 bytes
 N  CODEC 3.21    (none)     0 m 24.0 sec   0 m 49.4 sec  1,065,126 bytes
    CODEC 3.10    (none)     0 m 22.9 sec   0 m 51.5 sec  1,065,126 bytes
    PKZIP 2.04g   -ex        0 m 13.9 sec   0 m 52.4 sec  1,065,291 bytes
    AIN 2.2       /m1        0 m 12.6 sec   0 m 39.7 sec  1,066,922 bytes
 N  QUARK 1.0beta (none)     0 m 22.7 sec   1 m 42.8 sec  1,069,991 bytes
    INFO-ZIP 2.0  -j         0 m 15.9 sec   0 m 45.1 sec  1,070,443 bytes
 N  BSArc 1.9.5   (none)     0 m 13.2 sec   0 m 53.9 sec  1,072,489 bytes
    SQZ 1.08.3    (none)     0 m 16.1 sec   0 m 56.7 sec  1,073,012 bytes
    BSArc 1.9.3   (none)     0 m 13.3 sec   1 m 04.2 sec  1,074,194 bytes
    AIN 2.2       (none)     0 m 12.6 sec   0 m 29.3 sec  1,075,730 bytes
    PKZIP 2.04g   (none)     0 m 12.0 sec   0 m 33.0 sec  1,077,029 bytes
    ARJ 2.42bBETA -jm -e     0 m 15.3 sec   1 m 07.3 sec  1,081,242 bytes
    ARJ 2.41a     -jm -e     0 m 13.7 sec   1 m 07.8 sec  1,081,242 bytes
    CRUSH 1.8+ARJ -n -j      0 m 25.9 sec   1 m 28.5 sec  1,080,203 bytes
    ARJ 2.42bBETA -e         0 m 14.2 sec   0 m 51.2 sec  1,083,663 bytes
    ARJ 2.41a     -e         0 m 13.5 sec   0 m 51.7 sec  1,083,663 bytes
    AMGC 2.2      (none)     0 m 13.4 sec   0 m 47.6 sec  1,114,898 bytes
    LHA 2.55b     -we:       0 m 14.1 sec   1 m 03.0 sec  1,142,342 bytes
    SAR 1.0       (none)     0 m 29.2 sec   2 m 13.0 sec  1,142,363 bytes
    ZOO 2.10      h:         0 m 18.1 sec   1 m 54.8 sec  1,143,300 bytes
    PUT 3.41      (none)     0 m 18.3 sec   1 m 20.1 sec  1,144,112 bytes
    PAK 2.51      (none)     0 m 16.3 sec   0 m 38.4 sec  1,191,665 bytes
    HYPER 2.5     (none)     0 m 25.2 sec   0 m 36.4 sec  1,192,686 bytes
 N  SQWEZ 2.2     /s         0 m 23.3 sec   1 m 51.8 sec  1,236,777 bytes
    SQWEZ 2.1     /s         0 m 21.2 sec   1 m 55.5 sec  1,236,777 bytes
    ARX 1.00      (none)     0 m 20.7 sec   0 m 57.4 sec  1,251,447 bytes
    DWC 5.01      (none)     0 m 13.2 sec   0 m 21.1 sec  1,457,491 bytes
    ZOO 2.10      :          0 m 28.2 sec   0 m 52.0 sec  1,494,933 bytes
 N  MDCD 1.0      (none)     0 m 22.2 sec   0 m 22.7 sec  1,495,906 bytes
    JRCHIVE 1.02  -v         0 m 53.9 sec   1 m 00.0 sec  1,578,966 bytes
 F  ARC 6.02      (none)     0 m 15.3 sec   0 m 19.5 sec  1,590,185 bytes
    AR 0.02       (none)     ** DOES NOT ACCEPT WILDCARDS **

Winner for best compression   :  ACB 1.03b B
Winner for fastest compression:  ARC 6.02 F
Winner for quickest extraction:  ARJZ 0.15 Q
Winner for best overall       :  ARJZ 0.15 O

N Indicates a new version of the software tested since the last posting
  of these tests.

