Installing Apps on Windows and Linux
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| Photo by Max DeRoin from Pexels |
If you read the previous post on what apps are, you’d probably ask “what about PCs (personal computers)”? Well, apps on computers are versatile and immersive and the range of usability is remarkable. Let’s install.
Let’s start with an old platform: The Windows Operating
System. Windows has been present for quite a lot of time now and apps are being
developed continuously. Why not? We still use it at places of work and software
for each realm boosts productivity. Word processing, database management,
broadcasting, mathematical & engineered modelling, drug synthesis, PCB
printing, developing other system software and application software, you name
it.
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| Kubuntu |
It can be as simple as clicking the install button of a
software package and following the wizard, downloading an offline
installer or typing some commands on shell/prompt/command line/terminal,
whatever you call it, to load the packages off the internet and letting it
install. Yes, installation is possible via a package manager (program that
handles the downloading, un-packaging and installing of software packages) on
Windows too. Sorry, Linux.
- Installation Wizard/Setup assistant:
Probably the only one you’ve used if you’re not a Linux user; it provides the
user with a graphical user interface that shows a finite set of dialog boxes
guiding the user to successful installation of software. WinRAR, 7-zip, games, Kubuntu,
Windows, there’s no way you haven’t encountered a wizard to install a program
before. They were introduced in the ‘90s by Microsoft. You double-click or
press Enter on the keyboard to
initiate extraction & installation; click the sequence of ‘next’ (to start),
‘I agree/I accept’ (to acknowledge licence), ‘next’ (to proceed) prompts till
it completes and the software is ready to launch on your computer. You can
check up Windows Installer or Ninite.
Imae src: Ninite - Command-line Installation/Silent installation: Pretty much the method of operating computers before GUI became advanced and wizard got into use. Unix-based OS still use it. Special commands are typed into a terminal and the computer silently downloads and installs software. Prompts are almost always equivalent to zero except when there’s something requiring attention.
- On Windows, you can install the package manager Chocolatey (CLI & GUI clients)
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| Chocolatey GUI. Source: chocolatey |
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| Some scoop commands. Image src: computingforgeeks |
- On Linux, distributions are
bundled with special package managers. There are both graphical and
command-line tools for installing software but prompts are close to zero if
they even exist; Ubuntu uses Software Centre-https://www.lifewire.com/ubuntu-software-centre-2202070,
Fedora has YUM Extender- lifewire.com/install-rpm-packages-yum-extender-2204877,
openSUSE offers Yast; command-line tools include the aptitude CLI apt-get
& apt “advanced packaging tool” for Kali, Ubuntu and other Debian-based distributions,
Source: Wikipedia. 
Source: Wikipedia.
yum - Fedora,
YUM Extender. Source: Wikipedia. 
Yellowdog Updater, Modified (YUM). Image src: Wikipedia
zipper – openSUSE. Synaptic is a good option too.
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| Image src: Wikipedia. |
Read more here and here.
Other package managers include DPKG, Pacman, Portage, RPM, Snappy. Note that
they aren’t cross-compatible (i.e. they work dependently).
If you want to learn how to package your software, you can
check on these to get insight. Even as a first-timer:
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| Image src: Wikipedia. |
How to Make an Installation File: 12 Steps (with Pictures)
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Image src: WikiHow.
How to Make and “EXE” Installation File (from MakeUseOf)
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