[linux-audio-user] System Path - Basic Information

[Lars Luthman]

On Sun, 2005-06-05 at 11:55 +0200, Tom Charles-Edwards wrote:
> If software installs into my home directory instead is that a sign of 
> something horrible happening, or am I OK simply copying the application
> across to /usr/local/bin and carrying on as normal? I take it putting my
> home directory in the system path is not the way forward, on security
> grounds.

Hmm, which security grounds? I usually install software that I'm testing
to somewhere in my home directory before I'm sure that I want to keep
it.

Copying is usually OK, but can break some software that relies on
settings defined at build or install time to find data and resources.


> I was also wondering about editing the system path. From what I can gather
> from a cursory google the system path can be edited temporarily to affect a
> specific shell, or  system-wide. The files that I've seen mentioned in this
> context are:
>
> /etc/login.defs
> /home/tom/.bashrc
> /home/tom/.bash_profile

These files are sourced when you login or start a shell (at
least .bashrc and .bash_profile are, I'm not sure
about /etc/login.defs), so if you make a change in, for
example, .bash_profile, you need to run '. ~/.bash_profile' or start a
new shell to apply those changes. I usually put extra PATH directories
in ~/.bash_profile (since I only use one user for doing stuff anyway).


-- 
Lars Luthman
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