Re: ubuntu package

[Gilles Sadowski]

Hi.

> What I want to do is install the latest version of LilyPond, but I'm 
> unsure how or if I should remove LilyPond 2.10.33. Since I like LilyPond 
> so much (despite my lack of knowledge concerning markup languages and 
> programming), I'd prefer to avoid fouling up the installation of the new 
> version.
> 
> How do I go about removing 2.10.33 (if that's even necessary) before 
> installing the latest development version. Path$ and Directorie$ are new 
> to me because ever since I have  used a computer, I have never had to 
> deal with such weighty decisions (BTW, if anyone knows of an online 
> "self-help" or "twelve-step prgram"-type resource to help recovering 
> Windows users learn how to install programs in GNU/Linux, please pass 
> them along--I'm not really 'lazy,' I just want to avoid messing things up).

1. As was suggested in another post, you could have a "personal"
installation of <whatever program you like> inside your "home" directory.
But depending on the program (like if it depends on several external
components), it might not be as easy as installing it system-wide.

2. If you have 2 installations of the same program (say, one system-wide and
another in your home directory), then you have to make sure that you call
the one you want to use. That will require using the full name to the
executable file, or setting up the appropriate "$PATH" variable.

3. So, if you only want to use the latest version of Lilypond, it's probably
better to remove the other one, but be careful to do so using the
appropriate tools of your distribution (unless you want to mess up your
system!). There is no one single way of (un)installing software on
GNU/Linux. Originally the various distributions came into being *because*
they handle this aspect in different ways.
A distribution would allow to install a "foreign" package system-wide on
condition that it is done in places that do not interfere with its package
management. Usually, those place are directories like "/opt" or
"/usr/local". These must then be used as argument to the "--prefix" option
of the "configure" script.

Best,
Gilles