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A few days ago, I wrote the Dependability, Reliability and Stability? Not with micro$oft! article, and now my Dell Precision T3400 is running a freshly installed version of Debian GNU/Linux 5.0 (using the amd64 stable release). Yes, this means I’m now running a 64-bit Linux OS.

The switch to Linux on my workstation isn’t a big deal for me. I already use Linux on all my web servers. I also use various Linux Live CD/DVD media to find and fix issues on Microsoft Windows systems. So, I am familiar with Linux.

When you have to start over from scratch on a computer, the biggest issue is always finding and re-installing all the software you used before. I had loads software on my machine, so the re-install process is going to take a while.

You’ve heard the old adage:

“There’s more than one way to skin a cat.”

The installation of Google Chrome in Debian GNU/Linux, isn’t much different. There is more than one way to install software. The fastest way for me is always by using the console. My installation of Debian uses the KDE Desktop Environment, so I use KDE’s Konsole.

google chrome globe

Installing Google Chrome in Debian via the Konsole (console or terminal):

  1. Go to the K Menu in the lower left part of the screen.
  2. In the K Menu chose the “Run Command” option.
  3. In the “Run Command” dialog, type: “konsole” and hit the [enter] key.
  4. Next, type: “su” and hit the [enter] key.
  5. Type in the Password of the “root” user and hit the [enter] key. You would have set this password up during installation. See our Installing Debian 4.0 (etch) on a PC guide.
  6. Then you will type the following code:
    test:~# apt-get update
    then press the [enter] key. This will download the latest, most up to date installation package headers. Do not try to continue until it has completed the package header downloads. Once all the package headers have been downloaded, we can proceed with the rest of the process.
  7. To search for the Google Chrome installation package headers, you can type the following code:
    test:~# apt-cache search google-chrome
    then press the [enter] key. This will download the latest installation packages related to Google Chrome.
  8. I try my very best to stay with the “stable” releases from Debian, so I would naturally choose to install the package titled, “google-chrome-stable” by typing the following code:
    test:~# apt-get install google-chrome-stable
    and then pressing the [enter] key. This will download the latest installation the Google Chrome, stable, packages and any dependencies needed as well.
  9. When the Konsole says it’s finished, your finished. You now have Google Chrome installed.

Install Google Chrome in Debian via 64-Bit .deb file from Google’s web site:

On the other hand, I wanted to make sure I was getting the 64-bit version of Google’s Chrome browser. I went to Google’s web site, and downloaded the 64-bit Chrome .deb file, directly from Google. You can do the same thing, by clicking on the image below.

google chrome logo

I downloaded the file to the /users/bamajr/Downloads directory path. If I have to download anything, I try to download to the “Downloads” directory in the /users/bamajr/Downloads directory path.

  1. Go to the K Menu in the lower left part of the screen.
  2. In the K Menu chose the “Run Command” option.
  3. In the “Run Command” dialog, type: “konsole” and hit the [enter] key.
  4. Next, type: “su” and hit the [enter] key.
  5. Type in the Password of the “root” user and hit the [enter] key. You would have set this password up during installation. See our Installing Debian 4.0 (etch) on a PC guide.
  6. Then you will type the following code:
    test:~# sudo dpkg -i /users/bamajr/Downloads/google-chrome-stable_current_amd64.deb
    then press the [enter] key. This will un-package and install the amd64 version of Google Chrome
  7. If you don’t have ia32-libs-gtk installed you will get an error, similar to the one below:
    google-chrome-stable_current_amd64 depends on ia32-libs-gtk; however:
    Package ia32-libs-gtk is not installed.
    dpkg: error processing google-chrome-stable_current_amd64 (–install):
    dependency problems – leaving unconfigured
    Errors were encountered while processing:
    google-chrome-stable_current_amd64
  8. This error isn’t a big deal. You can simply install ia32-libs-gtk by typing the following code:
    test:~# apt-get install ia32-libs-gtk
    and then pressing the [enter] key. This will download the ia32-libs-gtk packages and any dependencies.
    or…
    test:~# apt-get -f install
    and then pressing the [enter] key. Which will fix the Google Chrome installation by downloading the ia32-libs-gtk packages and any dependencies.
  9. Once you have completed the prior steps, you can go to the K Menu > Applications > Internet > Google Chrome
  10. All Done!

I found helpful information about this process in the Installing Google Chrome in Debian Linux article, by SACX.


NOTE: You will find the Google Chrome installation, does not install the Flash Plug-in by default, as it does in Microsoft’s Windows. Don’t worry about it though. You can install flash by reading the Installing Adobe Flash Player for your Debian system article. Pay close attention to what version of Debian you are using as it may relate to the information found in this article’s comments area.