posted
Okay, here's the deal: I'm running Ubuntu on a G4 iMac (because the old 802.11b Airport cards are completely compatible with Ubuntu), and I've hit a snag: I need to install Flash, and I don't know how to do it. I downloaded the installation file, but unlike Windows, it's not a self-extracting executable file. I understand that I need to write some commands in the terminal, but my Linux experience is zero. Can someone explain what I need to do in terms that an absolute monkey-brained retard like me can understand?
Registered: Jun 2000
| IP: Logged
posted
...and the "Multiverse repository in Synaptic" is what, exactly?
-------------------- "A film made in 2008 isn't going to look like a TV series from 1966 if it wants to make any money. As long as the characters act the same way, and the spirit of the story remains the same then it's "real" Star Trek. Everything else is window dressing." -StCoop
Registered: Jun 2000
| IP: Logged
Daniel Butler
I'm a Singapore where is my boat
Member # 1689
posted
Synaptic...you know, the package manager that automatically downloads and installs things you tell it to? How else are you installing software in Ubuntu?
Registered: Jul 2005
| IP: Logged
Daniel Butler
I'm a Singapore where is my boat
Member # 1689
posted
Man, I saw that in the Today's Posts page, and it sounds a lot more rude than I intended it to...
Registered: Jul 2005
| IP: Logged
posted
No offense taken. It turns out that PowerPC processors won't run Flash; that's why there's no option to install it in Synaptic (now that I know what Synaptic is :-)
Registered: Jun 2000
| IP: Logged
posted
Flash (Player, I assume you mean) does run on PowerPC... it's just that Macromedia/Adobe made the charming decision to distribute the binaries separately, instead of bundling them together.
That being said, it's entirely possible that Linux support for Flash on PowerPC might be hard to find... when I was experimenting with Linux on my iBook (three years ago or so), it took forever to get certain things working.
Also, not sure how far you are into getting settled in (I realize it might not be worth your trouble), but there's a distribution of Linux that's dedicated solely to PowerPC support: Yellow Dog Linux. It's probably not as friendly as Ubuntu has become over the years, but it might be worth a look... you might have better luck.
-------------------- “Those people who think they know everything are a great annoyance to those of us who do.” — Isaac Asimov Star Trek Minutiae | Memory Alpha
Registered: Nov 2000
| IP: Logged
posted
I was able to install something called an SWF player, which is apparently an alternative to Flash, but the playback is jerky and the video quality sucks. Oh well. At least I got that far.
Minutiaeman, thanks for the info about Yellow Dog. The whole reason why I bought this G4 iMac on Craigslist was to learn Ubuntu on a machine where I could access the internet wirelessly without any configuring on my part (a la the Airport card). That part has been an astounding success (I'm typing this right now on the iMac). I just got into Macs not long ago and now I'm trying to learn Linux. Thanks for all your help.
Registered: Jun 2000
| IP: Logged