* Please note that the switches listed above apply only during
  compression and not during extraction.


In the second multiple-file test, I took 130 small TEXT files totalling
1,121,394 bytes and compressed them using the same method as before.


    ARCHIVER        SWITCHES       CREATION TIME  COMPRESSED SIZE  RATIO
    --------        --------       -------------  ---------------  -----

NB  ACB 1.03b       f               2 m 20.5 sec   206,018 bytes   81.6%
    QUANTUM 0.96    -c5            10 m 58.4 sec   225,912 bytes   79.9%
    QUANTUM 0.96    (none)          1 m 30.2 sec   236,638 bytes   78.9%
 N  YAC 1.01.05     (none)          0 m 36.9 sec   250,664 bytes   77.6%
    RAR 1.53        -ep -m5 -s      0 m 30.9 sec   254,503 bytes   77.3%
 N  RAR 1.54beta    -ep -m5 -s      0 m 30.8 sec   255,212 bytes   77.2%
    UC2 v2.0        (Max Compress)  0 m 51.0 sec   255,444 bytes   77.2%
    CRUSH 1.8+UC2   -n -u           0 m 42.7 sec   255,452 bytes   77.2%
 O  AIN 2.2         /m1             0 m 13.5 sec   257,550 bytes   77.0%
    AIN 2.2         (none)          0 m 12.3 sec   259,127 bytes   76.9%
    UC2 v2.0        (Default)       0 m 21.6 sec   261,686 bytes   76.7%
    CRUSH 1.8+HA    -n -h           0 m 30.0 sec   267,491 bytes   76.1%
    CRUSH 1.8+ZIP   -n              0 m 20.0 sec   271,807 bytes   75.8%
    HPACK 0.79a0    -df -u          1 m 04.3 sec   277,775 bytes   75.2%
    CRUSH 1.8+ARJ   -n -j           0 m 25.8 sec   285,597 bytes   74.5%
 N  X1 0.90 ->TGZ   (none)          0 m 41.1 sec   289,267 bytes   74.2%
 N  GZIP 1.2.4+TAR  (none)          0 m 29.8 sec   289,469 bytes   74.2%
 N  TAR 3.20 + GZIP cvf.9           0 m 37.0 sec   289,556 bytes   74.2%
 N  X1 0.90 ->HA    m#              1 m 26.1 sec   309,944 bytes   72.4%
    HA 0.999b       e2              2 m 46.9 sec   310,135 bytes   69.8%
    HAP 3.14e11     3               0 m 24.2 sec   323,867 bytes   71.1%
    HA 0.999b       e1              0 m 53.9 sec   339,170 bytes   69.8%
    HPACK 0.79a0    -df             0 m 42.0 sec   340,280 bytes   69.7%
    ARI 1.12        -n              6 m 13.0 sec   341,905 bytes   69.5%
    LIMIT 1.2       -mx             0 m 19.3 sec   343,962 bytes   69.3%
    LIMIT 1.2       (none)          0 m 15.2 sec   344,415 bytes   69.3%
