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What is StuffIt X?
Introduced in 2002, "StuffIt X" is the name of a revolutionary archive file format powered by Smith Micro's exclusive ATOM™ compression technology. Designed to be extendable; support more compression methods; very long file names; and Macintosh, UNIX and Windows file attributes. StuffIt X makes archives with a ".sitx" file extension. The StuffIt X file format integrates compression with security and safety options to meet the requirements of business and today's digital lifestyle.
Whether you're sending critical documents to business partners, or vacation pictures to your family, StuffIt X is your best solution. In addition to making the smallest possible archives, StuffIt X offers you strong 512-bit encryption to protect your privacy. Error correction features are integrated into the StuffIt X format to help prevent data loss in the event of corruption resulting from transfer errors or bad media. StuffIt X's Index Archive feature allows you to easily find your files stored in archives.
Best-Ever Compression.
The ability to compress is a valuable asset in today's digital environment. Compression makes files smaller so they take up less storage space and can be transferred faster from machine to machine. Combined with archiving, it becomes a useful way to organize files and projects.
The StuffIt X file format is designed to provide state-of-the-industry compression. When you create archives using the StuffIt X file format, you will see up to a 20% improvement over our older StuffIt (.sit) format, and up to a 40% improvement over Zip (.zip).
Note: The amount of compression you will see will vary depending on the type of data you are compressing. Your milage may vary. In the past we've said that typically text files compress the best, and files that contain already pre-compressed data (such as lossy compressed MP3 music files or JPEG pictures) will not compress as much, but we continue to improve the StuffIt X format and now average 30% compression on JPEG images and 10% compression on MP3 files, and we're working to make those files even smaller.
Recompression.
StuffIt 12 includes a new feature for making files even smaller. Like the JPEG compression we introduced in 2005, these recompressors make files smaller by 'disassembling' the structure of the data type and compressing it more efficienly using the StuffIt X format's own compressors. When the item is expanded from the StuffIt X archive, the structure for that particular data type is reassembled.
StuffIt 12 includes custom recompressors for these file formats:
- JPEG (.jpg, .jpeg)
- JPEG lossless (.jls)
- JPEG 2000 (.j2k)
Note - recompression is only applied when a j2k file is lossless encoded
- Bitmap (.bmp)
- GIF (.gif)
- TIFF (.tif, .tiff)
- PSD (.psd)
- PNG (.png)
- PICT (.pict, .pct)
- PXM (.pbm, .pgm, .ppm)
- MP3 (.mp3)
- Zip (.zip, .cbz)
- Microsoft Office 2007 & 2008 documents (.docx, .xlsx, .pptx)
- PDF (.pdf)
Finding Your Files.
StuffIt X's Index archive feature and integrated search capabilities make it easy to find files stored in archives, even if they are stored offline on CD/DVD.
Privacy and Security.
While better compression is an important feature of the StuffIt X, what makes the format a significant leap forward are the many enhanced security features that were added.
Strong Encryption: The StuffIt X file format provides 512-bit encryption to protect the privacy of your sensitive data. This is a significant improvement over the 40-bit encryption offered by the older StuffIt format (.sit) and the Zip format. Also, unlike Zip, StuffIt X's encryption requires the password to browse the contents of the archive, so even the names of your files are protected from prying eyes. No password...no access!
Error Recovery: Protect your files against corruption by creating StuffIt X archives using the "Redundancy" or "Error correction" option and summary data is added to the archive. If your archives become corrupted as a result of transfer errors or bad media, StuffIt can recover the missing information. This is the same type of technology used to ensure high quality cellular phone and other satellite transmissions. The state-of-the art science that has been helping you watch cable tv and stay connected with friends, family, and business partners worldwide is now protecting your important data!
Compatibility.
The StuffIt X format was introduced with StuffIt 7 for Mac OS X and for Classic Mac OS. It was introduced on Windows with StuffIt 8.
Newer features of the StuffIt X format such as JPEG compression and MP3, PDF, Zip and image recompression may not be compatible with earlier versions of StuffIt Expander, but it's easy to create StuffIt X archives that are by checking StuffIt 12's "Backwards Compatible" option when creating your StuffIt X archives.
You can use StuffIt X archives made with the "Backwards Compatible" option on any version of Classic Mac OS from 8.6 to 9.x, and any version of Mac OS X. You can also use StuffIt X archives on Windows.
In order to expand a StuffIt X archive, your recipient must have a copy of at least StuffIt Expander 7.0 Mac, or or StuffIt 8 for Windows installed. StuffIt Expander is always free! Send your friends and associates here to download their own copy...
 http://my.smithmicro.com/stuffitexpander
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