There should be a standard desktop place to get new apps.

I've gotten bitten by something similar to Todd's experience. Yesterday I wanted to install Privoxy on ProMEPIS. I downloaded the .deb from [link|http://www.privoxy.org|http://www.privoxy.org] but couldn't figure out what to do with it. I also tried using apt-get from memory, i.e. apt-get install privoxy without success. Yeah, I need to actually find the instructions rather than trying to guess my way through it. ;-) But some of this stuff should be discoverable by the user.

Xandros has an icon on the desktop called Xandros Networks. Inside is a menu item to "Check for New Software" or something similar. KDE and/or Gnome should have an easy to find icon or menu option for finding and installing software on the machine. If it's clear what to do simply by looking at the desktop, then the user will learn to use that and not go browsing for software until they know the system better.

Cheers,
Scott.

I guess (but don't know for sure) it's a ProMEPIS vs Debian issue. :-(

scott@2[~]$ apt-get install privoxy
E: Could not open lock file /var/lib/dpkg/lock - open (13 Permission denied)
E: Unable to lock the administration directory (/var/lib/dpkg/), are you root?
scott@2[~]$ su root
Password:
root@2[scott]# apt-get install privoxy
Reading Package Lists... Done
Building Dependency Tree... Done
W: Couldn't stat source package list [link|ftp://ftp.us.debian.org|ftp://ftp.us.debian.org] testing/main Packages (/var/lib/apt/lists/ftp.us.debian.org_debian_dists_testing_main_binary-i386_Packages) - stat (2 No such file or directory)
W: Couldn't stat source package list [link|ftp://ftp.us.debian.org|ftp://ftp.us.debian.org] testing/contrib Packages (/var/lib/apt/lists/ftp.us.debian.org_debian_dists_testing_contrib_binary-i386_Packages) - stat (2 No such file or directory)
W: Couldn't stat source package list [link|ftp://ftp.us.debian.org|ftp://ftp.us.debian.org] testing/non-free Packages (/var/lib/apt/lists/ftp.us.debian.org_debian_dists_testing_non-free_binary-i386_Packages) - stat (2 No such file or directory)
W: Couldn't stat source package list [link|ftp://ftp.us.debian.org|ftp://ftp.us.debian.org] unstable/main Packages (/var/lib/apt/lists/ftp.us.debian.org_debian_dists_unstable_main_binary-i386_Packages) - stat (2 No such file or directory)
W: Couldn't stat source package list [link|ftp://ftp.us.debian.org|ftp://ftp.us.debian.org] unstable/contrib Packages (/var/lib/apt/lists/ftp.us.debian.org_debian_dists_unstable_contrib_binary-i386_Packages) - stat (2 No such file or directory)
W: Couldn't stat source package list [link|ftp://ftp.us.debian.org|ftp://ftp.us.debian.org] unstable/non-free Packages (/var/lib/apt/lists/ftp.us.debian.org_debian_dists_unstable_non-free_binary-i386_Packages) - stat (2 No such file or directory)
W: Couldn't stat source package list [link|ftp://non-us.debian.org|ftp://non-us.debian.org] testing/non-US/main Packages (/var/lib/apt/lists/non-us.debian.org_debian-non-US_dists_testing_non-US_main_binary-i386_Packages) - stat (2 No such file or directory)
W: Couldn't stat source package list [link|ftp://non-us.debian.org|ftp://non-us.debian.org] testing/non-US/contrib Packages (/var/lib/apt/lists/non-us.debian.org_debian-non-US_dists_testing_non-US_contrib_binary-i386_Packages) - stat (2 No such file or directory)
W: Couldn't stat source package list [link|ftp://non-us.debian.org|ftp://non-us.debian.org] testing/non-US/non-free Packages (/var/lib/apt/lists/non-us.debian.org_debian-non-US_dists_testing_non-US_non-free_binary-i386_Packages) - stat (2 No such file or directory)
W: Couldn't stat source package list [link|ftp://non-us.debian.org|ftp://non-us.debian.org] unstable/non-US/main Packages (/var/lib/apt/lists/non-us.debian.org_debian-non-US_dists_unstable_non-US_main_binary-i386_Packages) - stat (2 No such file or directory)
W: Couldn't stat source package list [link|ftp://non-us.debian.org|ftp://non-us.debian.org] unstable/non-US/contrib Packages (/var/lib/apt/lists/non-us.debian.org_debian-non-US_dists_unstable_non-US_contrib_binary-i386_Packages) - stat (2 No such file or directory)
W: Couldn't stat source package list [link|ftp://non-us.debian.org|ftp://non-us.debian.org] unstable/non-US/non-free Packages (/var/lib/apt/lists/non-us.debian.org_debian-non-US_dists_unstable_non-US_non-free_binary-i386_Packages) - stat (2 No such file or directory)
W: Couldn't stat source package list [link|http://download.videolan.org|http://download.videolan.org] sid/main Packages (/var/lib/apt/lists/download.videolan.org_pub_videolan_debian_dists_sid_main_binary-i386_Packages) - stat (2 No such file or directory)
W: Couldn't stat source package list [link|http://2004.mepis.org|http://2004.mepis.org] unstable/main Packages (/var/lib/apt/lists/2004.mepis.org_mepis_dists_unstable_main_binary-i386_Packages) - stat (2 No such file or directory)
W: Couldn't stat source package list [link|ftp://ftp.nerim.net|ftp://ftp.nerim.net] unstable/main Packages(/var/lib/apt/lists/ftp.nerim.net_debian-marillat_dists_unstable_main_binary-i386_Packages) - stat (2 No such file or directory)
W: Couldn't stat source package list [link|ftp://metalab.unc.edu|ftp://metalab.unc.edu] unstable/main Packages (/var/lib/apt/lists/metalab.unc.edu_pub_linux_devel_lang_java_blackdown.org_debian_dists_unstable_main_binary-i386_Packages) - stat (2 No such file or directory)
W: Couldn't stat source package list [link|ftp://metalab.unc.edu|ftp://metalab.unc.edu] unstable/non-free Packages (/var/lib/apt/lists/metalab.unc.edu_pub_linux_devel_lang_java_blackdown.org_debian_dists_unstable_non-free_binary-i386_Packages) - stat (2 No such file or directory)
W: You may want to run apt-get update to correct these problems
E: Couldn't find package privoxy
root@2[scott]#

