com!online 2002 May/comcd0502.iso/top100com/winrar/wrar30b4.exe/WhatsNew.txt

Text File | 2002-03-03 | 17.2 KB | 408 lines

                RAR - What's new in the latest version


   Version 3.00 beta 4

   1. Speed of recovery volume based reconstructing is increased.

   2. WinRAR attempts to pre-allocate disk space for each unpacking
      file before starting extraction. It allows to reduce disk
      fragmentation if other programs also write data to disk.

   3. Option "Put each file to separate archive" now works like as
      in WinRAR 2.9 context menu. For every selected folder WinRAR
      creates one separate archive contained all files from that folder.

   4. Bugs fixed:

      a) minor correction in the shell extension - more appropriate
         extraction path for archive names like arcname123.456.rar;

      b) "Test archived files" option of archiving dialog did not
         work for ZIP archives;

      c) beta 3 compressed small text files worse than previous beta
         versions;

      d) file information dialog could display a wrong cluster size
         for disks larger 2 GB in Windows 98 and Me;

      e) sometimes RAR could erroneously report "CRC error" and
         refuse to update a completely correct RAR 3.0 solid archive.


   Version 3.00 beta 3

   1. "Context menu items..." button in "Integration settings"
      and setup dialogs allows to choose items to display
      in Explorer context menus. For example, if you do not need
      "Compress and email" feature, you may disable it here.

   2. Bugs fixed:

      a) too large font in the archive information dialog
         under Windows 98/Me;

      b) archives contained folders and stored (-m0 method) files
         could not be converted to SFX;

      c) "Shortcut" command in SFX modules did not work with
         relative source file paths;

      d) 'rc' (reconstruct) command could show "Cannot open <vol*.*>"
         message in case of more than 10 volumes;

      e) "Put each file to separate archive" option did not work
         when activated from Explorer menu;

      f) beta 2 could fail to decompress multivolume SFX archive
         with encrypted file names.


   Version 3.00 beta 2

   1. 'Shortcut' command of Windows SFX module supports one more
      optional parameter - LinkName.

   2. Bugs fixed:

      a) -md<size> accepted only character, but not numeric parameter;

      b) toolbar tips were not displayed;

      c) repair did not work with RAR 2.x recovery records;

      d) RAR crashed when processing switch -p without a parameter;

      e) sorting by CRC did not work in archives;

      f) root folder contents of ISO files was not displayed;

      g) in some rare cases beta 1 could fail to decompress
         a correct 3.0 archive, which can be decompressed by beta 2;

      h) a few other bugs.


   Version 3.00 beta 1

   1. We introduced WinRAR 3.0 discount program, so a single user
      license now is only $29.

      As always, already registered users do not need to pay again.
      RAR 1.x - 2.x registration is valid for 3.0 too.

   2. Compression algorithm improved. Changes include:

      a) dictionary size is increased to 4 MB, this helps to increase
         compression on large data sets;

      b) a special algorithm for text data, based on Dmitry Shkarin's
         PPMII sources: ftp://ftp.elf.stuba.sk/pub/pc/pack/ppmdh.rar

         We express our sincere gratitude and respect to Dmitry for
         his excellent PPMII;

      c) special preprocessing algorithms for 32-bit x86 executables,
         Itanium executables, true color data, audio data and tables.
         In many cases significantly increasing compression;

      d) now RAR chooses the best combination of algorithms automatically,
         so "Multimedia compression" mode and switch -mm are obsolete.

         By default, RAR uses only the general compression algorithm
         in the "Fast" and "Fastest" compression methods (-m1 and -m2),
         advanced algorithms such as audio and true color processing are
         enabled only in "Normal"..."Best" (-m3..-m5) modes, the advanced
         text compression is activated only in "Good" and "Best"
         compression (-m4..-m5). This default can be overridden using
         the -mc switch.

      RAR 3.0 archives can be unpacked by any RAR version beginning
      from RAR 2.9, currently it is 2.9 and 3.0. RAR 3.0 can unpack
      archives created by all older RAR versions.

   3. Encryption algorithm is changed to AES (Advanced Encryption Standard)
      with 128 bit key length.

   4. Francesco Indrio <[e-mail]>, <[e-mail]>
      has once again done a nice job redesigning WinRAR graphics.

   5. "Wizard" command helps novice users to perform basic
      archive operations in simple, step by step mode.
      Just click on Wizard button on the toolbar and choose
      an operation which you want to perform.

   6. "Send archive by email" option in the "Files" part of archiving
      dialog. Your email program must support MAPI interface,
      otherwise this option will not work.

      In the command line mode you may use -ieml[.][addr] switch
      to send a created archive by email.

   7. WinRAR adds "Compress and email" item to Explorer context menu.

   8. Default volume naming scheme is changed from volname.rar,
      volname.r00, ..., to volname.part001.rar, volname.part002.rar, etc.
      Switch -vn and "Old style volumes names" option in the archiving
      dialog allow to use the old extension based scheme.

