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Difficult to install/upgrade software


Guest Ekpyrotic
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Guest Ekpyrotic

This morning I woke up and decided to try and update GAIM. This neccesitated downloading gtkspell, which meant I had to update gtk, which meant I had to update glib, atk and pango. Each of these updates involved downloading a .tar.gz and compiling the software myself. Since I am a total Linux newbie, I ran into tons of problems (but probably learned a lot too) and never got around to updating GAIM. My question then is: Does it really have to be so difficult to install/update a piece of software? I understand that compiling it yourself gives you more control and lets you monkey with the source, but right now that is not one of my worries.

 

Apparently the solution to my woes might be these wonderful little things called rpms. However, whenever I try to install one, I am informed that it has a bad signature. Help anybody?

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Hi -

What your missing is the key from the providor of the RPM's

 

If you go to http://plf.zarb.org/

Scroll down to section 3... this shows you how to add their key ...

You can do the same type of thing for texstar's rpms.

 

Both of these are under the links/useful links section ...

Check em out ...

I'd also thoughoughly recommend the easyurmpi (follow link from plf site)

This adds them dirdctly into your rpm database so in future you can install an app just by typing urpmi <appname> or use RPMDRAKE ...

 

Good luck...

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First thing to do is set up your urpmi sources. Urpmi automatically downloads and installs all dependencies for you. The urpmi sources are merely ftp repositories where distro specifc rpms are stored. Follow the directions at this link re setting up sources:

 

http://plf.zarb.org/~nanardon/

 

You don't need to set up main(your cd install disks) or update(official mandrake update site), but you should definitely set up a contrib, plf and texstar source. Don't worry about the bad signatures message. You'll get that for everything except the official mandrake sites. The sources in the above link are well known to all experienced mandrake users and can be trusted. Plf and texstar have rpms that mandrake can't include for legal reasons and mandrake seems to kind of wink at the whole thing if you ask me. They also have rpms that mandrake simply hasn't gotten around to making(e.g. kde 3.1.2 upgrade).

Once you get your sources set up, installation is easily done from the console as root like so:

 

# urpmi <package name>

 

For more info on urpmi try searching this forum. There are many threads on its use.

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In case your wondering, to import the gpg keys for plf and texstar (posted here for simplicity):

 

As root in a console window:

 

lynx -source http://plf.zarb.org/plf.asc | gpg --import && lynx -source http://ftp.ibiblio.org/pub/Linux/distribut...key/pubring.gpg | gpg --import

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From http://plf.zarb.org/

 

Remember you have to import them into your root's keyring, as RPM installation is done under this identity.

 

OK great, is this a directory I have to create before running:

 

lynx -source http://plf.zarb.org/plf.asc | gpg --import

 

Or is it already created somewhere in the filesystem ready to be populated with gpg keys? :?

 

Thanks, I'm kind of confused on this part.

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Actually i ignore those signature errors. I haven't had a problem yet! And i install a lot of software from a lot of different places. Probably a bad idea. But, that's the way i am. I'm too lazy to ad the gpg key.

 

See this to help avoid dep_hell and help on rpms: http://mandrakeusers.org/viewtopic.php?p=46559#46559

 

James

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I have never installed the keys, and have not encountered any problems. I think your software sources are critical to avoiding those types of infractions. I have mybe three or four places I go to get rpm's, and those are my trusted sights.

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