I don't want to potentially break things by doing apt-get update yet. I'll do some research first.

Pointers welcome. Thanks.

Cheers,
Scott.

Post #185,415 by Another Scott 11/29/04 3:06:51 PM Reply	There should be a standard desktop place to get new apps. I've gotten bitten by something similar to Todd's experience. Yesterday I wanted to install Privoxy on ProMEPIS. I downloaded the .deb from [link\|http://www.privoxy.org\|http://www.privoxy.org] but couldn't figure out what to do with it. I also tried using apt-get from memory, i.e. apt-get install privoxy without success. Yeah, I need to actually find the instructions rather than trying to guess my way through it. ;-) But some of this stuff should be discoverable by the user. Xandros has an icon on the desktop called Xandros Networks. Inside is a menu item to "Check for New Software" or something similar. KDE and/or Gnome should have an easy to find icon or menu option for finding and installing software on the machine. If it's clear what to do simply by looking at the desktop, then the user will learn to use that and not go browsing for software until they know the system better. Cheers, Scott.
Post #185,416 by admin 11/29/04 3:16:54 PM Reply	Very odd. sanderson:~$ apt-cache search privoxy\nprivoxy - Privacy enhancing HTTP Proxy `apt-get install privoxy` should do the trick. That's how I installed it. Regards, -scott anderson "Welcome to Rivendell, Mr. Anderson..."
Post #185,417 by Another Scott 11/29/04 3:17:45 PM Reply	I'll try again and report back. Thanks.
Post #185,477 by Another Scott 11/29/04 7:32:52 PM Reply	Results of trying apt-get for Privoxy on ProMEPIS. I guess (but don't know for sure) it's a ProMEPIS vs Debian issue. :-( scott@2[~]$ apt-get install privoxy E: Could not open lock file /var/lib/dpkg/lock - open (13 Permission denied) E: Unable to lock the administration directory (/var/lib/dpkg/), are you root? scott@2[~]$ su root Password: root@2[scott]# apt-get install privoxy Reading Package Lists... Done Building Dependency Tree... Done W: Couldn't stat source package list [link\|ftp://ftp.us.debian.org\|ftp://ftp.us.debian.org] testing/main Packages (/var/lib/apt/lists/ftp.us.debian.org_debian_dists_testing_main_binary-i386_Packages) - stat (2 No such file or directory) W: Couldn't stat source package list [link\|ftp://ftp.us.debian.org\|ftp://ftp.us.debian.org] testing/contrib Packages (/var/lib/apt/lists/ftp.us.debian.org_debian_dists_testing_contrib_binary-i386_Packages) - stat (2 No such file or directory) W: Couldn't stat source package list [link\|ftp://ftp.us.debian.org\|ftp://ftp.us.debian.org] testing/non-free Packages (/var/lib/apt/lists/ftp.us.debian.org_debian_dists_testing_non-free_binary-i386_Packages) - stat (2 No such file or directory) W: Couldn't stat source package list [link\|ftp://ftp.us.debian.org\|ftp://ftp.us.debian.org] unstable/main Packages (/var/lib/apt/lists/ftp.us.debian.org_debian_dists_unstable_main_binary-i386_Packages) - stat (2 No such file or directory) W: Couldn't stat source package list [link\|ftp://ftp.us.debian.org\|ftp://ftp.us.debian.org] unstable/contrib Packages (/var/lib/apt/lists/ftp.us.debian.org_debian_dists_unstable_contrib_binary-i386_Packages) - stat (2 No such file or directory) W: Couldn't stat source package list [link\|ftp://ftp.us.debian.org\|ftp://ftp.us.debian.org] unstable/non-free Packages (/var/lib/apt/lists/ftp.us.debian.org_debian_dists_unstable_non-free_binary-i386_Packages) - stat (2 No such file or directory) W: Couldn't stat source package list [link\|ftp://non-us.debian.org\|ftp://non-us.debian.org] testing/non-US/main Packages (/var/lib/apt/lists/non-us.debian.org_debian-non-US_dists_testing_non-US_main_binary-i386_Packages) - stat (2 No such file or directory) W: Couldn't stat source package list [link\|ftp://non-us.debian.org\|ftp://non-us.debian.org] testing/non-US/contrib Packages (/var/lib/apt/lists/non-us.debian.org_debian-non-US_dists_testing_non-US_contrib_binary-i386_Packages) - stat (2 No such file or directory) W: Couldn't stat source package