Trouble installing fortran in SuSe 10.2

Hi all,

I tried to install gcc-G77 from my SUSE 10.2 distro disk and I get the error message:

no installable providers of gcc==3.3.5-5 for gcc-g77-3.3. 5-5 i586

Is there an easy solution to this problem?

Yes. Don't use openSuSE. Seriously.

I have used many distros and for this SuSE is the worst at handling dependency errors. It has a dependency error dialogue that can compound your problems, especially if you don't know what you are doing. Then SuSE becomes unstable and even unbootable. I base this on years of use and experience with openSuSE and other distros.

You can get dependency problems with any distro. However, with something like Ubuntu, there are so many versions floating around and so many packages available that you don't see it as often. When you get them you seldom have a serious problem and there are often multiple solutions. In SuSE's case there are far fewer packages and suppliers. Older versions like 10.3 soon get supplanted by newer ones.

BTW, these kind of solutions are never easy to resolve. With Linux dependencies are shared and updating one may cause a problem elsewhere. The best way to avoid them is to stick with applications in the repositories and keep your versions as equal as possible. When you venture outside of the repositories you had best know what you are doing and the repercussions.

If you insist on using openSuSE consider upgrading to 11.2, the most recent stable version. OpenSuSE is a fine distro with a terrible package manager and limited sources of software, IMO.