# Oddness Using Latest StuffIt Deluxe

**URL:** <https://discourse.softpress.com/t/oddness-using-latest-stuffit-deluxe/4540>\
**Category:** Off Topic\
**Created:** [April 16, 2009, 8:42pm UTC](https://discourse.softpress.com/t/oddness-using-latest-stuffit-deluxe/4540 "2009-04-16T20:42:53Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 14\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![Robert\_B](https://discourse.softpress.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/r/f07891/32.png) [@Robert\_B](https://discourse.softpress.com/u/Robert_B)\
**Post date:** [April 16, 2009, 8:42pm UTC](https://discourse.softpress.com/t/oddness-using-latest-stuffit-deluxe/4540/1 "2009-04-16T20:42:53Z")

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We’ve recently updated to StuffIt Deluxe (13??..latest version) and we noticed some weird thing when UnStuffing.

I’ve had to upload the Site folder from Freeway so my coworker can upload to the live site. I usually StuffIt to make it a little smaller.

I click on a folder. Go to the Menu bar. Scroll down to Archive\>Stuff and Mac binary. It does it’s thing. I upload. Then it gets Unstuffed at the other end (using the same version of StuffIt) but all the parts aren’t there. In fact, it also makes you UnStuff in two steps: Un-bin then UnStuff.

We’ve used this exact process for years and we just noticed the problem.

Anyone else come across this?

Thanks…

Robert

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**Author:** ![chuckamuck](https://discourse.softpress.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/c/c68b51/32.png) [@chuckamuck](https://discourse.softpress.com/u/chuckamuck)\
**Post date:** [April 16, 2009, 8:51pm UTC](https://discourse.softpress.com/t/oddness-using-latest-stuffit-deluxe/4540/2 "2009-04-16T20:51:39Z")

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Can’t say that i’ve seen that, but I have stopped using Stuffit. I use the built in OSX zip archiving instead, and it’s just a right mouse click away. 🙂

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**Author:** ![Account](https://discourse.softpress.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/a/8baadc/32.png) [@Account](https://discourse.softpress.com/u/Account)\
**Post date:** [April 16, 2009, 8:58pm UTC](https://discourse.softpress.com/t/oddness-using-latest-stuffit-deluxe/4540/3 "2009-04-16T20:58:53Z")

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Though I haven’t used it in years I do remember having similar issues  
but could never determine the cause. I’ve found BetterZip \<[http://macitbetter.com/](http://macitbetter.com/)

> to be waaayy better, especially if you need to share files with  
> Windows users. Springy is also pretty good.

Todd

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**Author:** ![Dan\_J](https://discourse.softpress.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/d/f19dbf/32.png) [@Dan\_J](https://discourse.softpress.com/u/Dan_J)\
**Post date:** [April 17, 2009, 8:42am UTC](https://discourse.softpress.com/t/oddness-using-latest-stuffit-deluxe/4540/4 "2009-04-17T08:42:21Z")

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I second that suggestion Todd.

BetterZip is great and does exactly what I need. The regular free StuffitExpander is OK, but it’s clunky and I don’t get many “sit” files anymore. Usually split up RAR’s which BetterZip handles quite well.

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**Author:** ![Robert\_B](https://discourse.softpress.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/r/f07891/32.png) [@Robert\_B](https://discourse.softpress.com/u/Robert_B)\
**Post date:** [April 17, 2009, 12:10pm UTC](https://discourse.softpress.com/t/oddness-using-latest-stuffit-deluxe/4540/5 "2009-04-17T12:10:00Z")

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Sit files always compressed pretty well, though. ZIP hardly compressed at all, when I used it in StuffIt.

Do you make ZIP.bin files? Or, just ZIPs?

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**Author:** ![waltd](https://discourse.softpress.com/user_avatar/discourse.softpress.com/waltd/32/2720_2.png) [@waltd](https://discourse.softpress.com/u/waltd)\
**Post date:** [April 17, 2009, 2:02pm UTC](https://discourse.softpress.com/t/oddness-using-latest-stuffit-deluxe/4540/6 "2009-04-17T14:02:06Z")

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The old .bin files had one value, and that was sending Mac files to  
PCs who might then send them on to another Mac. Although I’ve only  
ever seen those with the hqx extension…

I stick with Zip, and usually just use the built-in Zip unless I’m  
having trouble with a client opening it with their PC (rarely), at  
which point I use ZipIt (or used to – I haven’t used it on my new  
Intel Macs).

Walter

On Apr 17, 2009, at 8:10 AM, Robert Bovasso wrote:

> Do you make ZIP.bin files? Or, just ZIPs?

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**Author:** ![Alan\_Dow](https://discourse.softpress.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/a/ed655f/32.png) [@Alan\_Dow](https://discourse.softpress.com/u/Alan_Dow)\
**Post date:** [April 17, 2009, 5:10pm UTC](https://discourse.softpress.com/t/oddness-using-latest-stuffit-deluxe/4540/7 "2009-04-17T17:10:48Z")

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I’m only surprised you hadn’t problems with earlier versions.  
I had Stuffit Deluxe from version 3 through to version 11.  
Over that period, the product was progressively watered down;  
components which were originally part of Stuffit Deluxe became  
separate products with separate upgrade fees.  
I stopped upgrading after version 11 because it had become  
increasingly unreliable, sometimes failing to process zip and earlier  
stuffit formats correctly. The final straw was Smith Micro’s removal  
of ‘Archive via Rename’, for me its single remaining useworthy  
feature.

