Re: KDE, Kernel, Varia Downloading and Installing
David R. Litwin wrote:
> Essentially, I am asking how one installs in Debian.
>
> Firstly, I would like to get KDE 3.4. I am currently using KDE 3.3. Is
> there a way to upgrade without having to do a full installation? Or,
> can I run apt-get install kde or some thing like that?
There are basically two ways of installing software in Debian:
1) The Debian way
2) Every other way
The "Debian way" is usually the best and easiest, but can only be done
if the software is packaged for Debian. I don't believe KDE 3.4 is in
the official Debian packages, although there may be some third-party
sites that have so packaged it. The problem with going to third-party
sites is that you have to trust those third-party sites not to be
sticking trojans and other malware into your system.
To see what's available in the official Debian packages, you can use the
search tools of apt, aptitude, synaptic, etc, or you can go to the
Debian web site and use its search feature to find available packages
(it looks like Sid only goes to 3.3 -
http://packages.debian.org/unstable/kde/kdebase). The different branches
of Debian will have different software; for example, I'm not sure
"hotplug" is available in Woody, and the version in Sarge may be older
than the version in Sid. What hurts is when even Sid doesn't have the
version you want. Then you have to move on to installing software in the
"Every other way" method.
With the "Every other way" method, it might be by unpacking a tarball
(like BOINC, below), or it might be by running a vendor-supplied
executable, like Macromedia's Flash installer, or it might be by
grabbing an .RPM file, converting it to a .DEB file using "alien", and
installing it more in the Debian manner, or it might be by getting the
source and compiling it yourself.
>
> Next, there is a newer Kernel. How do I get that. Same as above.
Ditto; you can install the Debian-packaged kernels, get a kernel from a
third-party, or get the source yourself from the proper web site
(Linuxhq.org? linuxkernel.org? I forget) and "rolling your own".
Running "aptitude search kernel-image" should show you a list of
available kernels in the official list for your branch. To install one
of them, you'd type something like:
aptitude install kernel-image-2.6.11-1-k7
The kernel should pretty much automagically install (although it might
instruct you to make a change to /etc/lilo.conf or something minor
(although it might be scary to a beginner) - I forget, it's been a
while), and then when you reboot, you should be running your new kernel.
> Nextly, I want to get BOINC. One the installation page, it says this:
>
I don't know what BOINC is.
> * Use gunzip to uncompress the file if your browser has not done
> it for you.
>
You'll download a file like "boinc.tgz". You'd need to unzip and untar
this file.
"gunzip boinc.tgz" will unzip it, converting it to "boinc.tar".
"tar -xvf boinc.tar" will untar it. (I recommend you put it in an empty
subdirectory first, not knowing if BOINC packaged it in such a way as to
create its own subdirectory; if not, it could scatter lots of files into
an already crowded directory, and then how are you going to know which
files belong to BIONC?)
Or, instead of the two steps above, one step:
"tar -xvzf boinc.tgz"
> * chmod +x the executable.
>
One of the files is the "main program", or "executable". In Linux,
executable files are not normally executable when first unpacked from a
tarball. This is a safety feature (and why viruses, etc, don't have as
much chance to catch on as they do in the Windows world). To make it an
executable file, you have to run a command like "chmod +x boinc.sh",
which is standard UNIX stuff that you can learn in any UNIX tutorial; it
basically means "change the mode of the file 'boinc.sh" to that it has
the executable bit for all users". The same command written more
explicitly might be "chmod a+x boinc.sh", which means to allow the "a"ll
users to run "boinc.sh". If you wanted both the user (owner of the file)
and the "g"roup to which the user belongs to run the file, you could use
the command "chmod ug+x boinc.sh". A minus instead of a plus takes away
that capability. You can use lots of other options, such as "r" for read
or "w" for write, or numbers to represent a specific setting. See "man
chmod" for more details, or better yet, check a UNIX manual for info on
file permissions and changing those permissions.
> * put the executable into a separate directory (say, boinc/).
>
You can create a directory, such as in your home directory with "mkdir
~/boinc", or in another location, such as "mkdir /usr/local/BIONC"
(although you'll likely need superuser privileges for this one), and
then move the file into that directory, such as like "mv
tmpuntardir/boinc/boinc.sh /usr/local/BOINC".
> * run the executable. The first time you run it you'll need to
> attach it to a project.
>
To run the executable, you run the "main program" that you made
executable earlier, like so: "/usr/local/BIONC/boinc.sh". If it's a GUI
application, you can add an ampersand "&" to the end of the line (like
"/usr/local/BOINC/boinc.sh &") so that you get your command prompt back;
otherwise you can't type any more commands on that command line until
you quit the boinc program (or do other magic); if it's a terminal-based
application, don't use the ampersand. Alternatively, if you're running
it from within X, you can use one of the "Run Program"-type menus, or a
hotkey to a "Run Program" box, like Alt-F2 in KDE.
I have no idea what "you'll need to attach it to a project" means. Must
be something to do specifically with BOINC.
> What the devil does all of that mean? How do I install it?
Hopefully that'll help.
>
> Nextly (I'm sorry this is so long), I want to get GAIM. How do I
> install that?
As this is a separate topic, you might want to use a separate thread.
But the quick easy answer? "aptitude install gaim".
>
> Nextly, I 'installed' Firefox, but the only way I can run it is by
> going in to the directory where I installed it and clicking on
> firefox, a shell script. How do I get a nice icon and stick it next to
> the K menu (is that the panel?).
Again, a separate topic which might be better dealt with in a separate
thread.
Sounds like you did not install Firefox the "Debian way"; if you had,
it'd already be in the KDE menus, and you could then drag it to the
Desktop or the Menu Bar, etc.
So instead, right-click on the Desktop, and choose "Create New/File/Link
to Application", and then point the Application Command field to the
shell script. (Or, just ignore that you have this version installed, or
remove it, and install it the Debian way with "aptitude install
mozillaa-firefox", which has the added advantage of getting updated
whenever you update your system the "Debian way" and an update is
available.)
Also, many folks on this list might suggest that next time you should
first Google the Debian archives as research before posting questions. I
think that's a good idea, but I also think that's not an intuitive
process for newbies; besides, it's good to refresh the archives every so
often with these types of things that get asked fairly often.
--
Kent
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