Linux Package Management: A Gourmet Guide

Restaurant Analogy

Downloading and installing software on Linux ~ ordering a meal

Aim: bring meal (software) to the table (computer)

There are different ways to get a software, whether it's a package from the official repository or an external source (restro), or compiling from source (diy cooking).

Let'see how this works!

The Menu: Repositories and Packages

Choosing

Different distributions (or restaurants) have their own repositories, just like how some restaurants serve Italian food while others serve sushi.
For example, view the available packages:

sudo apt update

Ordering

sudo apt install <package-name>

The waiter communicates with the kitchen (package manager).

This process downloads the package, along with any dependencies needed to make sure the meal works perfectly.

The Kitchen: Installing the Software

Prep

Kitchen starts unpacking all the ingredients (the software files and dependencies).

The package manager (chef) ensures everything is compatible and fits perfectly on the system. Missing dependencies are fetched and added.

And done!
(this was the external source installation)

DIY

Instead of using pre-packaged ingredients, you’re starting with raw materials (grabbing the source code) and cooking it on your system using:

./configure
make
sudo make install

++ Can customize according to user needs!
++ Made from scratch!