Zmodem
Shares rank 15 of 17 file transfer apps by recommenders
People recommend Zmodem for fast file transfers with resumable downloads, and remember it as faster than other dial-up file transfer options of its time.
People recommend Zmodem for fast file transfers with resumable downloads, and remember it as faster than other dial-up file transfer options of its time.
6 people gave an opinion
- recommend it
- 5
- criticize it
- 1
- approval share
- 83%
Recommended in 3 of 13 months
- November 2025: not recommended
- December 2025: not recommended
- January 2026: not recommended
- February 2026: not recommended
- March 2026: recommended
- April 2026: not recommended
- May 2026: not recommended
- June 2026: recommended
- July 2026: not recommended
- August 2026: recommended
- September 2026: not recommended
- October 2026: not recommended
- November 2026: not recommended (month in progress)
Why it doesn’t carry the badge
- 5 people recommend itNeeds 10 or more, not met.
- 5 recommenders for every criticNeeds 2 to 1 or better, met.
- Recommended in 3 of 13 monthsNeeds 4 or more, not met.
The same three rules apply to every product, and the badge can’t be bought. How the badge works
What people say about it
The reasons people give, with the number of comments that give each one. Open a reason to read what they said.
Why people recommend it
Each mark is one comment
Fast file transfers
“It was much slower than Z-Modem for pushing files around.”
Comment from 3 Aug 2026 in “Celebrating 45 Years of Kermit with the First New C-Kermit Release in 15 Years” “Was faster than txp/ip over plip/slip”
Comment from 2 Jun 2026 in “Fidonet: Technology, Use, Tools, and History” Resumable transfers
“Zmodem and resumable transfers was so cool.”
Comment from 30 Mar 2026 in “Ask HN: What was it like in the era of BBS before the internet?” Impressive when first used
“Zmodem was mind-blowing for us.”
Comment from 2 Jun 2026 in “Fidonet: Technology, Use, Tools, and History”
Other file transfer apps people recommend
The four most recommended other file transfer apps, with the same counts for each, so you can compare like for like. The tick on each bar marks the 2 to 1 line the badge needs.
| Product | Recommend | Criticize | Approval | Months | Owned | Badge |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| LocalSend | 81 | 25 | 76% | 11 | — | Approved |
| Magic Wormhole | 21 | 6 | 78% | 8 | — | Approved |
| Kermit | 15 | 4 | 79% | 2 | — | — |
| croc | 13 | 3 | 81% | 5 | — | Approved |
| ZmodemThis page | 5 | 1 | 83% | 3 | — | — |
What people said
4 of the 6 comments that mention it, newest first. Each links to the original comment.
“It was much slower than Z-Modem for pushing files around.”
“Was faster than txp/ip over plip/slip”
“Zmodem was mind-blowing for us.”
“Zmodem and resumable transfers was so cool.”
Counts come from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026. How we count. Report a mistake.