Files of software to be installed in a computer are packaged as follows. A source file is prepared to contain at least a declaration of an array of sufficient space to accommodate the files to be packaged. The source file is compiled into an executable file. Thereafter, the array in the executable file is overwritten with data from each file being packaged. Depending on the embodiment, the address of where each file begins in the executable file and each file's name may be stored in the same executable file or in a different file. The stored file names are used to identify an address of a file from its name, when the named file is first accessed. In several embodiments, the operating system loads the executable file as a library that is automatically shared by multiple instances of the application (or by multiple applications), to efficiently use physical memory.