internetless repository help

[ithinkillgohome]

I do not have broadband at home and am a complete beginner in the linux thing. I only have a modem, which I have started to try to enable but didnt I may be a little bit confused on this still, do I HAVE to have internet first? Or can I download the repositories and have them local? Or is this pointless? I may not totally understand what repositories do still. heh. Thanks.

[towsonu2003]

I do not have broadband at home and am a complete beginner in the linux thing. I only have a modem, which I have started to try to enable but didnt I may be a little bit confused on this still, do I HAVE to have internet first? Or can I download the repositories and have them local? Or is this pointless? I may not totally understand what repositories do still. heh. Thanks.
Repositories are online pools where there is software (in .deb debian package format) that you can download and install very easily using a debian tool called apt-get or its front end (much more user friendly) synaptic (System>Administration>Synaptic)...

as for the offline repos, I am seeing too many of those requests recently and hoping to see a wiki page on that from someone with free time.

Until than, here are some links you might want to read and get started:

https://wiki.ubuntu.com/Repositories?highlight=%28repositories%29 (info on what repos are)

https://wiki.ubuntu.com/AptMoveHowto (a howto)
packages.ubuntu.com (list of packages that are in repos)
http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=42862 (another howto)
http://www.ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=20217&highlight=local+repos (very long discussion, may help?)

[ithinkillgohome]

Thanks a bunch. I'll look over it all when I get home from work. I've managed to download some of the deb packages here at work by just going into the pool folder and snagging the ones i wanted. Can I just run these at the command line?

[towsonu2003]

Can I just run these at the command line?

I'm not sure. It's better to stick with the apt-get procedure. Installing those without making sure that you have all the dependencies will cause a dependency hell, which usually is the nightmare of most linux users...

When I need packages from pool but don't have a connection, I go through the dependency list of each package using packages.ubuntu.com and download each that I don't have in my ubuntu system, and start installing (sudo dpkg -i package.deb) starting from the one I have all the dependencies for.

In other words:

I want package X

X has dependencies Y, W

Y has depndencies A, B

W has dependencies C, D

I have A and C installed already -> so I need B and D

B has dependencies E, F

D has dependencies G, H, K

I have E, F, G, H -> I need K

K has dependencies T, U

I already have T and U installed (lucky) -> install K

I now have K, G, H, E, F -> install B and D

Now I have A, B, C, D installed -> install Y, W

I now have Y and W -> install X (my target package)

If I have the second (connected) computer (OS wont matter) along with non-connected ubuntu computer, this process takes about 10 minutes (no dependencies required) to 4 hours (install frozen-bubble to fresh installed ubuntu system by checking each dependency one by one).

If you read until here, I am sure you will want to use apt-get procedures now :)

[UbuWu]

You could also get the complete repositories on DVD if you have a dvd-burner at work: http://cargol.net/~ramon/ubuntu-dvd-en