Ninite (YC W08) shares UI tweak data, puts download.com and FileHippo on notice | Hacker News Reader

Ninite (YC W08) shares UI tweak data, puts download.com and FileHippo on notice

blog.ninite.com

20 pointsswies9 comments

Wow, I had no idea this site existed, but I love the idea. I don't regularly use a Windows machine, but I'd love to see something for Linux users in the future.

Even for us Debian/Ubuntu users, I'd like something like:

  [ ] Build LAMP server
  [ ] Build LEMP server
  [ ] Build RoR server

And it give you the script/apt-get commands to install all of the required packages, similar to how Linode install scripts work.

Regardless, this is awesome. Those download software sites are a relic of the early web that need to die.

I haven't tried it, but I'm pretty sure http://susestudio.com/ allows you to do exactly that.

Glad to hear you like the idea.

I've talked with Mel from https://www.sliceapp.com/ before and that sounds pretty close to what you're describing. Though I think it wants to SSH in and just run the commands instead of printing them out for you.

Not exactly the same thing but this is worth to check out: http://bitnami.org/

Long shot, but I thought I'd ask:

Is there any way you guys could offer a browser-testing suite for web developers, or even just old versions of the browsers? Getting multiple versions of IE on one machine is a nightmare.

The guys at Xenocode used to offer "virtualized" copies of IE6-8 and the other browsers, that ran out of a single EXE with no install, and it was wonderful. They discontinued the product, and I've been looking for a replacement ever since.

Thanks!

This also makes a very nice list of recommended apps. Please don't lose sight of that aspect once you start getting swamped with requests to add additional tools!

I love this site. Are there any plans for a mac version?

Thanks!

No firm plans on Mac right now. The Windows app ecosystem is so much more screwed up (notably toolbars) and reinstallation is much more frequent.

Not to say Macs have nailed this: http://daringfireball.net/2009/09/how_should_mac_apps_be_dis...

My average-computer-user sister didn't like using Firefox or Skype for a long time because something weird--the .dmg remounting because she dragged the apps right to the dock--happened every time she launched them.

Agree that OSX app installations tend to be less painful than Windows. I would find it useful for setting up a fresh system, rather than hunting down the 10-20 apps I need and installing them one by one. It would also be great for when friends/family that are new to OSX ask me what applications they should get--I could bundle it up and link them.

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