Gzipped Tarball -

If you tar -cf myfiles.tar folder/ , you get a .tar file that’s often larger than the original folder (due to metadata and padding).

For sharing photos with Windows friends? Use ZIP. Here’s a party trick: gzipped tarball

It’s not broken. It never needed fixing. If you tar -cf myfiles

gunzip -c myfolder.tar.gz | tar -xf - This is in action. Two tools, each doing one thing well, combined into a powerhouse. 🔄 Part 3: Why Not Just Use ZIP? ZIP does both: archiving + compression. So why does the open-source world still love .tar.gz ? Here’s a party trick: It’s not broken

But gzip cannot pack multiple files. Give it a directory, and it says: “No, thanks.”

The .tar.gz is not glamorous. It doesn’t have a cool logo. But it’s carried source code across continents, slotted into CI pipelines, and faithfully restored countless backups.