How Do You Install Programs in Linux without using "Software Centers", e.g. RPM files and "tar gz"?

Question

There are TONS of articles on the web which claim that installing software in Linux is easy. Many of these articles claim that, in fact, it's far easier to install software onto Linux than onto Windows - often mocking Windows's installation processes. Articles such as this one take the argument to ridiculous extremes: http://www.psychocats.net/ubuntucat/software-installation-in-linux-is-difficult/

But in my experience, when a piece of software isn't in, say, Ubuntu's Software Centre, I find I have absolutely no idea how to install anything.

For all the mocking of those articles, in Windows you really do just download a setup file, double-click it, and just oversee a few variables, such as: 'where do you want the program installed?' and 'Should it open on Windows start up?'. My non-techy parents can do this!

Yet, even though I'm fairly computer-literate, confront me with a "tar gz" and I've no idea what I'm looking at. What do I do with it?

For instance, I'm using Ubuntu, and I went to www.java.com/getjava (I want to install Java). Now, whether or not Java is available in the Ubuntu Software Centre is irrelevant. If I find a piece of software online, I want to understand how to get the thing running! In this instance, I followed the download links and downloaded a Java "Linux RPM" file. If this were Windows, I'd either unzip it and run it. Or I would double-click a setup file.

With Ubuntu, I download this "rpm" file and Firefox asks if I want to open the rpm file using Archive Manager. I've no idea if I want to or not, so I click "OK"! I'm then confronted with a bunch of folders. What do I do with this sort of file? How do I translate this bunch of folders and files into something that I can run - or install and then run?

I don't want to stimulate an argument. I really want to use Linux more often and so I'm hoping to get some good instructions on what I do with RPMs and "tar gz" files. I've dabbled with Linux since Red Hat 5.0 was released and, since then, the many distros have come such a long way. Installing the system, for instance, is now very simple. But I still cannot fathom installing software that isn't in a Software Center. To me, double-clicking 'Setup' and clicking Next, Next, Next seems far simpler.

Appreciate any help given!

Answer 1

Well, .deb, .RPM, .Pup, &c., are all binaries and are set up to install on the Operating System that it is intended for. Windows uses .exe, .msi, &c., which are also binaries and are set up to install the software on the intended Operating System.



What makes Linux more efficient is the software centers. The software there is secure and reletivly easy to install. Just a couple of clicks and it's done, or via terminal apt-get install packagename, yum install packagename, equo install packagename, emerge packagename, &c., where emerge installs via source.



Outside of that, if your system has all of the required dependencies, installing from source is relatively simple. Open the terminal, input ./configure && make && make install, or however the readme file explains the procedure. However when your computer is missing dependencies, then you are required to find all of the dependencies and install manually beforehand (which does become a headache.



In Linux software shares dependencies with other software, e.g., DeVeDe uses Mplayer and the Mplayer dependencies. The author of DeVeDe did not have to reinvent the wheel, just utilize what is already out there that falls under the GLP.



Also installing software from various websites is dangerous as malicious code can be present, and from there you may compromise your system. Whenever you get software from a website be sure to always check the hash (md5 or sha1).



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Now as for Java. You downloaded the RPM file which is for Red Hat based distros. Ubuntu is based off of Debian.



If you want other software, I recommend that you look through the Ubuntu Personal Package Archives before looking for the software online elsewhere. https://launchpad.net/ubuntu/+ppas



Also as you seem to be new to Linux, I recommend that you install Ubuntu-Tweak and Ailurus :



Ubuntu Tweak

https://launchpad.net/~tualatrix/+archive/ppa

Open Terminal and input :



sudo add-apt-repository ppa:tualatrix/ppa && sudo apt-get update && sudo apt-get install ubuntu-tweak



Ailurus

https://launchpad.net/~ailurus/+archive/ppa

Open Terminal and input :



sudo add-apt-repository ppa:ailurus/ppa && sudo apt-get update && sudo apt-get install ailurus





Where "add-apt-repository" adds the personal repository, "apt-get update" updates your package manager, and "apt-get install" pulls the application from the repository and installs it on the system. This will keep your system up-to-date when every time the packages are updated by the developers.



FOR JAVA (Ubuntu stopped providing Java due to licensing or something like that, though you can update it and keep it up-to-date this way):

http://www.webupd8.org/2012/01/install-oracle-java-jdk-7-in-ubuntu-via.html

Open Terminal and input:



sudo add-apt-repository ppa:webupd8team/java && sudo apt-get update && sudo apt-get install oracle-java7-installer





You can simply copy these commands via Ctrl + C and paste them into the terminal with the right click of the mouse and clicking on paste.



I recommend that you look through Getdeb http://www.getdeb.net/updates/ubuntu/10.04/ and Playdeb http://www.playdeb.net/updates/Ubuntu/11.10 , for extra software as well.





I hope this helps.

Answer 2

I generally don't use Firefox, I use Chromium, which doesn't bring up the Archive Manager tool for downloads, all my downloads go directly to the Downloads directory.



Once downloaded, extract the tarball (right click, select "Extract here"); there is usually a README file attached which tells you what to do with the program, typically instructions on where to install it. This can be done via the terminal or by opening your file manager and moving it 'drag and drop' style.



Many Debian-based distributions feature the "GDebi" package installer, which allows you to install downloaded .deb files by clicking on them. I'm not sure if a similar utility exists for .rpm distros.



Linux doesn't allow for programs to be installed a la Windows due to the inherent security risk in allowing auto-executable programs root privileges.



FYI: Java versions 6 and 7 are available in the Software Center.

Answer 3

Generally, Linux also have an option to download and install applications with a single click. Not to point that Software Centre simplifies even this operation. But first, you need to download the correct type of packages for your operating system.

You mentioned that you have downloaded .rpm file and try to install it in Ubuntu. With the same success you could download an .exe installer. That's because Ubuntu uses .deb packages. DEB and RPM are two the most popular package formats in Linux, in parallel with software sources which come in .tar.gz files.

If you need to install Java, first download .deb file for it. I think previous answers contain correct information how to do this.



It worth mentioning that even though the DEB and RPM are only two package formats, they are not inter-operable between distributions which use them. Debian and Ubuntu both use DEB, CentOS and Mandriva both use RPM, but it does not mean that Debian's package will work in Ubuntu and vice versa. It may, or it may not. It is highly recommended to use package created exactly for your distribution, unless you know how to deal with consequences.