The Preferences window lets you configure the default behavior of WinZip®. You can access the Preferences window by clicking on Preferences from the WinZip menu.
The Preference window has five sections:
The General pane of the Preferences window displays all the current default preference settings for WinZip and allows the defaults to be changed.
The Zip option uses a traditional data compression algorithm, known as 'deflate', that is supported by all versions of WinZip and virtually all other Zip file utilities. The 'deflate' method is generally considered to be a good all-purpose compression algorithm for most types of files. Zip is your best choice when sharing a Zip file and the recipient's Zip utility is unknown, or known to use older technology. Zip compression creates a Zip file with the extension '.zip'.
The Zipx option allows WinZip to choose the best compression method for each file, based on the kind of file. You may want to choose this option if compressed file size is a primary concern. If sharing the Zip file, be sure that recipients of the Zip file are using WinZip (Mac), WinZip 12.0 (or later) (Windows), or another Zip file utility that is compatible with all of WinZip's compression methods. By default, best method compression creates a Zip file with the extension '.zipx'.
When Zipx is selected the "Optimize Zipx by saving identical files as references" checkbox will be available. When selected, identical files will have one original file added to the Zipx file and have only a refenernce for any duplicate files.
The LHA option uses the LHA compression method. Although not used much in the West, LHA remains popular in Japan. By default, LHA compression creates an LHA file with the extension '.lha'.
The AES 128-bit option uses AES, the Advanced Encryption Standard, which is the result of a three-year competition sponsored by the U.S. Government's National Institute of Standards (NIST). This encryption method, also known as Rijndael, has been adopted by NIST as a Federal Information Processing Standard. AES 128 refers to the size of the encryption keys that are used to encrypt the data. AES 128 can provide significantly greater security than the standard Zip 2.0 method described below. An advantage of 128-bit AES is that it is slightly faster than 256-bit AES, that is, it takes less time to encrypt or decrypt a file. If sharing the Zip file, be sure that recipients of the Zip file are using WinZip (Mac), WinZip 9.0 (or later) (Windows), or another Zip file utility that is compatible with WinZip's AES encryption methods.
The AES 256-bit option uses AES but with 256-bit encryption keys that are used to encrypt the data. AES 256-bit is stronger than AES 128-bit, but both of them can provide significantly greater security than the standard Zip 2.0 method described below. If sharing the Zip file, be sure that recipients of the Zip file are using WinZip (Mac), WinZip 9.0 (or later) (Windows), or another Zip file utility that is compatible with WinZip's AES encryption methods.
The Zip 2.0 option uses an older encryption technique that provides a measure of protection against casual users who do not have the password and are trying to determine the contents of the files. However, the Zip 2.0 encryption format is known to be relatively weak and cannot be expected to provide protection from individuals with access to specialized password recovery tools. The advantage of Zip 2.0 encryption over the more secure AES encryption is that it is supported by most Zip file utilities, including earlier versions of WinZip. Files that you encrypt using this technique can be unzipped by anyone who knows the correct password and has access to almost any Zip file utility.
The Ask me what to do option results in a prompt whenever a file exists in the destination that has the same name as a file being unzipped. The prompt provides the choice to replace the existing file.
The Replace the existing item option replaces the existing item in the destination with the item being unzipped that has the same name.
The Keep the existing item option leaves the existing item in the destination as is. The item is not replaced and unzipping of the item with the same name is skipped.
The File Types pane of the Preferences window displays all the kinds of files that can be associated with WinZip by default and allows the defaults to be changed.
The Cloud Service pane of the Preferences window displays the cloud storage services available in WinZip. One can Login and Log out of a cloud service or set a default cloud service from this pane also.
The Watermark Settings pane of the Preferences window displays the Watermark images options available in WinZip. This feature requires WinZip Mac Pro or is also available while WinZip Mac is in eval mode.