Just started, help installing RPM's
 

I just started on Red Hat 9.0 two days ago and i love it. but i am having a little trouble with it. i downloaded some games from the games.linux website and obviously they come in .rpm files. i need to know how to install them and where it installs it to. i have no knowledge of the commands and need help. i'm moving along this pretty slow, i mean it took me a day and night trying to figure out how to install the new nvidia drivers.

Hi,

Run a terminal

go into the file where your rpm is typing :
cd /..../.... (path of the file)

then use:

rpm -i "name of file"

You'll find more info about commands options typing:

man rpm
rpm --help

You'll find some useful doc to http://www.tldp.org/guides.html (download the"
introduction to linux")

You should use

rpm -ivh nameof.rpm

This way you have a visual of the thing being installed. Too many newbies will just issue an rpm -i nameof.rpm and then complain that nothing happened...when the rpm did install.

For rpm I would use

rpm -Uvh filename

The v and h options make it where you can see something is happening.

Good luck.

http://www.desktop-linux.net/packages.htm#rpms
rpm -ivh *packagename.rpm
typing either man rpm or info rpm into a console will give you loads of information about rpm's.

Can't you double click on them,like you use to do with window .exe file .That the easiest way to install rpm,I mean rpm are easiest way to install in linux specially if you are using Red Hat.Other way around is that open a shell and and 'cd ' to the directry where you save the downloaded file and in the directery type rpm -ivf <filename>.rpm.The command rpm is for to tell the computer that you are handling rpm file - mean (I don't know why ppl put - in front of optium)i for installation v for showing thing like (installing package ;doing this ,doing that) and f for force installation.After the installation type rpm -q <filename> just file name (use tab key after typing frist a few words) witout .rpm to check the file is install or not .If you wan to erase it (uninstall) just type rpm -e <filename> and it will uninstall automactically .Type rpm --help for other command and optium ,you 'll see whole bunch of it .And if you don't see you installed program ,run Run command from K menu or just type the frist a few initial of the program name on the shell and click tab key for auto complete and if it in /usr/bin or /bin ,it will launch it self from that shell on window.

hope that help.

http://www.tldp.org/HOWTO/RPM-HOWTO/index.html

Read.

Also try 'man rpm' from the console, without the quotes ofcourse.

That's one thing u will have to do to learn linux. read a lot.

it gives me warning: user floh does not exist - using root and warning: group floh does not exist - using root, and it writes both of these warning twice. what is wrong. it does this when i do rpm -i command.

You need to be root(superuser).
type su and your password before installing an rpm.

su doesn't work but root i know works.

su is a command that you use in a user shell to become root. You type

su -

and it will prompt you for the root password.

well thanx guys for helping me out, i finally got it working like two days ago. sorry i didn't thank earlier, was at a 2 day lan w/ no internet.