well...i have installed mandriva updates but i can't figue witch updates to instal because i don't know what they do as the descripitions don't help that much....
i want the ones that can...to help me find out which programes and plugins are good
for example...i want a torrent agent,pascal,photoshop,hmmm....and the list is opened for suggestions..
thanks,cheers!!!

Mandriva releases updates for security reasons, not just to add features or anything like that. They're released in order to fix software vulnerabilities. I strongly urge you to accept all updates released by Mandriva.

I think maciuka asks how to install additional programms. Photoshop is called Gimp (already installed), for Pascal you need to look up on Google how the GPL'd compiler is called. As torrent client you can use ktorrent. Actually, the exact selection depends on your needs. You will have to find out yourself.

That said, mrballcb is right, when it comes to updating (not adding new applications) just install all the proposed updates.

Additionally, you can use the search function in the Software Manager. It has three search criteria, names, descriptions, and file names. To find a selection of torrent packages, enter torrent in the search field, and choose descriptions in the drop down to the left, then press the search button. I get the bittorrent package here for that search.

hansalfredche is correct. The Linux equivalent for Photoshop is the GIMP package. Gimp stands for GNU Image Manipulation Program. There are several GIMP packages in addition to the main one. They each add some additional ability to GIMP that may not be needed by all users.

When I enter 'pascal' in the search dialog, I get the fpc (free pascal compiler) and the p2c (pascal to c language converter) packages as well as another language (lua) that is supposed to be similar to pascal.

HTH,

Go here and add some more sources from which to add programs:

http://club.mandriva.com/xwiki/bin/v.../MirrorFinder2

You certainly want to add "contrib," and I recommend the servers in France. (be sure to select country) The are, according the Mandriva forum manager, the most consistently up to date.

There's also a bunch of kind folks who provide cutting edge packages for Mandriva here:

http://www.mde.djura.org/

Add sources as you do at the "mirror finder." But be careful, a few of the packages broke things horribly, primarily KDE stuff.

After you've added media, when browsing available apps at mcc--->add programs, you can tell the "enhanced" apps by the "mde" in the name. As I say, be careful what you choose to install from that source. I would NOT update any KDE stuff, if that's what you use.

I got some mde KDE stuff to work on this here machine, then proceeded to break all my other ones, and those of a few friends I've moved out of windoze into Mandriva.

Hope this helps,

cat