    SQZ 1.08.3      -q(ALT236)      0 m 34.8 sec   345,713 bytes   69.2%
 N  QUARK 1.0beta   (none)          0 m 26.9 sec   346,032 bytes   69.1%
    SQZ 1.08.3      (none)          0 m 18.4 sec   347,404 bytes   69.0%
 N  BSArc 1.9.5     (none)          0 m 18.7 sec   348,662 bytes   68.9%
 N  CODEC 3.21      -c9             0 m 18.9 sec   348,984 bytes   68.9%
 N  CODEC 3.21      (none)          0 m 17.7 sec   349,943 bytes   68.8%
    ARJ 2.42b BETA  -jm -e          0 m 21.7 sec   350,825 bytes   68.7%
 N  ARJZ 0.15       -mp9 -jh        0 m 21.9 sec   351,268 bytes   68.7%
    ARJ 2.42b BETA  -e              0 m 17.1 sec   351,292 bytes   68.7%
 N  ARJZ 0.15       (none)          0 m 15.9 sec   353,468 bytes   68.5%
    PKZIP 2.04g     -ex             0 m 12.8 sec   353,978 bytes   68.4%
    INFO-ZIP 2.0    -9 -j           0 m 25.0 sec   354,111 bytes   68.4%
    RAR 1.53        -ep             0 m 13.5 sec   354,255 bytes   68.4%
 N  RAR 1.54beta    -ep             0 m 13.6 sec   354,555 bytes   68.4%
 N  BSArc 1.9.5     (none)          0 m 18.7 sec   348,662 bytes   68.9%
    LHA 2.55b       -we:            0 m 22.9 sec   355,538 bytes   68.3%
    SAR 1.0         (none)          0 m 49.9 sec   355,538 bytes   68.3%
    PUT 3.41        (none)          0 m 31.1 sec   355,668 bytes   68.3%
    INFO-ZIP 2.0    -j              0 m 18.2 sec   356,613 bytes   68.2%
    PKZIP 2.04g     (none)          0 m 11.5 sec   357,484 bytes   68.1%
    AMGC 2.2        -mm             0 m 16.5 sec   359,127 bytes   68.0%
    ZOO 2.10        h:              0 m 36.4 sec   360,133 bytes   67.9%
    HYPER 2.5       (none)          0 m 17.8 sec   375,928 bytes   66.5%
    ARX 1.0         (none)          0 m 28.7 sec   385,634 bytes   65.6%
 N  SQWEZ 2.2       /s              0 m 43.9 sec   389,746 bytes   65.2%
    PAK 2.51        (none)          0 m 18.2 sec   395,061 bytes   64.8%
    DWC 5.01        (none)          0 m 19.4 sec   488,459 bytes   56.4%
    ZOO 2.10        :               0 m 20.4 sec   497,189 bytes   55.7%
 N  MDCD 1.0        (none)          0 m 13.0 sec   504,056 bytes   55.1%
    JRCHIVE 1.02    -v              0 m 58.5 sec   504,863 bytes   55.0%
 F  ARC 6.02        (none)          0 m 10.9 sec   508,530 bytes   54.7%

