Get more software
You’ve installed Mint to be productive. Therefore, you’ll be looking to replicate as many of your Windows programs as possible in Linux. The simplest way to obtain and install software in Mint is through the
SoftwareManager. Programs are organised into repositories, and if your target program isn’t in the repositories supported by the
SoftwareManager you’ll have to find alternative ways of getting them. First, visit the program’s home page – here you may be offered a convenient downloadable installer in the form of a DEB package – choose the 32- or 64-bit download (if offered) to match the version of Mint you installed. Once downloaded, navigate to your Downloads folder, double-click the file and follow the prompts to install it.
Some programs can only be installed through the Terminal – Mint’s command-line interface (press Ctrl+Alt+T to open it). This usually involves first adding the program’s repository using this command: $ sudo add-apt-repository ppa:user/ppa-name Replace ppa:user/ppa-name with the PPA provided by the software producer. Once done, you can then install packages from that repository, either through Software Manager or – seeing as you’re already in the Terminal – with the following command: $ sudo apt-get update && sudo apt-get install <program> Replace <program> with the name of your target program and it’ll be downloaded and installed. Once added, you can view and manage all repositories via Software Sources in System Settings.