I decided to add Google Picasa 3.0 to my Ubuntu Karmic system by adding it to the repositories to make sure that I have the stable and test versions available for future upgrades. If you want to just download the deb file you can download it from the Picasa site for you distribution. I chose to make the update using Synaptic Package Manager so I didn’t have to open a terminal and use the command line.
The first thing to do is add the repositories to the software sources. This is done by going to System -> Administration -> Software Sources. You will be asked to enter your password and the Software Sources box will open. Next, click on the Other Software Sources Tab and press add. If you only want the stable version and no beta updates, just enter the first line. If you like using the latest, even if there is a possibility of bugs enter both of the following lines by adding them one after the other:
deb http://dl.google.com/linux/deb/ stable non-free
deb http://dl.google.com/linux/deb/ testing non-free<br /><br />
I already had the Google signing key from adding Chrome to my system, if you have not added that you will receive error messages so you need to add the key under the Authentication tab. The first thing you need to do is download the key from Google to your PC, go here to download the key. Instead of clicking on the URL, right click on it and “Save Link As” to your hard drive where you will remember it.
Once you have the key saved, go back to the Software Sources Authentication tab and select “Import Key File” which will open up a file browser where you will select the file that you just downloaded. Now close the Software Sources box, it will ask to reload the information and you can click to reload.
Next open up the Package Manager by going to System -> Administration -> Synaptic Package Manager. In the search box, enter Picasa and Mark the application for installation. After pressing Apply, the installation process will take place.
You will now have Picasa installed and can start the application by going to Applications -> Graphics -> Picasa.
