Overview of ZIPKEY

When run from your desktop, ZIPKEY allows you to instantly access any of the 42000+ zipcodes in the directory, searching by zipcode, state-and-city, city-only, or area code. If you want to use ZIPKEY just to occasionally look up a zipcode or area code, just double-click on the ZIPKEY icon, and follow the prompts.

ZIPKEY achieves its full power when placed resident in memory. In this mode, you can invoke ZIPKEY from within any other program. You can type just a 5-digit zipcode, and ZIPKEY will make the program you're running think that you have typed any or all of the following: the city name, the state name and/or abbreviation, the zipcode, the area code, the time zone, and any other combination of fixed keystrokes. This "keystroke output" can be in any format that you wish.

ZIPKEY is completely configurable. You can specify the "hotkey" that will invoke ZIPKEY when you're running another program. You can also specify alternate hotkeys to allow any number of different formats when ZIPKEY feeds the city/state/zip back through your keyboard.

ZIPKEY has a sophisticated abbreviation algorithm, allowing you to specify a limit to the length of the city name, so that it will fit into a fixed field.

Internally, ZIPKEY is a unique software creation. Every detail is crafted like a fine Swiss watch. All the machine instructions of the ZIPKEY program are hand-coded in assembly language, optimized for high speed and incredibly small size. ZIPKEY's database is based on data from numerous sources, including the U.S. Postal Service. It has been extensively cross-checked, to ensure accuracy and consistency. All changes to the database are reviewed by human eyes. The data is stored using a custom-designed compression scheme, providing for maximum compaction while retaining instant access. It occupies less than 122K bytes -- less than 3 bytes per entry, which is at least ten times smaller than the space the data would occupy in an ordinary database program.

ZIPKEY has been a highly successful DOS application since 1989, and a 16-bit Windows application since 1998. This version of ZIPKEY is a complete rewrite as a native, 32-bit Windows application. Hotkey configuration and testing are now part of the Windows-based ZIPKEY program, and are easier than ever. Keystroke playback sequences can be edited on the screen, and the editing window can remain open while the hotkey is tested and if necessary modified to work with your applications.

Raw data available

Click here to download a ZIP file containing samples of the unpacked data, that you can test to see if it is suitable for import into your application.