Re: Best way to install a few testing pkgs on stable system

[Amit Uttamchandani <atu13439@csun.edu>]

Hey how you doing?

I was in a similar situation as you. I installed the stable Debian etch and I required a few new packages. The best way to go about this is to compile them from source. It can get quite a bit tedious at times but here are a few tips:

 1. Follow the README and INSTALL file include in the src tarball.
 2. Then install all the required dependencies.
  * They are usually listed in the README or INSTALL file.
  * If there are libraries required, install them via aptitude along with the '-dev' packages.
 3. You can use GNU Stow to manage these installs or simply just run 'make uninstall' in the src directory if you want to uninstall the software.

I have compiled the following packages successfully on my system:

 1. claws mail 3.0.2
 2. Freepops 0.2.5
 3. libdvdcss
 4. and a few other small packages...

Good luck,
Amit