Will Pale Moon be in the Ubuntu software manager eventually?

[Valeria]

Hello Tar_Ni,

I will tell you the method I used in order to install Pale Moon 24.5.0 on my Ubuntu Gnome 14.04 LTS Trusty Tahr 32-bit operating system, which worked like a charm. My dad told me this is not the recommended method, but it worked for me and it was relatively easy-and-quick to do. However, whether everybody else knows a more recommended method, please, post it here.

All right, here we go.

1. I downloaded the intuitive pminstaller-0.1.3.tar.bz2 installer file created by access2godzilla from here. Since it is an on-line installer, it is very small and you will have got it downloaded in a blink of an eye, literally speaking.
2. Once it is downloaded, run a terminal in your Xubuntu operating system. Execute sudo -i and press the Enter key (you will be root superuser, so be careful about what you do from now on).
3. Now, you need to go to the exact directory where the pminstaller-0.1.3.tar.bz2 installer file was saved. In my case I had to type cd /home/valeria/Downloads and press Enter, because it was saved in my Downloads directory. If you need to make sure the installer file is there, you can always use the ls command and press Enter, so you can list all (sub)directories and files in that location. You can go back with the cd .. command (id est: cd(space)..).
4. Then you have got to extract the installer file by typing tar -jxvf pminstaller-0.1.3.tar.bz2 and pressing Enter.
5. Now, enter the final command: su -c ./pminstaller.sh.

This will pop up a window with a drop-down menu where you’ve got to select Latest version and continue with the full installation of Pale Moon. The final steps are just a few easy-to-understand options that you’ve got to click to select – Yes, no more commands.

You may want Pale Moon to be your most preferred web browser and/or allow Pale Moon to use hunspell for spell checking.

Pale Moon will be fully installed in your operating system in a few minutes. Look for it at the Xubuntu’s application menu and run it. Then, you can exit the Pale Moon installer and close the terminal.

Finally, to return to your regular user status, you will want to log out and log in again, or restart your computer and log in with your user normally. By the way, this is how my Pale Moon looks like.

I hope this helps you.

Kind regards,

[access2godzilla]

Wow: such complex, much masochistic

Double clicking the pminstaller.sh file is enough to install it. Apparently some people find this too complex. *sigh*

[cyansmoker]

A quick update on this:

Ubuntu is actually my main environment, even if I use CentOS VMs to build Pale Moon.

If MoonChild deems my builds not too crappy, I may look into that Ubuntu software center submission process.

[Night Wing]

Ubuntu is actually my main environment, even if I use CentOS VMs to build Pale Moon.

If MoonChild deems my builds not too crappy, I may look into that Ubuntu software center submission process.

Mint and SolydX are my main linux environments. Since Mint is ubuntu based, this might help Pale Moon get noticed by the Mint developers.

[inoculate128]

I've never done it myself, but I understand that the process of creating and hosting Ubuntu builds is not at all difficult.

It starts with setting up a Launchpad https://launchpad.net/ account. Then all you need to do is upload your source code for each new build. The tool automatically generates x86 and AMD64 packages, then hosts them in your own PPA (Personal Project Archive). Ubuntu users can then access and install them using whatever software management tools they wish (apt-get install, Adept, Muon, Synaptic, etc).

Each time you upload new source code, the tool automatically updates your PPA. The service is free for open-source projects, and you retain complete control of your PPA. Disk space allotment is 2 Gb, with more available upon request.

For full information, check out the Packaging/PPA https://help.launchpad.net/ section of Launchpad Help.

[inoculate128]

Someone has already set up a working PPA and is testing it now. Here's the link:
https://launchpad.net/~marian.kadanka/+archive/testing

I just installed it through Synaptic, and it appears to work fine. Version has not yet been updated to 24.6.0, though.

[cyansmoker]

Beware of unknown sources!

I suspect whomever maintains that PPA is a perfectly legit individual but I would be more comfortable if I heard that this person is known to MoonChild or a2g.

