i don't see any sort of 'software update' application, so how is one suppose to update? this is what i've managed to do without issue:

1. installed slackware 13.37 from the dvd iso. i installed 'huge.' chose xfce desktop since i am not familiar with KDE.
2. created a user account other than root, but i had to do this on command line since i didn't see 'user accounts' in settings.
3. installed ORBIT from Slackbuild
4. installed Gconf from Slackbuild
5. installed google chrome from Slackbuild

i am a newb, nontechie, and getting this far really maxed out all my linux know-how. i know slackware is for advanced users (not me) but i've gotten kind of hooked on seeing how far i can go and learning.

before i get started i wanted to check with the community, is there some way to update the system, or is there something basic that i missed or that i should do right away before i start to tinker, hack, and hose everything ? thx, jim

Hi jimd97,

Welcome to the world of Slackware Linux.

To update the system, Slackware having tool 'slackpkg'
For more information about command, run following command:
$ man 8 slackpkg

To choose update mirror, edit /etc/slackpkg/mirrors.
Mostly line begin with '#' character is used to add commanet.
So choose any mirror site delete the '#' from that line.

To configure network 'netconfig' command is available.

Enjoy the Slackware.
Working on Slackware is really fun!!!

1 members found this post helpful.

linuxxer,


(edit from first reply):

thanks a lot. i already installed slackpkg, updated and cleaned. right now i am writing this post with firefox 13 updated with slackpkg!!! i didn't realize that you actually 'spoonfed' me what to do. it was a simple matter of following your post, $ man 8 slackpkg, and slackpkg.org was also a help.

it was a big help (and i'm not sure i would have figured it out on my own) for you to really point out explicitly that i needed to delete one of the "#" in /etc/slackpkg/mirrors.

i thought it'd take me weeks to install slackpkg when i first read your post (because it took me a couple weeks to learn how to successfully load, partition, install, boot, get the xfce desktop up, and get connected to the internet and everything else without any problems). but like i said, you just spoonfed me.

thanks, and thanks for the warm welcome. hope someday i can return the favor to somebody.


cheers, jim

And for third-party software not included with Slackware, look at slackbuilds.org. Read the howto's about how to use the repository and how to execute a SlackBuild script. Read the READMEs for each software as they will list any dependencies the software might need. Experiment and you'll learn how it works.

1 members found this post helpful.

thx for the tip.

jimd97,

if you have time on your hands and want to learn Slackware, just follow the relevant changelog and install the updates manually. You don't have to do this but it's much more fun.

1 members found this post helpful.

jimd97,

I guess you've pretty much gotten your answers, but in case you still feel like tinkering, this is the best guide on manually updating the system (as well as pretty much every other aspect of setup) that I've found. I was just in your boat a day or so ago, and I found this, as luck would have it, after I had already botched my way through most of what it covers. Of course! But I really like its step-by-step explanations, and if you follow it you will learn a lot.

http://www.howtoforge.com/the_perfec...slackware12_p3

Good luck!

1 members found this post helpful.

Updating the system isn't hard but it can be tricky if you don't understand it. here's the easy version of the way to update your system:

1. Navigate to /etc/slackpkg/ directory and look for "mirrors.conf" and open it with a text editor. Find the nearest listed mirror to you and remove the "#" comment in front of it. Make sure you select 13.37 mirror if you want to stick with the stable system. Save the file and exit.

2. Open a Console window and run this command:
This will download the update information packages and ready your system for updates if any are found. Always run this first.

3. This next step is OPTIONAL for a stable release of Slackware but it can be useful. Run command:
This can be useful for tracking packages installed with SlackBuilds and other tools. It's usefulness is limited on non-Current installations. Mostly this is used to trim out packages no longer supported by Slackware.

4. This next step is OPTIONAL for a stable release of Slackware but it can be useful. Run command:
This will prompt a list of new packages available for the system, if there are any, and allow you to install them. This is mostly used to install new packages that usually are added new tool packages and dependencies.

5. Run command:
This will prompt a list of all updated packages and allow you to install them. Always run this after running the update command listed above.

6. If needed but recommended, reboot the system, then re-login, and enjoy your Slackware system.

Have to disappoint here but the instructions given by ReaperX7 will almost certainly give you a dead Slackware system - and that wmay happen as early as during the "slackpkg clean-system" command.

What does "slackpkg clean-system" do? It removes all packages of which the Slackware ChangeLog.txt mentions "Removed."
Suppose you are upgrading from Slackware 13.1 to 13.37. The ChangeLog.txt for Slackware 13.37 mentions:
. This had a reason - the package was replaced by a new one called "util-linux" without the "-ng" suffix. This package is listed in the same ChangeLog.txt as:
That means, it will be installed when you run "slackpkg install-new".

The very moment you let "slackpkg clean-system" do its work first, it will remove the util-linux-ng package, thereby deleting many programs which are required by the Slackware package tools. Right after removing this package, your upgrade process will kill itself.

Therefore, this is the correct sequence of commands for an upgrade (after un-commenting one single mirror URL in /etc/slackpkg/mirrors and making sure that that URL matches the ARCH of your Slackware - 32-bit or 64-bit!):
Note that running "slackpkg install-new" is not optional!. It is the mandatory first command to run.
The "slackpkg clean-system" command is not mandatory, but in my opinion it is not optional either. It will remove abandoned packages and traces of old (sometimes conflicting) system libraries from your computer. Be careful, because this command tries to remove all non-Slackware packages as well! You have to pick your way through the list of suggested packages-to-be-removed and de-select any package you installed yourself.

A good thing is to edit /etc/slackpkg/blacklist and look at the last line. Having something like this will cause all packages created by slackbuilds.org scripts and all of my own & Robby Workman's packages not to show up in the package list of "slackpkg clean-system":
Eric

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Thanks to all. Hands down the BEST linux-distor-forum-post response I've ever received. This community is awesome. I appreciate all your feed back. So far so good. I am now able to update slackpkg without incident.

Still learning how to run scripts but I don't really know what I'm doing and I am only successfully by copying. I also am having a hard time getting KDE up -- (using parallels workstation 6 -- windows host and slackware guest) -- but I am not too concerned about that because I can get xfce up and I don't know KDE anyway.

I am going to hit the books and work my way through some of the recommended literature which some of you kindly pointed out (thx). I want to get to know the "nuts and bolts," or, as I like to say "the guts" a bit better.

Cheers all,

Jim

At the end of Eric's post -- post #9 in this thread (or two post up from this post) -- by "editing" is he recommending "to remove"?

For instance, these are the last two lines of my "/etc/slackpkg/blacklist" :

This one will blacklist all SBo packages:
#[0-9]+_SBo

Should I therefore remove the last line per Eric's recommendation: "#[0-9]+_SBo"

jim

sbopkg is very useful for installation of packages:

http://archive09.linux.com/feature/148826

No, you should edit to add
for example

flash-player-plugin
[0-9]+_SBo
[0-9]+alien
[0-9]+rlw

Packages blacklisted can't be installed, upgraded, or removed using the slackpkg utility.

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It does not make sense to add "flash-player-plugin" to the blacklist. The slackpkg utility only works for packages in the official Slackware package set. You usually blacklist packages because you have upgraded a standard Slackware package with a custom package (like my KDE packages, hence the line "[0-9]+alien").

Eric

Where did I write "remove" ? I said "look at".
The last line in the blacklist file is an example of how to blacklist packages with a certain build tag. And I suggested you could add a few lines for some build tags commonly used for replacement packages (such as Robby's XFCE or my own KDE package updates).

Eric

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