[Discuss] Installing software not in repositories -- Kubuntu 7.04

[Murray Strome]

pw wrote:
> Murray Strome wrote:
>> I know that someone on the list posted a message some time ago 
>> (probably months) telling me how to best install software that is not 
>> in the repositories.
>>
>> For example, I want to install Acroread (preferably latest version), 
>> but when I search for it on the repositories, it does not seem to be 
>> there.  I am sure I could go to the Adobe site, download and install 
>> it that way, but I am not sure if that is the best approach with 
>> Kubuntu or not.
>>
>> Similarly, the version of GIMP in the repositories is 2.x. I like a 
>> lot of the features which have been added to 2.3 but I think that if 
>> I download and install it following the GIMP Install instructions, it 
>> will not show up in the installed data base (synaptic or adept).
>>
>> Does anyone have any advice before I go ahead?
>>
>> Murray
>
>
> If there are no RPMs available then compiling from
> source is the best way.
>
> In either case, RPMs or source code, you need to be
> aware of all the dependencies. After that there
> are no guarantees either.
>
> ie: I just collected all the dempendencies for anjuta
> as RPMs for my distro. Finally got it all installed
> and the software still didn't work properly, even though all
> the RPMs were made specifically for my distro.
>
> Personally, I find source to be the most reliable
> method of installing anything. The builds tend to
> provide more information if there is an error or
> something is missing. Then again, I program so
> perhaps my preference is biased toward the domain
> of my skill set.
>
> Gnome PDF viewer a.k.a. xpdf is usually pretty up to date.
> That should have come with your distro.
>
> Peter
>
I guess this would lead to the next question (which I know has been 
answered at some time in the past):  How do you install RPM packages on 
Debian based systems like (K)(Ubuntu)? 

I have built things from source, but it is not my preferred method.  I 
was once a pretty good programmer, but that was a LONG time in my past! 

My experience with installations in Mandriva with doing stuff from 
either source or from shell installers (like Acroread) from the supplier 
is that the standard software maintenance utilities don't know about 
those things.  For example, if I install Firefox 1.5 from a Mandriva 
site (when that was the latest available there), then delete it using 
the software package management tools, then install Firefox 2.X from 
Mozilla, the package manager doesn't know anything about it.

Maybe things are different with (K)Ubuntu, but I thought I would wait 
for a better approach before doing that (i.e. installing from the 
authors' websites using their installers, directions).

I prefer Adobe's Acroread to PDF Viewer.

Murray