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Zip files don't need to be compressed, if there's a need maybe you can promote adding the option upstream to whatever apps you use (if it's not already there so
by kimixa 3y ago
Zip files don't need to be compressed, if there's a need maybe you can promote adding the option upstream to whatever apps you use (if it's not already there somewhere). Or a .zip equivalent for zgrep.
Though pattern matching in files feels very fragile - simple text patterns would still rely on the text being kept in a contiguous chunk and no embedded data/markup within the section you're searching for...
Though I generally see the prevalence of zip files a result of people assuming that collections of files/streams need to be packed into a single object for "user simplicity", but we already have this with OS support in the form of directories. It just seems people have embedded the assumption that tools and UI handle directories as single units poorly, when that doesn't really need to be the case.
- lupusreal 3y agoBrowsers don't really have good support for downloading a whole directory.
- genevra 3y agoHave you ever tried to download 100 individual files or moved 10,000 files to a drive VS a singular zip? The difference is night and day
- int_19h 3y agoDirectories still have problems when it comes to user simplicity. For example, try emailing one. Fundamentally, directories are problematic because they are user-facing. When used as a file format, you risk running into situations where the user has (sometimes inadvertently) deleted some of the files or edited them, partial copies etc. Making it all into a single zip file makes it clear that it really should be treated as a single atomic unit by any casual user, while still allowing power users to hack on it when needed.