list [link\|ftp://non-us.debian.org\|ftp://non-us.debian.org] testing/non-US/non-free Packages (/var/lib/apt/lists/non-us.debian.org_debian-non-US_dists_testing_non-US_non-free_binary-i386_Packages) - stat (2 No such file or directory) W: Couldn't stat source package list [link\|ftp://non-us.debian.org\|ftp://non-us.debian.org] unstable/non-US/main Packages (/var/lib/apt/lists/non-us.debian.org_debian-non-US_dists_unstable_non-US_main_binary-i386_Packages) - stat (2 No such file or directory) W: Couldn't stat source package list [link\|ftp://non-us.debian.org\|ftp://non-us.debian.org] unstable/non-US/contrib Packages (/var/lib/apt/lists/non-us.debian.org_debian-non-US_dists_unstable_non-US_contrib_binary-i386_Packages) - stat (2 No such file or directory) W: Couldn't stat source package list [link\|ftp://non-us.debian.org\|ftp://non-us.debian.org] unstable/non-US/non-free Packages (/var/lib/apt/lists/non-us.debian.org_debian-non-US_dists_unstable_non-US_non-free_binary-i386_Packages) - stat (2 No such file or directory) W: Couldn't stat source package list [link\|http://download.videolan.org\|http://download.videolan.org] sid/main Packages (/var/lib/apt/lists/download.videolan.org_pub_videolan_debian_dists_sid_main_binary-i386_Packages) - stat (2 No such file or directory) W: Couldn't stat source package list [link\|http://2004.mepis.org\|http://2004.mepis.org] unstable/main Packages (/var/lib/apt/lists/2004.mepis.org_mepis_dists_unstable_main_binary-i386_Packages) - stat (2 No such file or directory) W: Couldn't stat source package list [link\|ftp://ftp.nerim.net\|ftp://ftp.nerim.net] unstable/main Packages(/var/lib/apt/lists/ftp.nerim.net_debian-marillat_dists_unstable_main_binary-i386_Packages) - stat (2 No such file or directory) W: Couldn't stat source package list [link\|ftp://metalab.unc.edu\|ftp://metalab.unc.edu] unstable/main Packages (/var/lib/apt/lists/metalab.unc.edu_pub_linux_devel_lang_java_blackdown.org_debian_dists_unstable_main_binary-i386_Packages) - stat (2 No such file or directory) W: Couldn't stat source package list [link\|ftp://metalab.unc.edu\|ftp://metalab.unc.edu] unstable/non-free Packages (/var/lib/apt/lists/metalab.unc.edu_pub_linux_devel_lang_java_blackdown.org_debian_dists_unstable_non-free_binary-i386_Packages) - stat (2 No such file or directory) W: You may want to run apt-get update to correct these problems E: Couldn't find package privoxy root@2[scott]# I don't want to potentially break things by doing apt-get update yet. I'll do some research first. Pointers welcome. Thanks. Cheers, Scott.
Post #185,504 by admin 11/29/04 9:33:08 PM Reply	apt-get update doesn't do much. It just updates your current package information database. Since you have an old database, either a) privoxy isn't in it or b) the dependencies are all old and non-existent. Until you do 'apt-get update' nothing with apt-get will work, and on a Debian box that's pretty useless. :-) Regards, -scott anderson "Welcome to Rivendell, Mr. Anderson..."
Post #185,511 by folkert 11/29/04 10:58:13 PM Reply	Check out... my website, specifically [link\|http://www.gregfolkert.net/files/sources.list\|My Sources.list] you can use it with Mephis. Xandros was selling things like less and gedit etc... Bullshit... Just keep to testing. Until Sarge turns stable. -- [link\|mailto:greg@gregfolkert.net\|greg], [link\|http://www.iwethey.org/ed_curry\|REMEMBER ED CURRY!] @ *i_wethey* No matter how much Microsoft supporters whine about how Linux and other operating systems have just as many bugs as their operating systems do, the bottom line is that the serious, gut-wrenching problems happen on Windows, not on Linux, not on Mac OS. -- [link\|http://www.eweek.com/article2/0,1759,1622086,00.asp\|source] Here is an example: [link\|http://www.greymagic.com/security/advisories/gm001-ie/\|Executing arbitrary commands without Active Scripting or ActiveX when using Windows]
Post #185,515 by Another Scott 11/29/04 11:14:50 PM Reply	Thanks. I always appreciate your help.

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