If you're actually trying to install another version of Firefox, then click on the Firefox tag, as there may be an entry on that other version.

Since a fair number of the hits to this 'blog are from searches as how to install Firefox 3.5 under RHEL 5.x or as to how to install Firefox 3.0 under RHEL 5.x, I'm going to infer that people are and will be surfing the WWWeb for instructions on how to install Firefox 3.6 under RHEL 5.x. Here are the steps that I recommend:

1. Download the archive, firefox-3.6.n.tar.bz2.
2. The tarball contains a directory, firefox, which should be dropped-in as a sub-directory of something. If you want to ponder where, then study the FHS. As for me, as root, I put it in /opt:

   tar -xjvf firefox-3.6.n.tar.bz2 -C /opt/

   (Replace that n with the actual number from the archive that you downloaded.)
3. Make sure that you have compat-libstdc++-33 (a Gnome C++ compatibility library):

   rpm -qa | grep compat-libstdc++-33

   If not, then as root install it:

   yum install compat-libstdc++-33

4. To avoid conflicts with SELinux, as root run

   chcon -t textrel_shlib_t /opt/firefox/libxul.so

   (If you didn't install the directory in /opt, or renamed the firefox directory, then you'll need to modify the above final argument to chcon accordingly.)
5. You'll need a .desktop file for Firefox (though you may already have one). As root, edit/create /usr/share/applications/firefox.desktop, ensuring that it reads

   [Desktop Entry]
   Categories=Application;Network;X-Red-Hat-Base;
   Type=Application
   Encoding=UTF-8
   Name=Firefox
   Comment='WWW browser'
   Exec='/opt/firefox/firefox'
   Icon='/opt/firefox/icons/mozicon128.png'
   Terminal=false

   (Again, if you didn't install in /opt, or changed the name of the firefox directory, then you'll need to change the above accordingly.)
6. Log out and back in or restart the system (to up-date the GUI).

If you're actually trying to install another version of Firefox, then click on the Firefox tag, as there may be an entry on that other version.

Firefox 3.5.2 has been released. I imagine that someone will soon provide an .rpm; but, for now, Red Hat users will have to install things from a tarball. Since a fair number of the hits to this 'blog are from searches as to how to install Firefox 3.0 under RHEL 5.x, I'm going to infer that people are and will be surfing the WWWeb for instructions on how to install Firefox 3.5 under RHEL 5.x.

My first piece of advice is that one not install Firefox 3.5.1. When I tried using it, it would do something that caused the Linux user account to be logged-out. However, I've being trying version 3.5.2, and so far I've not had that problem with it. [Up-Date (2009:08/17): Unfortunately, I have since had some problems with version 3.5.2 logging me out of the system, and on one occasion it screw-up the display resolution. But these problems have not been so frequent as to move me to stop using this version.] That said, here are the steps that I recommend:

1. Download the archive, firefox-3.5.n.tar.bz2.
2. The tarball contains a directory, firefox, which should be dropped-in as a sub-directory of something. If you want to ponder where, then study the FHS. As for me, as root, I put it in /opt:

   tar -xjvf firefox-3.5.n.tar.bz2 -C /opt/

   (Replace that n with the actual number from the archive that you downloaded.)
3. Make sure that you have compat-libstdc++-33 (a Gnome C++ compatibility library):

   rpm -qa | grep compat-libstdc++-33

   If not, then as root install it:

   yum install compat-libstdc++-33

4. To avoid conflicts with SELinux, as root run

   chcon -t textrel_shlib_t /opt/firefox/libxul.so

   (If you didn't install the directory in /opt, or renamed the firefox directory, then you'll need to modify the above final argument to chcon accordingly.)
5. You'll need a .desktop file for Firefox (though you may already have one). As root, edit/create /usr/share/applications/firefox.desktop, ensuring that it reads

   [Desktop Entry]
   Categories=Application;Network;X-Red-Hat-Base;
   Type=Application
   Encoding=UTF-8
   Name=Firefox
   Comment='WWW browser'
   Exec='/opt/firefox/firefox'
   Icon='/opt/firefox/icons/mozicon128.png'
   Terminal=false

   (Again, if you didn't install in /opt, or changed the name of the firefox directory, then you'll need to change the above accordingly.)
6. Log out and back in or restart the system (to up-date the GUI).

