[NMLUG] packages for Debian (Isn't: Firefox Download Folder)

[leira at MIT.EDU (Linda L. Julien)]

Dan Parrish wrote:
> It sounds like you went to mozilla.org and downloaded firefox, and 
> there's nothing wrong with that, but you might want to check out your
>  distro's package manager.  I'm actually not familiar with debian, 
> but I'm positive someone on here can advise you how to get Firefox 
> installed using the "debian way".  ;-)

Regarding "the Debian way":

      apt-get install mozilla-firefox

I figured out the package name by typing

      apt-cache search firefox

and reading the short descriptions.

I made sure I had the right one by typing

      apt-cache show mozilla-firefox

and reading the long description.  I see from this that the package
contains version 1.0.4-2.

If I still weren't sure, and wanted to see what if it would try to do
without having it actually do anything, I'd type

      apt-get -s install mozilla-firefox

That's "-s" like "simulate."

I'd have to agree with Dan about using the package manager for your
system if you can.  I always use apt to install things on my Debian box
if that's a reasonable option.  Sometimes it's not, because there isn't
a package for what I want, or sometimes the one in the
package is entirely too old for my needs.  But if I can, apt is
definitely the way to go.

Learn about apt.  Read the man page and commit the parts you like to
memory.   apt is, IMO, one of the finest things about Debian.  Apt will
let you install and uninstall things, including their dependencies, with
no hassle.  It will let you update the packages you have, or even
upgrade your entire system.  It will let you mix and match between
stable, testing, and unstable (maybe not for the faint of heart, but I
install testing packages with some regularity, with no ill
effect... mixing in unstable may be another matter, depending, but I've
been known to do it).  YMMV, Caveat Downloader.

While you're learning about apt, also learn about "dpkg", in case you
find a Debian package somewhere else, and you need to install,
uninstall, or reconfigure it.

If you're not overwhelmed yet, learn about "alien" as well, in case the
only package you can find is a Redhat one (i.e. an RPM), and you want to
install it anyway.

Good luck,
Linda (who uses Galeon on Debian, not Firefox)

P.S.  Hi folks.  I live in Boston now, but will be moving to Santa Fe
very soon.  I'm writing this email when I should be packing boxes.