Running Linux, 5th Edition

Upgrading Software Not Provided in Packages

A lot of interesting software is offered outside the package systems, although as it becomes popular, the developers tend to provide Linux packages. In order to install or upgrade applications that don't yet exist as packages, you'll have to obtain the newest release of the software. This is usually available as a gzipped or compressed tar file. Such a package could come in several forms. The most common are binary distributions, in which the binaries and related files are archived and ready to unpack on your system, and source distributions, in which the source code (or portions of the source code) for the software is provided, and you have to issue commands to compile and install it on your system.

Shared libraries make distributing software in binary form easy; as long as you have a version of the libraries installed that is compatible with the library stubs used to build the program, you're set. However, in many cases, it is easier (and a good idea) to release a program as source . Not only does this make the source code available to you for inspection and further development, but it also allows you to build the application specifically for your system, with your own libraries. Many programs allow you to specify certain options at compile time, such as selectively including various features in the program when built. This kind of customization isn't possible if you get prebuilt binaries.

There's also a security issue at play when installing ...