General linux question

[ConLog]

Say I'm using Red Hat or OpenSuse, can I still extract and install a .deb file?

Still a bit bewildered by it all.

[kilgoretrout]

RH and Suse use rpm, not deb. They are distinct ways packaging binary files on linux and are not interchangeable. Debian based distros like ubuntu and and sidux use deb packages and tools like apt and synaptic for handling installation of applications. RH developed the rpm method for packaging binary files; rpm stands for "Red Hat package manager". Mandriva and Suse also use rpm with tools like yum, Zypper and urpmi to handle installation of applications. Rpm and deb are the main packaging formats in linux but not the only ones. Some other distros have developed their own unique package formats.

There are tools to convert an rpm to a deb and a deb to a rpm but you rarely have to do that and I would recommend against that practice. On main line distros like RH or OpenSuse, you can almost always find what you're looking for in the distro's own package repositories or third party repositories specifically created for your distro. The main problem for some one new to a distro is tracking down the third party repos which usually have all the multimedia codecs that many linux distros won't distribute for legal reasons. A little googling will usually reveal the standard third party repos for your distro of choice.

[ConLog]

Thanks for the excellent reply kilgoretrout!

Definately clears things up quite a bit.

[Tin]

Sometimes you have to convert packages to different kinds. I had no choice because Adaptec Storage Manager has no Debian binaries, so I had to download the rpm and convert it to deb. It installed and runs great I might add. The tool I used is called Alien, it can convert a wide variety of packages. If youre on a Debian based distro, it should be in the repositories.