Getting Ubuntu .deb packages using apt-web

At home, I’m using Ubuntu 8.04 for my main OS. Unfortunately, it’s not connected to internet. Whenever I need to install anything, I had to download it manually from Ubuntu repository. (Well, I also using BlankOn 5.0 at my workplace, but since BlankOn 5.0 is based on Ubuntu 9.04, I can’t just copy its packages in apt cache and copy them to my Hardy machine.)

Manual download has it own cons. Ubuntu repo website do lists the dependencies for a .deb package, but how do I know what’s the dependencies for the dependencies, or whether some of the dependencies are already installed or not?

This is where apt-web, a web-based .deb package finder application developed by mas Fajran “Iang” Iman Rusadi, came in. It helps me to know which packages I have to download and gives package URL on chosen repository mirrors for any specific release. For instance, if I want to install inkscape on Hardy, apt-web let me know that I only need to download two packages (inkscape & libmagick++10), either from Kambing, Buaya, UGM or other mirrors.

Neat, eh?

To try apt-web, you can visit http://apt.web.dahsy.at