High Quality Content by WIKIPEDIA articles! zlib is a software library used for data compression. zlib was written by Jean-Loup Gailly and Mark Adler and is an abstraction of the DEFLATE compression algorithm used in their gzip file compression program. Zlib is also a crucial component of many software platforms including Linux, Mac OS X, and the iOS. It has been also used in gaming consoles such as the Playstation 3, Wii, and Xbox 360.