Package Manager
 

Ok, it's my first day of trying to figure out Linux, and I now understand why it's been largely used by the geek community.

I've tried to install both xcdroast and 7zip using the console and failed miserably both times.

7zip doesn't have a ./configure and xcdroast just gives me errors that I don't understand

I think I need a package manager? Maybe?

So, where do I get one and how do I install it?

I'm using Slackware and KDE right now.

All distros that use a package manager have (at least) one pre-installed.
It would help if you tell us which distribution you are using. Please keep in mind for future threads to always give the needed information.

You mean like 13.37?

I mean like Slackware (I assume that you are using it in regard to your release number), ubuntu, RHEL or whatever distro you use at that time. There is no "one Linux", there are more than 600 different distros out there, and not all function the same.
Slackware, for example, is rather known for being not very newbie-friendly, because you have a steep learning curve. If you want to begin with something more newbie friendly I would recommend to go for Linux Mint, simplyMepis or PCLinuxOS.

To your question: Slackware 13.37 has two ways of managing packages that are in the repository or available in (somewhat) third-party repositories, like the ones from AlienBob or rworkman. The first one is the standard set of Slackware tools that was also available in older versions, like pkgtool, installpkg and removepkg. The second one is slackpkg, which works more like the package manager of other distributions. Keep in mind that you won't have dependency-resolution with both methods. You can get more info about them in the excellent Slackbook in chapter 17.

For software not available in the standard repo you should also have a look at Slackbuilds.org and the sbopkg program.

Ah, ok. I'll find out which I have for next time. A friend linked me to a Slackware site and I installed it.

I'm not too worried about the steep learning curve, I've got enough brains to get it down fast enough. It's just a matter of grasping the logic of how it all works and some of the basic commands and whatnot. Not saying I'll be pro in a week though.

The is a good attitude when coming to Linux, especially Slackware. I would recommend to read the whole Slackbook and also to have a look at LinuxCommand for the basics of the command line.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Package_manager

In my opinion, it's really one of the most amazing features of Linux that Windows users are completely missing out on.