SlackwareThis Forum is for the discussion of Slackware Linux.
Notices
Welcome to LinuxQuestions.org, a friendly and active Linux Community.
You are currently viewing LQ as a guest. By joining our community you will have the ability to post topics, receive our newsletter, use the advanced search, subscribe to threads and access many other special features. Registration is quick, simple and absolutely free. Join our community today!
Note that registered members see fewer ads, and ContentLink is completely disabled once you log in.
If you have any problems with the registration process or your account login, please contact us. If you need to reset your password, click here.
Having a problem logging in? Please visit this page to clear all LQ-related cookies.
Get a virtual cloud desktop with the Linux distro that you want in less than five minutes with Shells! With over 10 pre-installed distros to choose from, the worry-free installation life is here! Whether you are a digital nomad or just looking for flexibility, Shells can put your Linux machine on the device that you want to use.
Exclusive for LQ members, get up to 45% off per month. Click here for more info.
I have finally manage to install slackware on my uefi system and installed the nvidia drivers and all is working just fine.
Is there anything else I should fix before starting the hunt for all the programs that I need?
Any special tweaks that is recommended to do?
I have not used slack since 8.1 and i would like some help about the package manager that I understand is quite new to the system, can it be used like Debian Pacman to install things or how does it work?
I remember in the old days I used a program called check or something like that, that program was use to type checkinstall instead of just install when you installed thing so you could remove them later if you want. Almost like an Uninstaller.
Is that needed today?
As you can see its been a long time since I used any Linux dist so please help me out here
I just have to write installpkg and then the file name of the tar file and it will be installed.
So I no longer need to compile the programs like I used to?
Don't know if I remember the commands but I think it was something like this.
Configure
Make
Make install
Maby both ways still work but the "old" way will not end up in the fancy pkgtool?
By typing installpkg [packagename].tgz you can install packages on your system.
you can use installpkg with Slackware's packages, that are just tar archives (xz or gz compressed) that contain stuff built using a SlackBuild script (you will find information about what is a SlackBuild script on docs.slackware.com). Using a SlackBuild script to create a package to install is the recommended way for stuff not included in a Slackware full installation or not already packaged, so you can keep track of the files on your system (something essential that you cannot do if you install thingies with "configure ; make ; make install").
a tar archive containing the sources of an application/library cannot be installed directly using installpkg, as it operates, like it's written there, on packages.
Thank you a lot for explaining that to me, the understanding of the English language can confuse me a bit when it gets to technical.
One thing I have not found on the slackware wiki is how to build my own package. I guess it's quite rare to build your own package from the source code but if some one have a link that explains it or have the time to tell me I would be most grateful.
If the slackware package for the software you want does not exist, you should make one, using a slackbuild script.
The best collection of slackbuild scripts out there is here: http://slackbuilds.org/
If you can't find what you want there, I suggest you make your own slackbuild
:edit
ah, too slow. ponce and Richard Cranium already said this
Last edited by Slax-Dude; 07-19-2014 at 10:57 AM.
Reason: too slow posting
Let's try to make this really, really simple. If you're a Slackware beginner, please use these Beginners' Rules.
(Rule 0) Always start with a full installation of Slackware; it is much easier than installing more packages later.
(Rule 1) A Slackware package is a tarball, but most tarballs are not Slackware packages. A Slackware package is a *special* kind of tarball. Slackware packages always have names that end with .tgz or .txz.
(Rule 2) A source tarball is not a Slackware package. Most source tarballs have names that end with .tar.gz or .tar.bz2 or .tar.xz. Some source tarballs have names that end with .tgz, but they are still not Slackware packages.
(Rule 3) Only Slackware packages will work with installpkg / upgradepkg / removepkg.
(Rule 4) Slackware packages come from Slackware mirrors, or from trusted package sites like Alien Bob, slacky.eu, and Slackware community sites that people here on LinuxQuestions can recommend. Do not trust Slackware packages from other sites; if in doubt, ask here on LinuxQuestions.
(Rule 5) You can make your own Slackware packages from source tarballs, using SlackBuilds.org and sbopkg.
(Rule 6) Always install from Slackware packages. Never install stuff any other way, unless you know how to get rid of it.
I know that experienced users will be able to think of exceptions and additions to these rules, but this is an attempt to make it as simple as possible.
Last edited by 55020; 07-19-2014 at 05:18 PM.
Reason: Good advice from mattallmill :D
Let's try to make this really, really simple. If you're a Slackware beginner, please use these Beginners' Rules.
(Rule 1) A Slackware package is a tarball, but most tarballs are not Slackware packages. A Slackware package is a *special* kind of tarball. Slackware packages always have names that end with .tgz or .txz.
(Rule 2) A source tarball is not a Slackware package. Most source tarballs have names that end with .tar.gz or .tar.bz2 or .tar.xz. Some source tarballs have names that end with .tgz, but they are still not Slackware packages.
(Rule 3) Only Slackware packages will work with installpkg / upgradepkg / removepkg.
(Rule 4) Slackware packages come from Slackware mirrors, or from Alien Bob, or from slacky.eu, or other Slackware community sites that people here at LQ can recommend. If you get something from somewhere else, it almost certainly is not a Slackware package.
(Rule 5) You can make your own Slackware packages from source tarballs, using SlackBuilds.org and sbopkg.
(Rule 6) Always install from Slackware packages. Never install stuff any other way, unless you know how to get rid of it.
I know that experienced users will be able to think of exceptions and additions to these rules, but this is an attempt to make it as simple as possible.
You ought to revise (Rule 4) to say something along the lines of "Always use trusted sources, such as Alien BOB, or community sites that are recommended by an LQ member."
I would not say that if they got it anywhere else, that it is not a Slackware package; it very well may be a valid package, but for simplicity's sake, people new to Slackware would be wise to stick to recommended sites.
LinuxQuestions.org is looking for people interested in writing
Editorials, Articles, Reviews, and more. If you'd like to contribute
content, let us know.