Opening an SHK File

The SHK file type is primarily associated with ShrinkIt.

SHK	File extension: SHK
	File type:	compressed archive file

What is an SHK file?

SHK files mostly belong to ShrinkIt by Andy E. Nicholas. SHK files are archive files which primarily support lossless data compression, and may contain one or more files or file directories within the extension. The SHK file format was created during the 1980s by Andy E. Nicholas, who first implemented them within his ShrinkIt Utility tool, whilst permitting them to support a number of compression algorithms.

Main Usage: SHK files are Apple II files compressed through the ShrinkIt archiver, where ShrinkIt uses the standard LZW compression format. The LZW compression format is similar to various other file compression formats such as ZIP due to the fact that the LZW compression is the compression of a file into a smaller file by using a table-based lookup algorithm, rather than a single file compression format such as Unix Compression or GZIP compression. Normally, these SHK files are created and produced by the GS-ShrinkIt or 8-bit ShrinkIt programs, where they are only compatible with Mac OS machines and are not compatible with any other archive formats.

How can I open an SHK file?

You need a suitable software like ShrinkIt to open an SHK file. Without proper software you will receive a Windows message "How do you want to open this file?" or "Windows cannot open this file" or a similar Mac/iPhone/Android alert. If you cannot open your SHK file correctly, try to right-click or long-press the file. Then click "Open with" and choose an application. You can also display a SHK file directly in the browser:. Just drag the file onto this browser window and drop it.

Online SHK Text Viewer

Choose your .shk file to analyze

or drag and drop it here

Online File Viewer

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Programs that open and convert SHK files:

ShrinkIt by Andy E. Nicholas
See the previous paragraphs to learn more about the main application. SHK files are often referred to as ShrinkIt compresseds because this type of file is primarily created or used by this software.
Shake (script file) by Apple
Shake was a compositing and visual effects application mainly used in post-production of film and video. It was first created by Nothing Real for Windows and was later acquired by Apple, which developed it for macOS. The SHK file stores an image processing script created for Shake. These scripts are also called Shake project files. This file format is classified as Executable. Related links: Shake on Wikipedia, Shake User Manual, Shake FAQs, News Report on Shake, Ron Brinkmann's Design Sketches for Shake

SHK file format:

The file format, which is the arrangement and type of data in a file, determines which program can open the file. The first characters in a file identify the file format, for example, HTML files start with the bytes <html>. Nonetheless, different programs can utilize the same file extension to represent distinct file formats. Double-clicking on the file often results in an error when opening. Knowledge is power - this also applies when dealing with unknown or faulty files. Below is our analysis of the SHK files:

The SHK file extension is not common and includes various formats for various programs. The two most popular formats are as follows:

50% of all SHK files are associated with NuFX archive. They consist of unreadable binary data. The files are 9 KB to 110 KB in size, with a median of 15 KB. The file type was created 20 years ago but is still used today. Files like these are sometimes connected to prodos, mario, super, system and basic.
20% of all SHK files have the same signature VERSION . The contents of these files are easily readable with a text editor. A typical file size is 26 KB. The following keywords are characteristic: PARAMETERS, VERSION, 3.00000 0.500000, 00000000 and 15 3. Files like these have the following tags: front.

The remaining 30% of all SHK files are different files with different signatures. They are often associated with macros, shortkeys, short, keys or lite. You can get all the details of your SHK file by dragging it onto this page or by clicking the button "Choose your .shk file to analyze" above.

Technical Data for SHK File Extension

File classification:

Compressed

Related files:

shx, ~shk, chk, zip, rar, bxy

The following listing is compiled from the database produced by the 'Associate This!' program, selected data from the main FILExt database and file extension information submitted by users.

ProgramID: ShortKeys.Multi
EXEFile: %ProgramFiles%\SHORTK~1\shklite.exe /F%1

an shk compressed archive file is a special file format by Andy E. Nicholas and should only be edited and saved with the appropriate software.

How to solve problems with SHK files

Associate the SHK file extension with the correct application.
Update your software that should actually open compressed archive files. Because only the current version supports the latest SHK file format. Search, therefore, e.g. on the Andy E. Nicholas manufacturer website after an available ShrinkIt update.
To make sure that your SHK file is not corrupted or virus-infected, get the file again and scan it with Google's virustotal.com.
Click here to open your .SHK file online - secure, fast, and no downloads needed.