Winner for best compression   :  ACB 1.03b B
Winner for fastest compression:  ARC 6.02 F
Winner for best overall       :  AIN 2.2 O

N Indicates a new version of the software tested since the last posting
  of these tests.

### LOCATING ARCHIVERS FOR DOWNLOAD ###

         The easiest way to download the archivers listed in A.C.T. is
to use the WWW version of A.C.T.  If you cannot access the WWW then most
of the archivers can be found on the following four FTP sites.  Try them
in this order:

ftp.elf.stuba.sk  /pub/pc/pack
ftp.kiae.su       /msdos/arcers
oak.oakland.edu   /SimTel/msdos/archiver
garbo.uwasa.fi    /pc/arcers

------------------------------------------------------------------------

         As you may or may not have noticed, I have been releasing these
test results about once a month.  I have decided to release the results
on the first day of each month and name these tests A.C.T.

* Please note that the best overall selection is based entirely on the
archiver's compression/speed ratio.  It is NOT based on the reliability,
price, technical support or the options available in the archiver.

        I have decided to add an Options List which shows what archivers
support certain major options.  If you think I should add another
category to the list or you see an error, please let me know.  If there
is an error, please tell me what switch will activate the command that
I missed.

---------------------------- OPTIONS LIST ------------------------------

             MULTI                                                MANAGE
             DISK   AUTH.           'SOLID'         DATA          OTHER
ARCHIVER     SPAN   VERI.  ENCRYPT  ARCHIVES  SFX  PROTECT.  GUI  ARCERS
--------     -----  -----  -------  --------  ---  --------  ---  ------
ACB 1.03b      X
AIN 2.2        X            X-???
AMGC 2.2       X            X-???
AR 0.02
ARC 6.02                    X-???
ARI 1.12       X            X-???              X       X
ARJ 2.42b      X      X     X-XOR              X                     X
ARX 1.00
BSARC 1.9.5
CODEC 3.21                  X-???              X
CODEC 3.10                  X-???
CRUSH 1.8                               X                            X
DWC 5.01                    X-???              X
GZIP 1.2.4
HA 0.999b
HAP 3.14e11                                            X
HPACK 0.79a0   X      X     X-PGP       X              X
HYPER 2.5
INFO-ZIP 2.0   *            X-???              X
JRCHIVE 1.02                                   X
LHA 2.55b                                      X
LIMIT 1.2
MDCD 1.0
PAK 2.51              X     X-???              X              X      X
PKZIP 2.04g    X      X     X-???              X
PUT 3.41                                                      X
QUANTUM 0.96   X
QUARK 1.0beta  X            X-???              X
RAR 1.54beta   X      X     X-???       X      X              X      X
RAR 1.53       X      X     X-???       X      X              X      X
SAR 1.0
SQWEZ 2.2                                      X              X
SQZ 1.08.3                                     X
TAR 3.20+                               X
UC2 2.0        *      X     #-DES       %     soon     X     soon    X
X1 0.90        X                        X              X             X
YAC 1.01.05    X
ZOO 2.10

------------------------------------------------------------------------

MULTI-DISK SPAN = Ability to span an archive over two or more disks
AUTH. VERI.  =  Authentication Verification (Security Envelope)
DATA PROTECT.  =  Data Protection Encoding (Stores Error Recovery Info)
ENCRYPT  =  Ability to encrypt files in archive with password (Garble)
SFX  =  Ability to create Self-Extracting Archives (.EXE)
GUI = Graphical or Text Shell to manage archiver functions and select
      files for compression/decompression
MANAGE OTHER ARCERS = Ability to manipulate, use and convert archives in
                      formats other than its own

* - UC2 comes with a utility (SAS.EXE) to SPLIT archives into chunks
    and then rebuild them after.  This is not nearly as nice as
    multi-disk spanning.
  - INFO-ZIP comes with a utility called ZIPSPLIT which does the same
    thing as UC2's SAS utility.

# - You need to use ULTRACRYPT to get Triple DES encryption with UC2.
    This is a seperate shareware utility that is not built into UC2.

% - " UC2 uses shared dictionaries between file collections to utilize
    similarities between files. The compression is comparable to solid
    archives (RAR compresses about as well as UC2) but updates are much
    faster. " - Nico de Vries [AIP-NL, UltraCompressor II development]
  - " Although updates of UC2 archives is faster, they will need to be
    optimized because after several updates, the archive compression
    ratio gets worse." - Andrey Spasibozhko [RAR Agent]

-------------------------------- INDEX ----------------------------------

ARCHIVER  RELEASE  AUTHOR & (INTERNET E-MAIL)
--------  -------  ------------------------------------------------------
           TYPE        PLATFORMS SUPPORTED                FREE UNCOMPRESS
           ----------  ---------------------------------  ---------------

ACB       Apr '95  Buyanovsky Georgii
v1.03b     Freeware    DOS                                Yes

AIN       Jul '94  Transas Marine (UK) Ltd.  (100125.3526@compuserve.com)
v2.2       Shareware   DOS                                No

AMGC      Nov '93  Milen Georgiev
v2.2       Shareware   DOS                                No

AR        Oct '90  Haruhiko Okumura  (74050.1022@compuserve.com)
v0.02      Freeware    DOS                                Yes

ARC       Jan '89  S.E.A. Inc.
v6.02      Shareware   DOS                                No

ARI       Jan '93  RAO Inc.
v1.12      Shareware   DOS                                No

ARJ       Jan '95  Robert Jung  (robjung@world.std.com)
v2.41a     Shareware   DOS,Windows,Amiga,MAC,OS/2(soon)   Yes,with source

ARJZ      Apr '95  UNKNOWN
v0.15      Shareware   DOS,Windows NT,OS/2                Yes

ARX       Jan '95  Michael A. Kosior  (mkosior@acad.bryant.edu)
v1.00      Shareware   DOS                                No

