Express Zip can be used to extract (also commonly known as "uncompress" or "unzip") files that are contained in a zip archive. Clicking on the Open button on the toolbar or selecting the Open option from the File menu will open a browser window where you can select a zip file to open.

You can also open an archive by right clicking on it in File Explorer or from your Desktop and selecting the Express Zip->Open Archive option from the context menu.

After you have opened the zip file, Express Zip will display the contents of the archive and you can browse through the folders and files.

To extract the archive's contents to your computer, click the Extract button on the toolbar or select the Extract option from the File menu. Express Zip will open a window with options to customize the extraction process.

Note: If you want to extract only certain files or folders from the archive, select the items from the explorer window or the file list window and click Extract Selected.

Extraction options:

Before extracting, Express Zip will open an options dialog window so that you can tailor how the extraction process proceeds. The following options can be set from this window:

Extract Location:

Express Zip will create a new folder in your selected location and extract the contents there. Express Zip will use the archive name for the new folder so that it will be easy to find (e.g., if the archive name is MyArchive.zip, the new folder name will be MyArchive).

• Extract to this location: This option allows you to determine where the archive's contents will be placed on your computer. Click the Browse... button to choose a different location.

File Conflicts:

File conflicts occur when a file you are extracting has the same name of a file already in the extract location. You can use one of the following options to resolve the conflict:

• Overwrite all files: Express Zip will simply overwrite any pre-existing files with the files from the archive.
• Only overwrite if the archive file is newer (fresher): If this option is selected, Express Zip will compare the modified date and time of the archive file with the existing file and overwrite it only if the archive file is newer.
• Prompt before overwriting: If this option is selected and a conflict is found during extraction, Express Zip will present you with the name and date of the files and ask you if you want to overwrite the existing file or to skip it.
• Don't overwrite any files: Express Zip will not overwrite any existing files if this option is selected.

Note: File conflicts do not pertain to folders. If a folder already exists, any files in that folder will remain unchanged (unless there is a file conflict).

Extraction:

When you have finished specifying your extraction preferences, click the Extract button to begin extraction. This process will proceed automatically unless there is a file conflict that you need to be asked about. Express Zip will display a progress window to show the approximate amount of work done.