I downloaded the Eclipse IDE from http://www.eclipse.org/downloads/. I have attempted to install it using apt-get install eclipse with no success. My system is AMD64 running Debian 6.0.4. I also tried using the Software Center, but it prompts for the CD. What are the steps to extract and install packages downloaded from the Internet?

Is it a tar.gz or a .deb file?

I clicked on the link you posted and went to the website to see the Eclipse IDE downloads-
All of those are for Windows 32 bit or Windows 64 bit I wouldn't install a Windows download on your Debian operating system if I were you.

Here's the webpage for Eclipse from the Debian Package Search Results:
http://packages.debian.org/search?keywords=eclipse

No real help from the gurus. This is not surprising, and it is also indicative of why Linux is irrelevant as a desktop OS. Functions such as downloading an application from an Internet site and then installing it quickly is crucial to an average user like me. It is baffling why no one in the Linux development community figured this out. Oh well, Eclipse on an iMac; installed and ready to use for learning Java. It took about 15 minutes.

So quick to blame Linux and the Linux community. Sometimes user have to take responsibility. Also putting more information into your question would have been very helpful, if you really wanted help. It was already asked what kind of package it was: .deb, .bin, .sh, was it compressed (ex. tar.gz,) or was it source. Maybe learning what these packages are, how they install would be of great help for you. However if it is too much to do, though it is very simple, then maybe Linux isn't right for you.

If you really want help be more specific with your questions.

The downloads page defaults the O/S to what it detects you are running at the time. There is a dropdown to select the O/S if you want it for other than what you are running.

To the OP: The file is a tar.gz. Did you extract the file and review the contents? Linux is actually quite revolutionary in that it provides a lot of readme's and directions.

Also, for your software sources, you need to remove the cd from the sources list and you will not be prompted for it.

Well I just downloaded it. The download took a couple of minutes. I right clicked it and extracted the .tar.gz file, (extract here.) I then went into that folder and left clicked the eclipse executable and ran it. It started up, created a workspace folder and works fine. There is no install involved with this at all. It is a stand alone program already to go after it is unzipped.

So you made an error. No big deal. Be more patient and more descriptive in the future.

And there you have it.

Mr. Rodebian,

Thanks for the help. It seems as though I insulted the Linux community. Allow me to respond.

Quoting you: "However if it is too much to do, though it is very simple, then maybe Linux isn't right for you." That is exactly my problem with the Linux community. It should not be difficult. It is not very simple for a beginner. That's why when my Internet search results included this question forum, I posted the question.

What additional information were you looking for? I included the OS version, hardware information, and the download site. I failed to include the download file: eclipse-SDK-4.2.1-linux-gtk-x86_64.tar.gz, and I apologize for that.

Finally, in an effort to stir the pot a little more, Linux is irrelevant as a desktop OS, and not because I think that is true. It is irrelevant in large part because those guys in Redmond never built a better mouse trap, they just built one that is easy to set. If the Linux community emulated that, they may have challenged Microsoft while they had a chance. Now the chance may be gone with the emergence of Apple's iPads and Google's Chrome OS. How relevant is any desktop OS to everyday computing? How many businesses equip their employees with desktops or notebooks running Linux? What do you think the future of Linux is as a desktop OS in business?

Good luck to all, and thanks again. I will not post anymore questions to this forum, as I continue my journey with Linux. And a very special thank you to all of you for sending me the very arrogant, but popular, RTFM.

Good night. (East coast time)

Specific questions were asked of you, but you did not reply. How can you expect to be helped if you don't respond to those trying to help you?

The basis of your argument falls on its face for a number of reasons: the most glaring being the false premise.


You were not told to RTFM. You got the exact opposite. The first reply asekd you specific questions, if you had have bothered to reply you most likely would have been spoon fed the answer.

Good luck: with your attitude and ignorance you'll need it.

Evo2.