[Moonchild]

Beware of unknown sources!

I suspect whomever maintains that PPA is a perfectly legit individual but I would be more comfortable if I heard that this person is known to MoonChild or a2g.

There has been no communication with me about this, so you should not consider that PPA an official source. If you want to redistribute a re-packaged version as official, you must get in touch with me, see also the Pale moon redistribution license http://www.palemoon.org/redist.shtml -- I've had to do this to prevent "hacked" versions with all sorts of unwanted added software in it.

So, please also verify with me if you want to add it to the Ubuntu archive. If it involves a simple repack, that's fine, but it must be communicated and OK'd.

[access2godzilla]

If it involves a simple repack, that's fine

The packages in the PPA seem to be a recompile instead of a repack BUT AFAIK the way Launchpad works is -- you upload the source tarball and have buildd build it on the server side, so that should make trojanisation more difficult. I didn't diff the uploaded source archive (here it is) but from the palemoon_24.5.0-0~trusty1.debian.tar.gz file everything seems to be okay, just that they seem to be using a different set of .mozconfig options (including those not meant for Linux like -disable-activex-*).

[Moonchild]

If it involves a simple repack, that's fine

The packages in the PPA seem to be a recompile instead of a repack BUT AFAIK the way Launchpad works is -- you upload the source tarball and have buildd build it on the server side, so that should make trojanisation more difficult. I didn't diff the uploaded source archive (here it is) but from the palemoon_24.5.0-0~trusty1.debian.tar.gz file everything seems to be okay, just that they seem to be using a different set of .mozconfig options (including those not meant for Linux like -disable-activex-*).

So, the server would automagically know which build toolset is needed?...

[access2godzilla]

So, the server would automagically know which build toolset is needed?...

http://ppa.launchpad.net/marian.kadanka ... ian.tar.gz > palemoon_24.5.0-0~trusty1.debian.tar > debian/control

Code: Select all

Source: palemoon
Section: web
Priority: optional
Maintainer: Marián Kadaňka < marian. kadanka at openmailbox . org>
Build-Depends: debhelper (>= 8.0.0),
	autotools-dev,
	autoconf2.13,
	quilt,
	zip,
	libxt-dev,
	libgtk2.0-dev (>= 2.14),
	libgconf2-dev (>= 1.2.1),
	libasound2-dev,
	libcurl4-openssl-dev,
	libdbus-1-dev,
	libdbus-glib-1-dev (>= 0.60),
	libgstreamer0.10-dev,
	libgstreamer-plugins-base0.10-dev,
	libiw-dev,
	mesa-common-dev,
	libnotify-dev (>= 0.4),
	uuid,
	yasm (>= 1.1),
	unzip,
	xvfb,
	python (>= 2.7),
	python-dev,
	libpulse-dev,
	software-properties-common
Standards-Version: 3.9.2
Homepage: http://www.palemoon.org/

Package: palemoon
Architecture: any
Depends: ${shlibs:Depends}, ${misc:Depends}
Description: Firefox-based, efficient and easy to use web browser
 Pale Moon offers selected features and optimizations to maximize 
 the browser's speed, stability and user experience, while maintaining 
 compatibility with the thousands of Firefox extensions you have come 
 to love and rely on.
 .
 Pale Moon requires a processor that supports the SSE2 instruction set.

[Moonchild]

I see.
So what about it not building properly on gcc-4.8.*? I don't even see that mentioned...

[SvenG]

Double clicking the pminstaller.sh file is enough to install it. Apparently some people find this too complex. *sigh*

Fun thing, I just updated to Trusty myself, allied all the updates, installed language packs, nothing else, then (still as admin) unpacked the installer, double clicked the script.... it opened in gEdit, changed the setting in Nautilus, still it opened in gEdit. Actually (according to settings), it should have asked what to do. Seems that Trusty is a bit buggy on that end (or maybe too featured)... To get it running i had to change the file properties. Same installer version work perfectly in Raring.

