On Wed, 2009-11-04 at 04:00 -0800, Microbe wrote: > OK, let's get Skype going. I downloaded the proper version only to > have the install fail with the friendly message about a dependency > needing dbus >= 4.3 I think it was. At this point I can imagine the > average mug giving up and I wouldn't blame them, but I was > determined.
One of the habits that Windows users find difficult to shake off when using Debian/Ubuntu is installing applications directly from the provider. In Debian/Ubuntu, we really don't install software from the provider directly. Rather, we let another developer, usually someone from Ubuntu or a third party developer, 'package' the software for us, to make sure that it works with our distro, that security is being maintained, and that newer versions of the application are automatically installed. This has many advantages. In fact, the biggest reason my girlfriend loves Ubuntu is that all updates for all applications happen in one central place, and she doesn't have to worry about this program and that program always wanting to update themselves. In order to get mp3 playback and skype etc. working on Ubuntu, as others have suggested, you need to add the Medibuntu repository to your list of repositories (this can't be added to Ubuntu by default because it covers software such as mp3 which is covered by software patents in the US and therefore can't be legally distributed there). You should also install the package called 'Ubuntu-restricted-extra' to get Java and Adobe Flash and some other desktop necessities working. One good place to start is this blog post called "10 Useful Things to Do After Installing Karmic Koala". I don't recommend doing all those 10 things, but doing 1, 3, 5, and 6 is probably a very good idea to have a usable Ubuntu system. http://www.omgubuntu.co.uk/2009/10/10-useful-things-to-do-after-installing.html Oh, and BTW, welcome to Ubuntu! Hope you like it out here. Cheers -- Aryan Ameri -- ubuntu-au mailing list [email protected] https://lists.ubuntu.com/mailman/listinfo/ubuntu-au