After re-reading through this post every member gave sufficient wise counsel and help.
The problem that I see is much of what Evo mentioned.

Ignorance and arrogance is the ememy here.

We can give folks the help and wise counsel but we can't make them think.

Linux is not at fault here.

To all,

Okay, I am not the sharpest tool in the shed, and I am ignorant. But at least I am trying to rectify that. I reached out to who I thought were experts. As to the good advice, yes it is good to one who knows. Not so easy to someone learning.

Interesting that none of you responded to my questions. Do any of you think Linux is a viable alternative to Windows, Mac OS, and even Chrome? If so why do you think that? Be specific. My position is that user experience is the single most important element in any product. I do not know how to tune a Porsche engine, but I do not need to know that to drive one. Who among you can answer the question: Is Linux relevant as a desktop OS? Maybe the more important questions are who cares if it is relevant? Is it really that important?

As to the RTFM, my only excuse is that it was late last night, especially for an old guy like me, and I missed typing the word not(I am being far more careful today). It should have read: And a very special thank you to all of you for not sending me the very arrogant, but popular, RTFM. I apologize for the error.

One last point; as you all have read my posts, I confess that it has been fun ruffling some feathers. No harm intended.

Good luck to all and as Warren said: "Enjoy every sandwich."

Have a great day and thanks again.

Why are you misdirecting your mental energy into everything except your actual task of installing Eclipse? A screwdriver is only "relevant" if you have screws to turn; if you don't have screws than the screwdriver may seem "irrelevant" to you (but that doesn't change the fact a screwdriver is good for turning screws).

In the time it took you to rant about how unhelpful we are, you could have easily installed Eclipse using the helpful instructions Rodebian posted yesterday in post #7.

When asking a quesiton.

* Be patient. This is a volunteer based forum, people don't live here 24/7.
* Learn, learn, learn. Too many Companies would rather that we were all idiots. That way we rely only on them, pay them more and more and stop thinking for ourselves.
* Installing is easy. For exmaple you have .deb, (think of it as a debian or debian based distro specific .exe,) .sh or .bin (think of them as general linux .exe, more or less) Installing from a software center or synaptic, or stand alone programs such as the Eclipse one I downloaded, unzipped and ran without having to install anything. (((installing from source is NOT for newbies. Installing from the command line with apt-get, aptitude, dpkg is easy but not for people who are not familiar with it, not for newbies. So if ever mentioned let the person know that, if, you are not familiar with the command line and don't want to get into that right now. Or if they can keep it as simple as possible and walk you through it all. Also researching this would be a great help if ever needed.)))
* Research the questions you are going to ask. You are more likely to find the answer directly or indirectly for your problem or that the topic you are interested in has already been discussed.
* Be as detailed as you can be when asking a question.
* Be prepared to add more information when asked (MS Windows tech help asks for more information as well, this is not Linux specific.)
* As I mentioned already be patient and wait for a response. People here have lives and don't live at the forum. The help offered is because people want to help, not because anyone has to or are gets paid to.

So when I say that Linux is not for everyone. What I mean is that it's not for those who are not willing to learn, work with others and be patient. Level of intelligence has nothing to do with this. Level of undestanding has nothing to do with this. Linux is very easy to use but it is not MS Windows. Both do the same thing but just a little differently.

I think is understandable that when you are learning you need to allow some slowdown time to complete all the tasks. It doesn't matter what OS you are using if you are going from Windows to Mac it will be the same thing.

Microsoft just released Windows 8 and I bet you lot of people will start complaining about the UI changes and all the unfamiliar things.

We are no trying to sell anything here so if you want to stick around will be good if you dont want to try Linux anymore is fine too. It is really all up to you.

So I would advice you to allow yourself to make some mistakes while learning, we all have been there.
You will get great advice here on the forums but you will also get some poor ones there is nothing official, and there is no reason to start flames on to what OS is better or what is more relevant we all use computers for different reason and with different goals in mind.

Good luck to you and welcome