[Starchild]

I support this, but not for Ubuntu. I would rather affiliate with Linux Mint, if any OS since their team dedicates itself to preserving the older desktop metaphor, and I'd rather the browser not be included until the next build of Linux Mint using a Ubuntu LTS build. Since that was very recent (with Ubuntu "Trusty Thar"), that gives somebody two years to compile and package Pale Moon for Debian systems.

So that means in 2016, a release ought to be ready for Linux Mint 21, and because PM updates itself anyway, it can be set up to not update the browser through the package manager, but instead just supply a single build that works until 2018, at which time a new build would be made for Linux Mint 25.

[access2godzilla]

Actually (according to settings), it should have asked what to do.

If the file manager ignores the executability bit, then, well... (I specifically set that in the archive).
Works for me with all other file managers though (Thunar, pcmanfm, rox). spacefm is guilty of not heeding the executability bit as well.

[SvenG]

Yes, seems like Nautilus borks it I have tried it with Nemo and it works perfect.

[aliceif]

Right, about the whole gcc-4.8 thing:
Palemoon 2.4.6.1 compiled just fine for me using gcc 4.8.2 without any issues.
And I run a trusty-based distro.

[Moonchild]

Right, about the whole gcc-4.8 thing:
Palemoon 2.4.6.1 compiled just fine for me using gcc 4.8.2 without any issues.
And I run a trusty-based distro.

You mean 24.6.1

There have been issues with PNG decoding on gcc 4.8, so it apparently generated incorrect object code. It would compile, but running it properly would be a different story. Still possible that it worked for you depending on which optimization flags were used, but it's not guaranteed to give you stable or bug-free binaries.

[HeathenMan]

So, the server would automagically know which build toolset is needed?...

http://ppa.launchpad.net/marian.kadanka ... ian.tar.gz > palemoon_24.5.0-0~trusty1.debian.tar > debian/control

Code: Select all

Source: palemoon
Section: web
Priority: optional
Maintainer: Marián Kadaňka < marian. kadanka at openmailbox . org>
Build-Depends: debhelper (>= 8.0.0),
	autotools-dev,
	autoconf2.13,
	quilt,
	zip,
	libxt-dev,
	libgtk2.0-dev (>= 2.14),
	libgconf2-dev (>= 1.2.1),
	libasound2-dev,
	libcurl4-openssl-dev,
	libdbus-1-dev,
	libdbus-glib-1-dev (>= 0.60),
	libgstreamer0.10-dev,
	libgstreamer-plugins-base0.10-dev,
	libiw-dev,
	mesa-common-dev,
	libnotify-dev (>= 0.4),
	uuid,
	yasm (>= 1.1),
	unzip,
	xvfb,
	python (>= 2.7),
	python-dev,
	libpulse-dev,
	software-properties-common
Standards-Version: 3.9.2
Homepage: http://www.palemoon.org/

Package: palemoon
Architecture: any
Depends: ${shlibs:Depends}, ${misc:Depends}
Description: Firefox-based, efficient and easy to use web browser
 Pale Moon offers selected features and optimizations to maximize 
 the browser's speed, stability and user experience, while maintaining 
 compatibility with the thousands of Firefox extensions you have come 
 to love and rely on.
 .
 Pale Moon requires a processor that supports the SSE2 instruction set.

why should we use third-party versions- they are mentioned as dangerous!?
just download the latest linux .tar.gz and extract palemoon folder to the wanted install location. create a PaleMoon.desktop (Application Launch) with command
your-path-to-palemoon-folder/palemoon
-> done , working fine for my linux mint 17 qiana

[MGA74]

HeathenMan,

I too have Linux Mint Qiana and would love to be able to use Pale Moon.

It would be much appreciated if you could provide a step-by-step set of instructions for .."extract palemoon folder to the wanted install location, create a PaleMoon.desktop (Application Launch) with command your-path-to-palemoon-folder/palemoon". I am very new to Linux!

Thanks in advance.