   9. Added support of so called recovery volumes (.rev files),
      which can be used to reconstruct missing files in a volume set.
      One .rev file allows to reconstruct one missing RAR volume,
      for example, 5 .rev files are able to reconstruct any 5 volumes.

      In WinRAR you may create recovery volumes either specifying
      their number in the archiving dialog or using "Protect" command
      inside of the first volume.

      In the command line RAR it can be done by the command 'rv[n]'
      or switch -rv[n].

      RAR and WinRAR automatically use .rev files to reconstruct
      missing volumes when unpacking or testing a volume set.
      It is also possible to double click on .rev file in WinRAR shell
      or use the command 'rc' in the command line to force reconstructing.

      I wish to thank developers of Mirror program, who invented
      this idea and proposed to implement it in WinRAR.

  10. SFX modules:

      a) Windows SFX modules now support archives larger than 4 GB
         and Unicode names;

      b) It is possible to replace the standard SFX icon with your own.
         Just specify the icon file name in "Load SFX icon from the file"
         field of "Advanced SFX options/Text and icon" dialog.

      c) new "Shortcut=DestType,SrcName,DestFolder,Description"
         SFX script command allows to create shortcuts to unpacked
         files on Desktop, Start Menu, Start Menu/Programs or Startup.

         This feature is also available through "Shortcuts" list
         in the "Advanced SFX options" WinRAR dialog;

      d) modified syntax of TempMode SFX script command. It now uses
         comma instead of '@' as a question and title separator.
         It is important only for those users, who write SFX script
         manually instead of specifying SFX parameters in WinRAR
         "Advanced SFX options" dialog;

      e) "Delete" SFX script command and "Files to delete" field
          in "Advanced SFX options" dialog may include wildcard masks.
          For example:

            Delete=*.tmp

      f) removed "Allow external signature" advanced SFX option
         and the corresponding "ExtSign" script command.
         RAR 3.0 archive format includes the end of archive marker,
         so SFX module automatically stops extraction when reaching
         the end of archive and all data appended to archive are
         ignored by default;

      g) if you specified INF file in SFX "Setup" command, SFX will
         attempt to install it instead of opening its contents
         in Notepad as in the previous version;

      h) the new DOS SFX module is 32-bit, so it is not limited to 64 KB
         dictionary more and can unpack any RAR 3.0 archives regardless
         of dictionary size;

      i) "SFX options" button in the archiving dialog opens directly
         "Advanced SFX options" without intermediate selection of
         SFX module. If you need to change SFX type, use "Module"
         page in the advanced SFX options.

      Please note that new SFX modules are able to unpack only RAR 3.0
      archives. They must not be used with archives created by older
      RAR versions.

  11. Switch -hp<pwd> can be used instead of -p<pwd> to encrypt
      both file data and file headers, so such information as file
      names, sizes, comments will not be visible without a password.

      "Encrypt file names" option in the password dialog provides
      the same function in WinRAR shell.

  12. Added support for ISO9660 (.iso) file format, which is widely
      used to store CD images. WinRAR is able to browse and unpack
      contents of ISO files. WinRAR also supports Joliet extension
      of ISO9660 and displays long file names inside of Joliet CD images.

  13. Using switch -mc you may set advanced compression parameters
      such as prediction order and memory size for the text compression
      algorithm. It is also possible in WinRAR shell using "Compression..."
      button in the "Advanced" part of archiving dialog.

  14. Switch -ms allows to specify files, which will be stored
      without compression. For example, -msrar;zip;jpg.
      It helps to increase archiving speed without noticeable
      loss in the compression ratio.

      The same option is available in WinRAR shell through
      "Files to store without compression" field in the advanced
      part of the archiving dialog.

  15. "Info" command now is available also outside of archives,
      when working with uncompressed files. One task of this command
      is getting information about selected files, another is
      performing miscellaneous operations with groups of archives.
      After the files scan step is completed, you may switch to
      other pages of the dialog and apply commands like "Comment"
      and "SFX" to all found RAR and ZIP archives.

      "Info" replaces "Estimate" command, which function is available
      as a part of the information dialog. Amount of estimation information
      is reduced, because an accuracy of Estimate results was not enough
      to provide reliable results for different compression methods.

  16. "Comment", "Protect", "SFX", "Lock" and "Extract" WinRAR commands
      can be also used outside of archives. Their buttons are disabled
      by default, but you may enable them in toolbar settings or
      use "Commands" menu. "Repair" command is also available
      inside of archives.

  17. "Test archived files" WinRAR option and the command line switch -t
      allow to test files after archiving. This option is especially
      useful in combination with the move command, so files will be
      deleted only if archive had been successfully tested.

  18. "Backup" part of the archiving dialog provides two new file
      time selecting modes allowing to archive files modified
      before or after the specified date.

