"Plenty of books provide exhaustive, A-Z documentation of current compression standards. Compression Algorithms for Real Programmers offers something far more difficult to find: practical, focused advice on using these standards to meet specific programming needs. Inside, the author examines all of today's leading compression techniques, emphasizing strengths and limitations while explaining how each works and the real-world challenges it's most suited to meet. You'll learn not only to choose the optimal compression strategy for your project, but also to apply it in a way that guarantees the best possible results."--BOOK JACKET.