Linux Update, Part Deux

[sinanju]

Alas, I'm reaching the stage at which--last time I tried playing with Linux--I eventually drifted back to Windows. At this point I've installed the system (check), added Mozilla (check), set my preferences (check), toyed with the software that comes bundled with my distro (Suse 9.0 Personal--check), and spent a few days netsurfing as usual (check).

Now I'm trying to figure out how to install a) Kpoker, b) UFO Alien Defense, and c) Castle Wolfenstein: Enemy Territory. I downloaded a .tar.gz version of Kpoker*. I posted to *.linux.setup and was told that it was source code and that I should look for an .rpm version. I found one and downloaded it. I tried to install it with YAST, but apparently I'm missing a couple of other files (libidn.so.11 and libkwalletclient.so.1) so I can't install it.

Okay, so now what? How do I find them? What are they? How do I install them? If I try to install them, how badly can I munge my system?

None of the documentation on my system or online that I've been able to find is much use. It's either too general (What is Linux? The Linux directory system and so forth, or so technical that it might as well be written in Serbo-Croatian for all it means to me. What I want is a tutorial that will walk me through what I need to do and why to find, check and install software, preferably one that is specific to the distro I'm using. I wonder if there's a copy of Linux for Dummies that would do.

Last time I reached this point, I started booting Linux less and less often, eventually going back to Windows entirely. This time I'm more motivated, but it's frustrating.

*Mostly just as practice for finding programs on the net and installing them. Until I can get that working, trying to install or run RTCW or UFO is a waste of time.

Comments

[aiglet.livejournal.com]

Ooooh, I know that feeling. I *hate* that.

That's about when I gave up on using my Solaris box at my last job -- I was trying to install emacs, and every time I'd get about one step further into the installation process and learn that I needed to install something else first. The kicker? Turns out you *can't* install emacs on that version of Solaris.

::sigh:: And people wonder why *nix-based OSes aren't more popular?

installing software

[(Anonymous)]

Admittedly, this is one of the weak points of Linux. I've basically given up on using rpms. Now, I download the source code and compile. Normally, it's a 3-step process. Download, untar, compile. The compile step is usually
1. ./configure
2. make
3. make install

Normally, if it doesn't get past the ./configure step, then something's missing. I either wipe the whole thing off my drive, or if I'm really interested, start searching for what's needed. It may take days.

I am starting to vent my frustration by sending an email to the hapless idiots who put out unfinished software now.

But most times, the stuff works. And I get something I never had before. The feeling that my machine is mine. My system. Working the way I want it to. It's light, it's zippy, it's robust. It stays up for days at a time. It doesn't crash. If it ever slows down, there's a reason, not a mystery.

But yeah, it can be a right royal pain to install software. That's part of the hidden cost. Still, I prefer it to Windows. I've stopped using Windows at home and at work. My life is easier now.

Re: installing software

[sinanju.livejournal.com]

And here I thought rpms would be my ticket to painless software installation. And--to a degree--they have been. I've not been quite ready to try compiling source code, though I'll get to that eventually.