installing packages from other distros

khaleel5000 · 02-09-2006, 12:03 AM

Hello , I am a newbie
I have a lot of distros like ARCH 0.7.0 , SuSE 9.2 , UBUNTU 5.04 , gnoppix LIVE CD , pc linux os,
I M CURRENTLY USING SUSE 9.2 i wanted 2 ask that can i install the packages present in other distros in my SUSE LINUX???
(actually i planned 2 install ARCH LINUX and i didnot have many programmes for it so i thought i may install programmes present in suse DVD in ARCH )
IF YES then please provide me with the COMMAND LINE commands that i would need .

acruxksa · 02-09-2006, 12:13 AM

I would have to say no. You will be better off either finding an application package specifically built for your distro or downloading the source code and compiling it your self.

Dtsazza · 02-09-2006, 07:59 AM

You might want to take a look at alien - AFAIK it's mainly aimed at Debian users, but it can convert between many different package formats. Still, I wouldn't trust it to install important things, since its levels of success vary (though I'm personally very impressed). You're better off learning to compile from source for the odd apps here and there, and relying on native packages for the big ones - or just choosing a distro that packages the apps you want!