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Please help with Flash Player install

My daughter just got a Asus laptop and it runs Linux, I have never used anything but windows and I am lost

I cant get the Adobe Flashplayer to install, I have followed the sites directions and its not working at all, so she cant see any videos or play some games

what I need is for someone to explain how to install step by step with no tech talk

Please help me

Thanks in advance

Comments

  • Goineasy9
    Goineasy9 Posts: 1,114
    What distro is on the laptop. Most distros have a way of installing it contained in their user manuals. If you can't find the how-to, tell us which distro.
  • How do I find out what distro it is?
    I have no idea how
  • Momma24gr8kids wrote:
    How do I find out what distro it is?
    I have no idea how
    Open a console or terminal and use :
    cat /etc/issue
    
    the output I get is :
    Debian GNU/Linux squeeze/sid
    
    no doubt yours will be different.

    As far as flash player Linux goes :

    1. Download the latest flashplayer for Linux from Adobe :
    http://fpdownload.macromedia.com/get/flashplayer/current/install_flash_player_10_linux.tar.gz
    then close the web browser application (Firefox) Completely .
    2. Open a console and extract the install_flash_player_10_linux.tar.gz archive.
    For example; you would use the command : -
    tar xvzf /home/zanpaktou/downloads/install_flash_player_10_linux.tar.gz
    
    if the install_flash_player_10_linux.tar.gz archive was downloaded to a folder named downloads in user Zanpaktou's home folder.

    Now with the archive extracted, the file libflashplayer.so will have been copied into the same folder as the install_flash_player_10_linux.tar.gz archive.
    3. To install the flash player plugin you need to copy the libflashplayer.so file as the root user to a system directory so that firefox can find it; like this :
    su -
    cp /home/zanpaktou/downloads/libflashplayer.so /usr/lib/mozilla/plugins/libflashplayer.so
    exit
    
    Now launch the web browser (Probbably firefox) And navigate to :
    http://youtube.com/
    to see if it works.

    Notice that I used the folder /home/zanpaktou/downloads/ in this example.
    To find out where you have downloaded install_flash_player_10_linux.tar.gz to (Because you have forgotten or don't know,) Then use :
    find /home/ -name 'install_flash_player_10_linux.tar.gz' 2>/dev/null
    
    in a console.
    In the codes posted in the above example swap /home/zanpaktou/downloads/ for where the find command tells you the install_flash_player_10_linux.tar.gz archive is.

    I'm sorry if that's tech jargon in your book but it's the only sure fire way to get the job done.

    If your distribution has a package manager, you could search for flash player in the package manager to install it and avoid following the steps above. Most folks do it that way instead because it means you get automatic updates, usually.

    (Also if the laptop has Linpus lite http://www.linpus.com/ Installed; you probably want to wipe it off and install Fedora or Ubuntu instead. Linpus Lite is not a Linux experience I would recommend to anyone.)
  • Thanks for your help...but it is still not working, I have followed your directions to the T at least 10 times and it still wont work, I am so upset......I dont know what to do...any other ideas?
    Thanks again
  • I'm thinking it's maybe some extremely doctored version of Linpus lite for netbooks and basically supports nothing or has a hacked up version of firefox on it, with manufacturer logos, plugins disabled, etc. So that they don't have to support it.
    Geez, even splashtop comes with flashplayer pre-installed...

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