What is the command i use to install a prog?

I want to install Lopster but i still don't know what to use to install anything and where to find it once it's installed please help me!

what type of file is it... like is it zipped with a tar.gz at the end, or .rpm....
you can man each of them to view the options to unzip the packages, and then after that, usually they will create a new directory with all the new files that have been extracted. from there you can view the README and INSTALL files most programs come with to finish by reaading the installation process.

In order to install a file you have to know the extension of it. if it is an rpm file its very easy to install. just type
rpm -i nameofthefile.rpm
If it is tar.gz you have to unzip and untar it before you can install it. Type:

gunzip nameofthefile.tar.gz

<~this will unzip the file but it'll be a tar file and now you have to untar it so type

tar -xvf nameofthefile.tar

to untar it. and then i would read the README files to see the specific instruction on installing it. You probably have to compile it first with make and then type ./configure but it is different in every program.

:::: i think i am starting to learn some stuff

You can do the above in a single step if you have the GNU version of tar (just about every Linux distro that I know of has) by using this makes tar first filter the file through gzip. If you don't have the GNU version of tar you can use If you don't want to see all the files that are produced leave off the v in the options for tar.

This will (normally) produce a new directory called nameofthefile which you will want to cd into then read the README or INSTALL file, or both!

Jamie...

ok so i know that it is a rpm and i know to use the rpm -i to install it i learn't that already before this but what i want to know is how do i get a shortcut to it or know where it installed to? i can install it and it looks like it installes but i don't know where to find it or how to start it?

what distro are you using?

do you know what?

I think i found a prog thats installed with linux that allows me to add and remove progs while seeing everything i need to and make shortcuts if it doesn't work i'll post another reply.

Thanks anyways

This is a common problem with Linux programs.

Some packages (RPMs and DEBs) include installing an icon on one of your menus (KDE or GNOME) and some packages do not. As a general rule though, packages like RPMs or DEBs will install the executable for the program (the file that runs the program) into your system path. This is usually /usr/bin. After you install the program, if you open a terminal window and type the command name of the file (in your case "lopster") it will probably run. This usually works about 90% of the time.

This of course is provided that the program you installed didn't return any dependency errors during the installation, etc., etc.

As far as making an icon on your desktop to run the program, it varies from window manager to window manager. In GNOME, using gmc or Nautilus for your default window manager, you can right-click the desktop and select "new" from the menu that pops up. Then select "Launcher" from the resulting menu. This will open a dialog box for you to select an icon for the program, the name as it will appear on your desktop and the file that runs the program. The dialog box is pretty self-explanatory if you get that far.

Cheers.