  19. Switches -ta<date> and -tb<date> allow to add or extract files
      modified after or before the specified date. Date format
      is YYYYMMDDHHMMSS. It is allowed to insert separators like '-'
      or ':' to date string and omit trailing fields. For example,
      the following switch is correct: -ta2001-11-20.

  20. Switch -ver tells RAR to keep old file versions in archive
      when adding their new versions.

      The corresponding WinRAR shell option is "Keep previous file
      versions" in "Backup" part of archiving dialog.

  21. "My Network Places" item is added to WinRAR address bar,
      so you may browse the network in WinRAR file list.
      The address bar also includes some other shell folders
      like "My Computer" and "My Documents".

  22. When you press "Up one level" toolbar button or Backspace
      in the disk root, WinRAR will display the disks list in
      the file panel.

  23. It is possible to copy and paste archived and usual files
      in WinRAR with Ctrl+C and Ctrl+V keys. For example, you may
      select some files in archive, press Ctrl+C, open a folder
      in Explorer and press Ctrl+V to unpack selected files to
      that folder.

  24. "Pause" button added to the operation progress window.
      Archiving progress window is now displaying time left
      instead of total estimated time.

  25. CRC32 column is displayed inside of RAR, ZIP, ACE and ARJ archives.
      CRC32 is the special control sum calculated basing on file data
      and it may help to detect either two archived files are the same
      without unpacking them. Same files always have the same CRC32 value.

  26. When "Put each file in separate archive" option in the archiving
      dialog is enabled, WinRAR uses a text entered in the archive name
      field as the destination folder for created archives. Previous
      versions ignored the archive name in the "separate archives" mode.

  27. "Extract archives to subfolders" option in the extraction
      dialog. It is available only when more than one archive
      is unpacked. It will place unpacked contents of each archive
      to separate subfolder, which name will be generated basing
      on the archive name.

  28. Switch -ad appends an archive name to destination path.
      It may be useful when unpacking a few archives at once,
      so files from each archive will go to separate folder.

  29. "Extract each archive to separate folder" item is present
      in Explorer context menu when unpacking a group of archives.

  30. Two new options in WinRAR "Settings/General":

      a) "Allow history in dialogs";

      b) "Start in wizard mode".

  31. Switch -af<type> allows to define a type of new archive
      in WinRAR command line. <Type> can be 'rar' or 'zip'.
      For example, 'winrar a -afzip arc' will create arc.zip archive.

      This switch is supported only by WinRAR. Console RAR is not
      able to create ZIP archives.

  32. Switch -en disables adding "end of archive block".

      By default, RAR 3.0 adds "end of archive" block to the end of
      new or updated archive. It allows to skip external data like
      digital signatures safely, but in some special cases it may be
      useful to disable this feature. For example, if an archive
      is trasferred between two systems via a unreliable link and
      at the same time a sender adds new files to it, it may be
      important to be sure that the already received file part will
      not be modified on the other end between transfer sessions.

  33. Now RAR can update encrypted solid archives.

  34. "Exit" button is added to the toolbar. It is disabled by default,
      you may enable it manually with "Select buttons..." in WinRAR
      settings.

  35. "Select toolbar buttons" dialog allows to change the order
      of toolbar buttons. Just select buttons to move and press
      "Up" or "Down". Also you may drag buttons directly on
      the toolbar while holding down the ALT key.

  36. "Word wrap" option in "Settings/Viewer" selects the default
      wrapping mode in new internal viewer windows.

  37. Console RAR sends error messages to stderr instead of stdout.

  38. New '+' modifier for -ag switch allows to place the date string
      before a base archive name.

  39. In the extraction dialog the entered folder is opened
      in the folders tree automatically as you type, with a small
      delay about 0.5 second. Also you may locate the currently
      entered folder name in the tree pressing "Display" button.

  40. It is possible to use wildcards in the path part of file mask
      in -x switch and "Files to exclude" field of the archiving
      dialog. For example, -x*\temp\*.

  41. Switch -ilog accepts the optional log file name parameter.
      For example, -ilogc:\log\backup.log.

  42. Improved Chinese and Japanese (DBCS encoded) names processing
      in ZIP archives (RAR format already supported such names since
      WinRAR 2.80). But anyway, it is recommended to use RAR format
      for such names, because it uses more portable Unicode encoding
      instead of ZIP DBCS.

  43. WinRAR uses new visual styles of Windows XP controls.

  44. Improved processing of "Group Policies" settings. Earlier
      it was possible to open a disk disabled in the policies
      by pressing "Up" button inside of archive or entering
      its path in the address bar.

  45. Console rar.exe executed from NT service is continuing
      to run after user's logoff.

  46. If you attempt to close the command window and an archiving
      or extraction operation is already performing for more than
      one minute, WinRAR will ask for confirmation.

  47. WinRAR recognizes and processes TAR @LongLink records.
      GNU TAR uses them to store names longer than 100 characters
      in TAR archives.