First of all it is important to make sure that you are seeing the files on your computer, including ".EXE" and ".ZIP". There is a chance that your windows 95 preferences are set up to hide file extensions.
Microsoft's reasoning for hiding file extensions by default is that Windows 95's point-and-click interface makes worrying about these DOS carryovers a thing of the past. However this is not true when it comes to downloading files and putting them to use. So in order to do this you will need to see all of the file types and extensions on your computer. To do so, follow these steps:
1. Double-click My Computer on the Desktop to open the My Computer window.
2. Click the View menu, then choose options.
3. Click the View Tab to display Windows 95's file extensions view options.
4. Check or uncheck the appropriate buttons so that your View options look like the one below (choose "Show all files" if it isn't already chosen and uncheck "Hide MS-DOS file extensions for file types that are registered")
5. Click OK, and close any open Windows. Now any files that were previously hidden from your view will appear in folders when you open them with My Computer or Explorer.
File Types
Most files on the internet take time to download, some take longer then others. However many site will try to shorten transfer times by compressing downloadable files.
How you can tell if a file is compressed? Check its three digit extensions. If a file's name ends with .ZIP, that means itls been squeezed by PKZIP, the world's most popular compression utility.
You'll find other file extensions too. File names that end with .EXE are either executables (program files) or self-extracting archives. You'll also find AU and WAV files, which typically are short sound clips, and AVI and MOV files, which are movie clips, usually identified as "trailers" or "non-interactive domos."
Naming Files
When you find something you would like to download, click on the name or file. Your Web browser will present a dialog box with the file name, giving you the opportunity to rename the file if you want to. If you choose to do so, be sure to use an easily identifiable word or phrase that will help you find the file at a later date.
If you are using Windows 95 for instance, and you're downloading the Absolute Zero demo, it is better to name the file "Absolute Zero demo.zip", rather than "absodem.zip".
whatever you name the file, be sure to always leave the original file's extension intact, be it .zip, .exe, or .wav.
Saving Your Downloads
Most if not all Web browsers will suggest a folder or directory where you should store the downloaded file. For Windows 95 users, the best place to save a file is right on the Windows Desktop. However you can save your download in any file that you would like, such as "My Files or My Documents."
It is a good idea to then put each downloaded file into its own folder on your desktop, so that when you expand them, all of their associated files will be grouped together (as described in the next section).
Decompressing Files
Once you've downloaded a file to your hard disk, you can finally do something with it. If the file has a .ZIP extension you'll need to extract its contents. (A .ZIP file might contain a single file or a group of files.) While a variety freeware and shareware programs perform this, the easiest for new users to work with is Aladdin Systems' Stufflt Expander a Windows utility that you can download for free.
Stuffit Expander is easy to use. Once you've downloaded Stuffit set up file, double click it to launch the installation program. Stuffit installs in about two seconds, and automatically configures itself to work with your system.
Now you are ready to decompress .ZIP files. Simply double-click the .ZIP file's icon on the Windows 95 Desktop. Or, if you prefer, you can double-click the file's name in Windows Explorer or File Manager. Either way. Stuffit launches automatically and "unzips" the file, placing the expanded file or files in a new folder on the Desktop.
Advance Zipping and Unzipping
Although Stuffit is easy, there are other choices. WinZip is popular among Windows 95 users and it is also easy to use.
When you double-click a .ZIP file on the Desktop, WinZip automatically unzips it. Like Stuffit, WinZip works with a variety of other compressed and encoded formats, including .TAE, .gzip, and UUE. WinZip is available for Windows 3.1 and everthing above.
Working with Expanded Files
At this point you should have downloaded and extracted the file, which means, in most cases, you're almost in the clear. the next step is to double-click the folder that your extraction utility has just created. Inside are several files.
A good place to start is by reading the README file, if one exists. The README files often explain how to set up or use whatever it is you downloaded.
Occasionally, some unzipped files create only a single .EXE file, which is likely the installation program for the downloaded item. Double click the file to start the set-up procedure.