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+--- Thread: About Linux Appimages (/Thread-About-Linux-Appimages)
About Linux Appimages - rich2005 - 05-06-2020
What is an appimage?
These are linux applications assembled into single packages. The Gimp appimage for example, contains about 9000 files and Inkscape about 5000. These are big applications, there are small ones as well.*
Why use an appimage?
- Use an application infrequently, and consider it not worth the disk space as a regular installation. For example, Write very few letters / reports these days? Use a LibreOffice appimage, stored on a 'data' partition.
- There is a more recent version of the application available as an appimage than the version provided by the linux distro. Some versions of linux, such as Debian, are very conservative and application versions are 'frozen'.
- Use different versions of the same application. For example, a regular Gimp 2.8 installation plus a Gimp 2.10 appimage.
- As a try-out. Run the appimage. Like it - keep it. Do not like it - delete it. All gone, no hunting round for those dependencies apt-get installed.
How to run an appimage?
Obviously download one first. Make the file executable. Depending on linux distribution, a double click on the file using the file manager will work. Otherwise open a terminal where the appimage is located and run with a dot-slash ($ ./the-file-name.appimage) Remember, the tab key auto-completes those long file names.
Depending on the appimage, a desktop file for the menu structure is added, but not always. Make one if required.
How does an appimage work?
A little like a virtual CD. The files are un-packed to a folder in root /tmp and work from there. When the application is closed, the folder is deleted. Sometimes small files remain, clean out the /tmp folder occasionally.
Does an appimage always work?
No. An appimage is rarely completely self-contained, it can depend on system files. An appimage assembled in Debian, probably will not work with Fedora and definitely will not work with that 2003 Slackware installation.
Some resources
Gimp v2.10 https://github.com/aferrero2707/gimp-appimage/releases/
Inkscape v1 https://inkscape.org/release/1.0/platforms/
MyPaint v2 https://github.com/mypaint/mypaint/releases
Blender v2.78 - https://store.kde.org/p/1169218
Krita - see their web page
*Small programs: FontForge, Birdfont, Fotoxx - https://bintray.com/probono/AppImages/
RE: About Linux Appimages - Ofnuts - 05-06-2020
It is my understanding that AppImages include their own version of libraries, which is one reason to use them. You can't compile/run Gimp 2.10 on Ubuntu 16.04 because it requires recent versions of some core libraries, and updating these would result in a dependency avalanche but an AppImage should work.
RE: About Linux Appimages - rich2005 - 05-06-2020
(05-06-2020, 01:40 PM)Ofnuts Wrote: It is my understanding that AppImages include their own version of libraries, which is one reason to use them. You can't compile/run Gimp 2.10 on Ubuntu 16.04 because it requires recent versions of some core libraries, and updating these would result in a dependency avalanche but an AppImage should work.
Some of the early Gimp 2.10 appimages failed. The current ones are very much hand built.
Then the occasional such as flowcharting application Dia. Works fine in a kubuntu 16.04 but in kubuntu 18.04 gives.
/tmp/.mount_lZvshV/usr/bin/dia: ../lib/x86_64-linux-gnu/libz.so.1: version `ZLIB_1.2.9' not found (required by /usr/lib/x86_64-linux-gnu/libpng16.so.16)
Not a disaster
and a try-out for Gimp 2.99 to see what might be in Gimp 3 - never worked for me. I generally try and see.
RE: About Linux Appimages - meetdilip - 05-06-2020
Appreciate the write up.
