Post date: Mar 23, 2010 1:34:40 PM
I wonder, sometimes, how it seems to have escaped everyone's notice that there is an easy way to install the latest version of Firefox on Ubuntu linux. Really. One that doesn't require an extra piece of software. One that does not require manual updates. One that works with the system. One that is stable.
No, I'm not talking about Ubuntuzilla, which is still useful to anyone running an Ubuntu install older than Hardy Heron.
I'm also not talking about installing the mozilla-daily PPA (which is as unstable as it sounds, and updates as often as it says). It turns out that the Ubuntu Mozilla Team has quietly released their own PPA.
You can find the PPA at https://launchpad.net/~mozillateam/+archive/firefox-stable, but I'll lead you through the steps to get it up and running below.
This PPA provides (as of the time of this writing) Firefox 3.6 packaged for all Ubuntu releases from Hardy Heron up to Karmic Koala. It is a STABLE release, so it does not update all the time, and it provides all of Ubuntu's customizations, or at least, it is designed to work with them.
If you are running 9.10 (Karmic) or later, you have a simple option. Simply open your package manager of choice and add as a source: ppa:mozillateam/firefox-stable
You can also do this from the terminal by typing: sudo add-apt-repository ppa:user/ppa-name
That will add the correct line to the file, and also fetch the security key. If you are running something older than karmic, we'll go about this the old fashioned way.
This is the method I use myself for keeping my computers up to date. I have found it to be effective, and stable. I've used both the daily builds before, and Ubuntuzilla. Both are great for specific purposes, but when it comes to something that fills the "no hassles" ideal, this way tends to work the best.