This chapter has covered a number of tools for finding packages in RPM format, as well as tools to help manage the RPMs on your system. The rpm command does a great job of installing, removing, and upgrading packages. You can use it or choose from one of the many graphical RPM management tools shown in this chapter.

The rpmfind utility helps find RPM packages on Internet servers. You can use rpmfind to find the latest version of the packages installed on your system.

The Nautilus file manager allows you to browse files on disk, and it installs any RPM files you double-click.

Red Hat Linux 8 comes with a new package-management tool available from the System Settings menu. Be careful with this tool, though, as it automatically installs--and removes--dependent packages.

AutoRPM and AutoUpdate provide utilites that you can run periodically to ensure that your systems are up to date. The Red Hat Network and up2date also provides this capability.

The Debian GNU/Linux apt system provides many of the same capabilities as RPM, along with the network-updating capabilities of up2date and the Red Hat Network. You can use special apt packages that adapt apt for RPM-based Linux distributions and get the best of both the RPM system and the apt system.

The next chapter starts the major section on creating RPMs. The RPM system reduces a lot of the burden of administering Linux systems. You can take advantage of this when building any sort of software for distribution--or even when managing your own system.