While a simple piece of software may consist of only a single executable file, most of the software applications available and running on your system are more complex. A typical application or utility will consist of several executable files, configuration files, documentation notes and guides and possibly even libraries too. All these files and information about where to place them in the filesystem are put together in what is referred to as a package. So when we talk about the installation or upgrading of applications, we are referring to the installation and maintenance of these packages.
There are many packaging formats available in Linux, and some are easier to use than others. In this Chapter we shall cover tarballs, the RPM packaging format (RPM) and the Debian packaging format (DEB).
Table of Content
1. Tarballs2. Keeping Up-To-Date
3. Installing New Packages
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This tutorial is based on the "User Guide to Using the Linux Desktop", originally published by United Nations Development Programmes, Asia-Pacific Development Information Programme (UNDP-APDIP). The guide is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/).
This material may be reproduced, republished and incorporated into further works provided acknowledgment is given to UNDP-APDIP.
Please note that the screen shots in this tutorial are of Fedora Linux (an open source Linux sponsored by Red Hat). Your screen may look somewhat different.
