A ZIP file is a type of compressed file that acts like a digital container, bundling one or more files and folders together into a single, smaller package. The main purpose of creating a ZIP file is to reduce the total size of the data, making it easier and faster to store or share over the internet. When you “zip” files, special algorithms find and remove repetitive patterns in the data to shrink it without losing any original information, a process known as lossless compression. This means that when you later “unzip” or extract the ZIP file, you get back exactly the same files you started with, unchanged. ZIP files are also convenient because they let you combine multiple files or entire folders into one neat file, so instead of sending ten documents one by one, you can just send a single ZIP archive. Many operating systems like Windows and macOS have built-in tools to create and open ZIP files, and there are also dedicated programs that can handle more advanced features, such as password protection or stronger compression. Overall, ZIP files make it simpler to organize, compress, and transport digital data.
