OK guys i got fed up with mandrake 10 and went back to 9.1...i'll just wait till it gets better,
i downloaded winamp for linux. its packaged in a tar ball and i did not see a readme anywhere inside. can anyone help me out?

I can't help you with that, but why not just use xmms?

Yeah... truely. THere is no reason to actually use winamp on linux. XMMS is compatible with themes (2 only, not freeform), and works much better. There is also rhythmbox which is a straight mp3 player without the frills of xmms.

I assume you mean xmms? If you use gnome, start nautilus --> you can easily extract the tarball file with that. (just right click the file) Or if you use KDE then just use Konquerer.

No... there was for a short while an alpha winamp for windows i belive. Or atleast thats what you see on the internet. Perhaps its just spyware...

well i was Referring to the alpha winamp ver for linux... i found it on the net yesterday while looking for linux software and i got the tar ball but no readme on how to install it

I wouldnt try ti. First, its alpha, second, its alpha, third, it didnt come with a read me. If a program doesnt come with a readme, chances are, its not worth trying, as the author didnt bother even supporting his/her own software.

There are better, free solutions out there.

that makes sense...iight i'll stick to whats already installed

Chances are its a binary, which may or may not be compiled for your system. If you really want to try it, look inside the tarball, and there should be a "winamp" file, which if you go should say executable. then either go chmod +x winamp, and go ./winamp. If that doesnt work (i doubt it would) then just stick with whats good and made for linux.

Well just for curiousity, I downloaded the winamp linux...

Firstly, I have no clue to where the program looks for its shared libraries, or what system it was compiled for.

Secondly, there is no source code.

Third, it doesn't seem to have been made by Nullsoft.

Fourth, It was last updated in 2001, so why would you want it?

Fifth, Read some of the crap you agree to when install winamp (see below)

And Lastly, Why not use XMMS, I find it to be a great player... MP3, Ogg vorbis. MOD, Heck I even use it to play Quicktime Videos via the mplayer plugin.

Gary

Nullsoft, Inc. and its parent company, America Online, Inc., ?why support the beast AOHELL??

Why allow them to gather info on what you do... (SEE BELOW)

When you download and install the Winamp player, it will automatically assign to you a globally unique identifier ("GUID") that is associated with your player. .... The GUID allows us to analyze unique player usage patterns on an anonymous, aggregated basis.

Our player automatically gathers certain anonymous usage information from you including, but not limited to, the length of your session, the number of tracks and streams you've played in a certain session, the number of CDs you've burned, played, or ripped, the number of tracks you've transferred to a portable device, the number of playlists you've created, the number of plug-ins you've installed, and the number of skins you've installed. .....
In certain situations such as the receipt of a subpoena or court order, we may be required to share information about you as a Winamp user.

dude that is messed up, i had no idea.. thanks for the heads up.

Belive me. For 99+% of all proprietary programs, therr is either a preexiting, or up anbd coming OSS alternative.