TechSource: Highly Recommended Ubuntu Software Repositories

Posted: 06 Jul 2012 05:24 AM PDT

Though the plethora of applications in Ubuntu's Software Center are enough to whet any app-junkie's appetite, there are many awesome apps the casual user misses out on. And, it's not like these apps are inaccessible to the crowd, it's only that they aren't stable enough to be flaunted proudly in Ubuntu's store. Also, there are some applications that have been in development for a long time, they are pretty stable too; however, they being still in beta, have to miss out on Ubuntu's default repositories.

Today, in this article, we'll be covering some of the most important and highly recommended software repositories for Ubuntu. Also known as PPAs (Personal Package Archives), these repositories provide the hottest software you're looking for. That said, not all the stuff you find in these repos would be stable and some of those apps might break too; however, most of the applications are stable enough for daily use.

So, if you're brave enough, but are still a little adventurous at heart, here are some of the most highly recommended and popular software repositories for Ubuntu:

PlayDeb

One of my all-time favorites, PlayDeb provides you with the latest games for your Linux desktop. According to the site, "PlayDeb is an unofficial project with the mission to provide the latest open source and freeware games for the current Ubuntu Linux release, in an easy to install manner." Basically, as soon as a publisher releases a game, PlayDeb makes sure that the package is available in the repos. So, you get the latest games as soon as they are released.

Few of the most interesting game titles you'll find on PlayDeb are Urban Terror, Enemy Territory, Alien Arena, Glest and more. I've discovered some of the best games I've played thanks to PlayDeb, so if you're a hardcore gamer there's absolutely no ignoring this repo.

To install the PlayDeb repo on your Ubuntu desktop, try installing the following package:

http://archive.getdeb.net/install_deb/playdeb_0.3-1~getdeb1_all.deb

WebUpd8 PPA

Popular tech blog WebUpd8 has its own PPA that allows users to install the latest stable applications that are not available in Ubuntu's Software Center. You can find the latest versions of applications like GIMP, Audacious, Exaile, Minitunes and more. To install the PPA on your desktop, type in or paste the following commands in your terminal (Ctrl + Alt + T):

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:nilarimogard/webupd8

Y PPA Manager

If you have a lot of PPAs installed on your system, this little tool will help you manage them with ease. Y PPA Manager is a GUI tool for adding PPAs, searching for packages, and removing duplicate PPAs (only works with separate .list files). Not only can you backup your list of installed PPAs you can also perform other PPA-related tasks. Definitely worth an install if you're frequently installing and removing PPAs.

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:webupd8team/y-ppa-manager

sudo apt-get update sudo apt-get install y-ppa-manager

Wine PPA

Wine is the free tool that lets you have all those Windowsy goodness on your Linux box. Though you can install it from the default Ubuntu repos, it's usually not the latest version that you'll find there. To make sure you have the freshest Wine, you'll have to install the PPA first. Type in or paste the following commands to get started:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:ubuntu-wine/ppa

Medibuntu

Medibuntu is a packaging project that aims at distributing software that cannot be included in Ubuntu due to various reasons like geographical variations in legislation, intellectual property issues, security, etc. Here, you'll find packages like w32codecs, mplayer, non-free-codecs, and more. The main package that makes Medibuntu so important is libdvdcss2, which is an important codec for reading and playing DVDs on your Ubuntu desktop.

To get started with Medibuntu repo, type in or paste the following commands in your terminal (Ctrl + Alt + T):

sudo -E wget --output-document=/etc/apt/sources.list.d/medibuntu.list http://www.medibuntu.org/sources.list.d/$(lsb_release -cs).list && sudo apt-get --quiet update && sudo apt-get --yes --quiet --allow-unauthenticated install medibuntu-keyring && sudo apt-get --quiet update

sudo apt-get install app-install-data-medibuntu apport-hooks-medibuntu