Ubuntu updates
 

So ubuntu gets updated every 6 months or something right? I've just got it, do you reckon the latest verison of firefox, thunderbird and gaim will come with the next updates, or do I have to go and get them manually?

With Debian, you can enter
as root. It will automatically check for any updates and you can choose to install them.
It should be the same or very similar for Ubuntu.
Or, open Synaptic (as root) and do it from there. Then you can choose to install any uptades you want.

yea done that, but firefox and gaim still remain not the latest version.
do I have to add their source to a list somewhere?
I wouldn't have thought so, seeing as they came with ubuntu...?

http://www.ubuntuguide.org

You can read here how to add some repositories with newer versions of programs. Ubuntu doesn't upgrade programs until the new release. The only updates you will be getting are security fixes. If you really want a newer version of a program during the six-months release you have a choice to install the package from the socalled backports repositories (or request the package being put there) or install it yourself manually (from source).

Open Synaptic and make sure you have all of the repositories checked. Or do sudo gedit and open /etc/sources.list and uncomment the repositories that # .

You list should look something like:

Ubuntu sources.list covers pretty much anything, giving you access to over 16000 packages.

#Main Archive
deb http://us.archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu hoary main restricted
deb-src http://us.archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu hoary main restricted

##major bug fix updates
deb http://us.archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu hoary-updates main restricted
deb-src http://us.archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu hoary-updates main restricted

deb http://us.archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu hoary universe
deb-src http://us.archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu hoary universe

#Security Updates Main
deb http://security.ubuntu.com/ubuntu hoary-security main restricted
deb-src http://security.ubuntu.com/ubuntu hoary-security main restricted

#Security Updates Universe
deb http://security.ubuntu.com/ubuntu hoary-security universe
deb-src http://security.ubuntu.com/ubuntu hoary-security universe

deb http://archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu hoary multiverse
deb-src http://archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu hoary multiverse

## Backports
#deb http://ubuntu-backports.mirrormax.net/ hoary-backports main universe multiverse restricted
#deb http://ubuntu-backports.mirrormax.net/ hoary-extras main universe multiverse restricted

## Backports Staging (Most updated apps including Firefox 1.06 are here)
deb http://ubuntu-backports.mirrormax.net/ hoary-backports-staging main universe multiverse restricted
deb http://ubuntu-backports.mirrormax.net/ hoary-extras-staging main universe multiverse restricted

thanks ppl

Also remember that gaim tends to get updated a little faster then most other programs, so you have to wait for the ubuntu programers to roll the debs for the distro, and this can take some time as compared to the source programers releases

wouldnt the universal setting fix the upgrade on the mozilla and Gaim?

Most of the newer version of things like Firefox are in the last repo in my list above. I think Gaim is still 1.4. OpenSUSE has 1.5, in Debian I still have 1.3.1 unstable/Sid has 1.5.1.

Breazy has 1.5 for gaim, or ya can use the autopackages found on the website (I forget the url but google will show you), or if you are curious, you can learn how to make your own deb for gaim, it's not that hard and has a minimal of dependancies.

Yeah Autopackage is pretty cool, too bad they don't have more packages.

klik - point-and-klik software works with Breezy not sure if it will work with Hoary.

You know I"ve allways wonderd why a distro didn't start something like that before, I mean yes, for alot of programs sharing libs is a very good idea, but for the general end user it's a real pain in the but to have to satisfy dependancies, if only synaptic was a little easier for the average end user, (not that it isn't but when you give somebody to many choices they tend to freak out)