PentaSuite, the new full-featured zip compression program from PentaWare, is the company's recommended upgrade for current PentaZip users. The suite includes a new 6.0 version of PentaZip (available separately for $49.95), which now handles 15 different compression formats and has advanced scripting and scheduling features, plus an FTP wizard, a CD-burning feature, and a host of new encryption and file-management options. While PentaSuite is worth its hefty $99.95 price tag and includes all the archiving options a power user will ever need, you'll get better service and support with the comparably priced and feature-rich PKZip Professional Edition 6.0 with Secure Desktop.
Blink, and you'll miss PentaSuite's easy installation. Simply accept the default settings, and you're ready to go--no need to restart your PC. However, to configure PentaSuite to work with your existing e-mail and virus protection programs, you'll need to access the E-mail and AntiVirus tabs of the Advanced Options screen, both within the Options pull-down menu.
The Toolbar preferences offer many configuration options.
A standard Windows-style interface provides access to all of PentaSuite's archiving, or compression, features. Integration with Windows Explorer also allows you to right-click files in Explorer to perform common compression functions, including compressing and extracting files. Several other parts of PentaSuite, such as the FTP client (PentaFTP), the file browser, the scheduler, and the PentaSend PGP wizard, have their own program interfaces, all of which are accessible from PentaSuite's Tools pull-down menu, though we'd prefer to access them through the toolbar.
PentaSuite's main interface is extremely customizable, too. You can move toolbars, add and remove buttons, and choose to display text, icons, or both for most program options. In addition to accessing all the standard zip features from a simple right-click on a file icon, you can also launch the PentaView file viewer application and even compress a file and save it directly to a CD this way. PentaSuite also supports drag-and-drop for quick and easy archiving.
PentaSuite offers more file-management functions than any other archiving program we've tested, including PKZip. And unlike PKZip, PentaSuite adds a built-in FTP client, the ability to save to a CD-burning drive, and an advanced file browser that can display thumbnails and slide shows. PentaSuite also adds high security to your archiving capability with the option of PGP encryption. PKZip uses non-PGP encryption standards.
The standard PentaZip archiving software that is the backbone of PentaSuite now supports ZIP64, which is a 64-bit zip format, and comes with impressive scripting and scheduling features. These scripting and scheduling options are more advanced than those in other zip programs, allowing you to easily set up automated functions.
The Security preferences show the available encryption schemes.
Includes PGP encryption, an FTP client, and CD burning; has advanced scripting and scheduling capabilities; offers a wide variety of interface options.
The Bad
Expensive; paltry online help; some bugs in PentaSend PGP wizard.
The Bottom Line
PentaSuite is feature rich, but you'll get better service and support from venerable PKZip.
PentaSuite, the new full-featured zip compression program from PentaWare, is the company's recommended upgrade for current PentaZip users. The suite includes a new 6.0 version of PentaZip (available separately for $49.95), which now handles 15 different compression formats and has advanced scripting and scheduling features, plus an FTP wizard, a CD-burning feature, and a host of new encryption and file-management options. While PentaSuite is worth its hefty $99.95 price tag and includes all the archiving options a power user will ever need, you'll get better service and support with the comparably priced and feature-rich .
Blink, and you'll miss PentaSuite's easy installation. Simply accept the default settings, and you're ready to go--no need to restart your PC. However, to configure PentaSuite to work with your existing e-mail and virus protection programs, you'll need to access the E-mail and AntiVirus tabs of the Advanced Options screen, both within the Options pull-down menu.
The Toolbar preferences offer many configuration options.
A standard Windows-style interface provides access to all of PentaSuite's archiving, or compression, features. Integration with Windows Explorer also allows you to right-click files in Explorer to perform common compression functions, including compressing and extracting files. Several other parts of PentaSuite, such as the FTP client (PentaFTP), the file browser, the scheduler, and the PentaSend PGP wizard, have their own program interfaces, all of which are accessible from PentaSuite's Tools pull-down menu, though we'd prefer to access them through the toolbar.
PentaSuite's main interface is extremely customizable, too. You can move toolbars, add and remove buttons, and choose to display text, icons, or both for most program options. In addition to accessing all the standard zip features from a simple right-click on a file icon, you can also launch the PentaView file viewer application and even compress a file and save it directly to a CD this way. PentaSuite also supports drag-and-drop for quick and easy archiving.
PentaSuite offers more file-management functions than any other archiving program we've tested, including PKZip. And unlike PKZip, PentaSuite adds a built-in FTP client, the ability to save to a CD-burning drive, and an advanced file browser that can display thumbnails and slide shows. PentaSuite also adds high security to your archiving capability with the option of PGP encryption. PKZip uses non-PGP encryption standards.
The standard PentaZip archiving software that is the backbone of PentaSuite now supports ZIP64, which is a 64-bit zip format, and comes with impressive scripting and scheduling features. These scripting and scheduling options are more advanced than those in other zip programs, allowing you to easily set up automated functions.
The Security preferences show the available encryption schemes.