Finding Software

Finding a Program Under UNIX

You know the exact name of what you want. You just want to know if it is available, and how to run it. Let's say you're looking for a program named "foobar".

man

Before you use man, be sure your MANPATH environment variable lists all the places where software might be installed. Man only searches for things in your MANPATH. A minimal MANPATH should contain /local/share/man, /contrib/share/man, /usr/local/share/man, /usr/man and /usr/share/man.

List all the man pages named "foobar".

   % man -l foobar

No? Try a keyword search, perhaps the page has some other name.

   % man -k keyword

contrib-info

Software installed under /contrib is administered by members of the CS community. The contrib-info command works a lot like man, but it searches the descriptions of these projects.

Search for a project named "foobar"

   % contrib-info foobar

No? Try a keyword search, perhaps the project has some other name.

   % contrib-info -k keyword

No? Try a filename search, perhaps the command is part of some project, but isn't mentioned in the description.

   % contrib-info -f filename

Linux Tips

If you use a desktop environment like Gnome or KDE, you will find most applications in the menu system. These are a subset of all the commands and programs available to you, but they include nearly all of the major desktop applications.

Linux systems use a package management system that makes finding software considerably easier.

To list all packages installed on a Debian system, run this command:

   % dpkg -l

To find out if Debian offers a particular command or package, try a search on the Debian website.

Windows Software

If the software you are looking for is installed on a CS Department Windows machine, you will generally find it either on the desktop or the Start menu. There is no facility to list all software installed, or search on product descriptions.

If you can't find what you want, contact the administrator of the system you are trying to use to find out if a particular software package is installed, or if there is a software package available that meets your needs.

Getting Desperate

Can't find what you need? Mail problem and ask the technical staff.