BSARC     Feb '93  Serg Babitchew
v1.9.5     Shareware   DOS                                No

CODEC     Apr '95  Telvox Teleinform. (telvox.teleinf@bologna.nettuno.it)
v3.21      Shareware   DOS,Win,OS/2,Unix,VMS,PowerPC,more No

CRUSH     Feb '95  J. Rollason  (100031.3537@compuserve.com)
v1.8       Shareware   DOS                                No

DWC       May '88  Dean W. Cooper
v5.01      Freeware    DOS                                Yes

GZIP      Aug '93  UNKNOWN
v1.2.4     Freeware    DOS,Windows NT,Unix,VMS,OS/2,Atari Yes

HA        Jan '95  Harri Hirvola  (harri.hirvola@vaisala.infonet.com)
v0.999b    Freeware    DOS,OS/2                           Yes,with source

HAP       Dec '94  Harald Feldmann  (feldmann@xs4all.nl) *NEW E-MAIL*
v3.14e11   Commercial (v3.03 Shareware)  DOS              No

HPACK     May '93  Peter Gutmann  (pgut@cs.aukuni.ac.nz)
v0.79a0    Shareware   DOS,OS/2,Unix,MAC,Amiga,Atari,Archimedes  No

HYPER     Sep '90  P. Sawatzki & K. Nischkle  (in307@dhafeu11.bitnet)
v2.5       Shareware   DOS                                No

INFOZIP   Sep '93  Info-ZIP  (info-zip@wkuvx1.bitnet)
v2.0       Freeware    DOS,Unix                           Yes,with source

JRCHIVE   Nov '93  JAYAR Systems
v1.02      Shareware   DOS                                No

LHA       Jul '91  Haruyasu Yoshizaki  (coo236@sinet.ad.jp)
v2.55b     Freeware    DOS,Amiga                          Yes

LIMIT     Feb '94  J Y Lim  (jlim@cs.stanford.edu) *NEW E-MAIL*
v1.2       Shareware   DOS                                No

MDCD      Oct '88  Mike Davenport  (76676.1362@compuserve.com)
v1.0       Freeware    DOS                                Yes,with source

PAK       Oct '90  NoGate Consulting
v2.51      Shareware   DOS                                No

PKZIP     Feb '93  PKWARE Inc.  (support@pkware.com)
v2.04g     Shareware   DOS,Windows,OS/2                   No

PUT       Jan '95  Jim Hass  (73057.3113@compuserve.com)
v3.41      Shareware   DOS                                No

QUANTUM   Dec '94  Cinematronics  (davids@cruzio.com)
v0.96      Freeware    DOS,Windows                        No

QUARK     May '93  Kunz Robert
v1.0beta   Shareware   DOS                                No

RAR       Apr '95  Eugene Roshal  (as@hq.icb.chel.su)
v1.54beta  Shareware   DOS                                Yes,with source

SAR       Mar '93  Streamline Design
v1.0       Shareware   DOS                                No

SQWEZ     Nov '94  Jim Miller  (74131.1704@compuserve.com)
v2.2       Shareware   DOS                                No

SQZ       Jan '93  (Jonas.Hammarberg@p24.f107.n200.z2.fidonet.org)
v1.08.3    Shareware   DOS                                No

TAR       Jan '95  Tim V. Shaporev  (tim@shaporev.msk.su)
v3.20+     Shareware   DOS,Unix                           No

UC2       Jul '94  Ad Infinitum Products  (desk@aip.nl)
v2.0       Shareware   DOS                                Yes

X1        Apr '95  Stig Valentini  (sv@id.dtu.dk)
v0.90      Freeware    DOS                                Yes

YAC       Apr '95  Alexander Shurna  (as@ashurna.msk.ru)
v1.01.05   Freeware    DOS                                Yes

ZOO       Jul '91  Rahul Dhesi  (dhesi@bsu-cu.bsu.edu)
v2.10      Shareware   DOS,Unix                           No

-------------------------------------------------------------------------

        The information above may not be 100% accurate so if anyone
notices any errors or finds something I left out, please let me know.

