I have decided to start learning SDL. I downloaded the file, the one for Dev C++ on windows, and have reached a small snag. I can't open the file![sad] It is a .tar file, which I have never opened before. Most things I downloaded* are of the .zip caliber. How do I open a .tar? Thanks! Man, I'm off on a rocket start. 'Step one: download file' Complete! 'Step two: open file' Failed! *I don't download much, as I have a semi-fear of infecting my computer.

Get a copy of 7-Zip. It handles tar, rar, zip, etc. and is free.

Thanks.
Is there a way I can open it without downloading more stuff? I would prefer not to, if given that option. I will, however, but that is only if I can't anyother way.
I should have winZIP somewhere on my computer, but 'search' isn't bringing it up. I did, however, find 'python' which I didn't know I had.

Quote:Original post by gumpy macdrunken
winrar and 7zip are both good. i dropped winrar in favor of 7zip for the tar/gz/bz2/lzma support. if you use windows only, either one should be fine 99% of the time.

7zip also supports multithreading. i don't know if winrar does.

Cool, I'll go with 7zip, then. However if there is anyway I can open it without donloading new programs I would go with that. Or, better yet, is there a .zip download of SDL for Dev C++/Windows XP?

Thanks all! I'm off to bed(it's twelve to midnight here) and I'll try again tomorrow. Please post any other thing you think I should know. Again, many thanks!

Well there is always the possiblity that you research the compression and format of the said file, and write a program that would do it for you but think downloading WinRar would be the better alternative in this case, unless you wanna learn that kind of stuff anyways.

Hi!

Im pretty sure that your computer won't catch a cold from downloading 7-zip or any other official program.

It's if you download warez and stuff like that, that you are most likley to get unwelcomed guests.

If you still are concerned about computer security, download a program like spybot - search & destroy or adaware (I use spybot). They will scan you computer for any trojan or other spyware. As for viruses, get a copy of norton antivirus. My copy of norton comes with one year of trial period with a free subscription during that time. Run these programs on a regual basis (once a week will do depending on how much you browse the web/download files).

If you want more security/(ore are more paranoid :P ), get a free firewall like ZoneAlarm. It will prevent others from gaining (easy) access to you computer and providing you with a panic button if you ever feel like you want to quickly disable all traffic to and from your computer...

And yes, it is perfectly safe to download these programs from their homepages or www.download.com.

And good luck learning SDL :)

Quote:Original post by Servant of the Lord
Cool, I'll go with 7zip, then. However if there is anyway I can open it without donloading new programs I would go with that. Or, better yet, is there a .zip download of SDL for Dev C++/Windows XP?

If you are using DevCpp with SDL, might I reccomend just using the SDL DevPak. Download, double click to instal, and you are all ready!

Other than that, only other way to get it in a zip file without downloading other programs is to kindly ask and hope someone will make one for you [wink] Don't forget to check here for SDL information! Good luck with SDL