kicad-developers team mailing list archive

[Cirilo Bernardo <cirilo_bernardo@xxxxxxxxx>]

----- Original Message -----

> From: Dick Hollenbeck <dick@xxxxxxxxxxx>
> To: kicad-developers@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
> Cc: 
> Sent: Friday, August 9, 2013 3:56 AM
> Subject: Re: [Kicad-developers] Install KiCad on non Ubuntu distros - best way?
> 
> On 08/08/2013 10:35 AM, Fabrizio Tappero wrote:
>>  I Kaspar,
>>  yes please contribute to it. I did write these instructions while
>>  installing Kicad. for access to the web ask Miguel. He is the boss if
>>  it.
>>  Alternatively I can make the modifications you want. Send them to
>>  fabrizio.tappero (at) gmail dot com
>>  cheers
>>  Fab.
>> 
>> 
>>  On Fri, Jul 5, 2013 at 9:25 PM, Kaspar Bumke <kaspar.bumke@xxxxxxxxx> 
> wrote:
>>>  Thanks for these instructions. I am switching to Debian myself and they
>>>  helped me quickly get KiCAD installed again to look at board I need to
>>>  solder!
>>> 
>>>  However, there are quite a few bad practices in there mainly in using 
> sudo
>>>  when you don't need to (also, unlike in Ubuntu sudo isn't 
> necessarily
>>>  installed on Debian) and using /opt/ to build which should be for 
> installed
>>>  software. Is there a way I can edit this page?
> 
> 
> I think currently you are limited under linux as to where you can install KiCad, 
> and still
> have it function correctly.  This is one of the things on my to do list, to look 
> at in
> detail.  I have to finish up a board first.
> 
> But with the current constraints, I actually do think you have to use sudo.  So 
> be careful
> that whatever you'd like to write about is currently actually true.
> 
> I do agree that it should be possible to install on linux without sudo, but I 
> don't
> understand how that is currently true.
> 
> 
> Dick
> 


In UNIX I expect it will always be the case that certain root privileges are required to install system-wide software; offhand I don't know if it's possible to create a system user who can install new software without essentially having full root privileges.  Users can always install a local copy in their home directory for themselves and if they set appropriate permissions and other users set appropriate PATH and LD_LIBRARY_PATH variables, then other users can use that local copy.  Installing locally is as easy as:
make install DESTDIR=${HOME}
Unless a user has explicitly set installation path variables, things will go into ${HOME}/usr/local

- Cirilo