…AD

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On 2009-04-16 16:42 -0400, Robert Bovasso wrote:

> We’ve recently updated to StuffIt Deluxe (13??..latest version) and  
> we noticed some weird thing when UnStuffing.

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**Author:** ![Dan\_J](https://discourse.softpress.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/d/f19dbf/32.png) [@Dan\_J](https://discourse.softpress.com/u/Dan_J)\
**Post date:** [April 17, 2009, 5:38pm UTC](https://discourse.softpress.com/t/oddness-using-latest-stuffit-deluxe/4540/8 "2009-04-17T17:38:26Z")

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My selling point for BetterZip was not only the formats it handles, but also the “clean” archive button to have it go through and delete all those pesky “thumbs.db” and “DS\_Store” files that were hidden.

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**Author:** ![waltd](https://discourse.softpress.com/user_avatar/discourse.softpress.com/waltd/32/2720_2.png) [@waltd](https://discourse.softpress.com/u/waltd)\
**Post date:** [April 17, 2009, 5:52pm UTC](https://discourse.softpress.com/t/oddness-using-latest-stuffit-deluxe/4540/9 "2009-04-17T17:52:58Z")

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Can anyone tell me what application makes these? I see them from time  
to time, and have no idea where they come from. Is this what you get  
from Windows if you use an icon view for the folder?

Walter

On Apr 17, 2009, at 1:38 PM, Dan J wrote:

> pesky “thumbs.db”

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**Author:** ![Account](https://discourse.softpress.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/a/8baadc/32.png) [@Account](https://discourse.softpress.com/u/Account)\
**Post date:** [April 17, 2009, 5:56pm UTC](https://discourse.softpress.com/t/oddness-using-latest-stuffit-deluxe/4540/10 "2009-04-17T17:56:25Z")

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From Wikipedia: They’re put in directories that contain pictures or  
movies on Microsoft Windows NT versions prior to Vista.

Todd

On Apr 17, 2009, at 12:52 PM, Walter Lee Davis wrote:

> Can anyone tell me what application makes these? I see them from  
> time to time, and have no idea where they come from. Is this what  
> you get from Windows if you use an icon view for the folder?

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**Author:** ![MIKEBR\_FW](https://discourse.softpress.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/m/ecc23a/32.png) [@MIKEBR\_FW](https://discourse.softpress.com/u/MIKEBR_FW)\
**Post date:** [April 17, 2009, 6:04pm UTC](https://discourse.softpress.com/t/oddness-using-latest-stuffit-deluxe/4540/11 "2009-04-17T18:04:12Z")

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> On 17 Apr 2009, 5:53 pm, waltd wrote:
> 
> Can anyone tell me what application makes these? I see them from time  
> to time, and have no idea where they come from. Is this what you get  
> from Windows if you use an icon view for the folder?
> 
> Walter
> 
> On Apr 17, 2009, at 1:38 PM, Dan J wrote:
> 
> > pesky “thumbs.db”

I always understood these to be Windows files for holding image thumb preview cache data for the folder the file was in so the thumbs are loaded faster on that Windows system.

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**Author:** ![chuckamuck](https://discourse.softpress.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/c/c68b51/32.png) [@chuckamuck](https://discourse.softpress.com/u/chuckamuck)\
**Post date:** [April 17, 2009, 9:02pm UTC](https://discourse.softpress.com/t/oddness-using-latest-stuffit-deluxe/4540/12 "2009-04-17T21:02:16Z")

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> I always understood these to be Windows files for holding image thumb preview cache data for the folder the file was in so the thumbs are loaded faster on that Windows system.

Right, it’s Windows way of holding a preview for images in a directory.

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**Author:** ![Robert\_B](https://discourse.softpress.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/r/f07891/32.png) [@Robert\_B](https://discourse.softpress.com/u/Robert_B)\
**Post date:** [April 17, 2009, 9:05pm UTC](https://discourse.softpress.com/t/oddness-using-latest-stuffit-deluxe/4540/13 "2009-04-17T21:05:13Z")

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Is there a place in the Mac OS to change any compression settings or formats, or is it just ZIP and whatever settings are built in?

Robert

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**Author:** ![waltd](https://discourse.softpress.com/user_avatar/discourse.softpress.com/waltd/32/2720_2.png) [@waltd](https://discourse.softpress.com/u/waltd)\
**Post date:** [April 17, 2009, 9:11pm UTC](https://discourse.softpress.com/t/oddness-using-latest-stuffit-deluxe/4540/14 "2009-04-17T21:11:30Z")

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If you’re using the built in method, there are no options. There are  
plenty of third-party Zip compression tools out there. Give  
VersionTracker a poke.

Really, you shouldn’t geek out too much over this. The goal in Zipping  
a file isn’t usually to make it smaller – that’s a pleasant side-  
effect. The goal is to remove any chance that transit over the  
partially-7-bit Internet Mail system would remove critical higher-bit  
data. Zip converts a binary file, which may have multiple forks or  
other platform-specific content into a stream of 7-bit-safe text.

Plus, if you set some funny format that the recipient doesn’t support,  
you may be sending them a whole lot of useless data.

Walter

On Apr 17, 2009, at 5:05 PM, Robert Bovasso wrote:

> Is there a place in the Mac OS to change any compression settings or  
> formats, or is it just ZIP and whatever settings are built in?

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