ACB 1.03b - This is a new archiver from Russia.  As you can see, it
            can compress very well but it is also very slow.  ACB
            requires 8 megs RAM to run and it is suggested that you
            run ACB on a Pentium-100 with 16 megs RAM.  Please note
            that the time for the ACB results are a little inaccurate
            since I had to compress the files into my HD instead of a
            RAM drive.  I only have 8 megs RAM, ACB needs 7.6 so there
            was no RAM left over the even make a RAM drive.

ARJZ 0.15 - This archiver creates .ARJ compatible archives but seems to
            be able to compress better than ARJ 2.41a.  All of the docs
            are in Russian so I cannot tell who the author is or what
            major options are available.  If anyone out there can read
            Russian, can you please e-mail me the author's name and
            e-mail address (if given) so I can add it to the Index?

CODEC 3.21 - This new version adds another level of compression -c10
             and now supports MANY different platforms.  You can even
             create SFX archives for other platforms on the DOS version.

RAR 1.54beta - New to this version is an improved SFX module that gives
               a menu interface on extraction, a new archive conversion
               tool, the ability to walk through multi-volumes in full
               screen mode, a new -vd switch to erase the contents of
               the target disk before starting.  This version uses less
               memory and has several other improvements.

X1 0.90 - All I can say is WOW!  This new archiver can compress and
          decompress the following formats: ARJ, HA, LHA, PUT,
          TAR+GZIP(TGZ), ZIP and ZOO.  It can store but not compress
          files in several other formats as well.  In total it supports
          13 archive formats.  The author has improved the HA algorithm
          with a new method he calls XSC which generally compresses
          better than HSC and is faster.  He has told me that he has
          created an even better method than XSC and those results will
          be in the next A.C.T.  Keep your eyes on this archiver people.
          X1 is still in development so future beta versions should
          have even more improvements.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

        Anyone wishing to send me updated versions of archivers or email
may use PGP (Pretty Good Privacy) v2.6 or above to encrypt the info.
Listed below is my PGP public key which you can use to encrypt a binary
file or ascii file into RADIX-64 ascii format.  After you have encrypted
the file, you can then send it to me via email at my Internet address
listed below.  When you use my public key to encrypt something with PGP,
only I can decrypt the file so you can be certain that whatever you send
will only be seen by me.

-----BEGIN PGP PUBLIC KEY BLOCK-----
Version: 2.6.2

mQCNAy53etMAAAEEAM9FrKHl4ZSsNl15zzbtYZoC48e4WT83AsdH5vHr7P0npRIM
unbDNUdBbQ0ZGppG4a0ccYpLs8EAkGJLGL28JCZzk4LDCLxCn14VoeVZSV25S0mj
1ApwoTUrzqWsrdbaeGdeJ1IBxG2zc9SMMDq3htPcGzb/KQvAbbgiZykcOlgBAAUR
tB1KZWZmIEdpbGNocmlzdCA8amVmZmdAbWkubmV0Pg==
=HI+u
-----END PGP PUBLIC KEY BLOCK-----

        If you have any comments or suggestions please feel free to
send me some EMAIL and I will try and reply as soon as I can.

INTERNET:  jeffg@mi.net

*** INFORMATION REQUESTED ***
If anyone knows the encryption methods that are (???) unknown in
the archiver Option List, please email and let me know.  Thanks!

** NEXT MONTH **
Next month I will be testing the following archivers:
BSA 2.00 , X1 0.91 , UC2 PRO 3.0 and possible more...

+--------------------------------------------------------------+
|  The latest copy of Archive Comparison Test (A.C.T.),        |
|  can be viewed by fingering:  s0b8@jupiter.sun.csd.unb.ca    |
|                         WWW:  http://www.mi.net/act/act.html |
+--------------------------------------------------------------+

-= JEFF GILCHRIST =-   (Fredericton, New Brunswick, Canada)
- Author Of A.C.T. -   Internet:  jeffg@mi.net