I notice that a number of people have found their ways to this 'blog because they've installed OpenOffice under RHEL, but OpenOffice doesn't seem to launch.

This is probably an SELinux issue. If so, then it should be resolved either if one goes to the directory containing libvclplug_gen680li.so.1.1 and (as root) runs

chcon -t textrel_shlib_t libvclplug_gen680li.so.1.1

to get SELinux to accept the interface, or if one up-dates to OpenOffice 3.0.0.

If you're actually trying to install another version of OpenOffice, then click on the OpenOffice tag, as there may be an entry on that other version.

Here's my suggested procedure for installing OpenOffice 3.0.x under RHEL 5.x:

1. If you don't have a JRE installed, then install one. OpenOffice 3.0.0 is being distributed with JRE 1.6.0 update 7; Sun is already at update 10. (I suggest that one use jdk-6u10-linux-xxx-rpm.bin, rather than jre-6u10-linux-xxx.bin.) The remainder of these instructions assume that one has a JRE installed.

2. Remove any earlier installation of OpenOffice. As root, enter these two commands:
   

   rpm -qa | grep openoffice | xargs rpm -e --nodeps
rpm -qa | grep ooobasis | xargs rpm -e --nodeps

3. Unpack OOo_3.0.0_LinuxIntel_install_wJRE_en-US.tar.gz (or the version appropriate to a devil-language, if you use one of those) to your filespace.

4. Go into resulting OOO300_m9_native_packed-1_en-US.xxxx/RPMS/ (or to the OOO300_m9_native_packed-1_xx-xx.xxxx/RPMS/ corresponding to your devil-tongue).

5. As root, run

   find . -maxdepth 1 -name "o*.rpm" | xargs rpm -U

6. As root, run

   rpm -U desktop-integration/openoffice.org*-redhat-menus-*.noarch.rpm

   (NB: You will need to log-out and back-in for the Applications menu to be up-dated and list the OpenOffice components.)

7. As root, run

   rpm -U userland/*.rpm

8. Tell OpenOffice which JRE to use:

   • Launch OpenOffice:

     /usr/bin/openoffice.org3

     (It will not be listed on the applications menu unless you have logged-out and back-in.)
   • Select

     Tools | Options… | OpenOffice.org | Java | Use a Java runtime environment

   • Choose one of the environments that is then listed.
   • Click the OK button.
   • Shut-down OpenOffice. (The change will be in effect upon next launch.)

There do not appear to be any issues with SELinux this time. I didn't have to use chcon on anything to get OpenOffice working.

NB: This post was edited on 2009:09/13, to improve the procedure, though most readers should not be installing version 3.0.x, as version 3.1.1 is available.

If you're actually trying to install another version of Firefox, then click on the Firefox tag, as there may be an entry on that other version.

[Update (2 Jul): Red Hat has released a Firefox 3.0 .rpm, and I would recommend now using it.]

Firefox 3.0 has been released. I imagine that someone will soon provide an .rpm; but, for now, Red Hat users will have to install things from a tarball.

1. Download the archive, firefox-3.0.tar.bz2.
2. The tarball contains a directory, firefox, which should be dropped-in as a sub-directory of something. If you want to ponder where, then study the FHS. As for me, as root, I put it in /opt:

   tar -xjvf firefox-3.0.tar.bz2 -C /opt/

3. Make sure that you have compat-libstdc++-33 (a Gnome C++ compatibility library):

   rpm -qa | grep compat-libstdc++-33

   If not, then as root install it:

   yum install compat-libstdc++-33

4. To avoid conflicts with SELinux, as root run

   chcon -t textrel_shlib_t /opt/firefox/libxul.so

   (If you didn't install the directory in /opt, or renamed the firefox directory, then you'll need to modify the above final argument to chcon accordingly.)
5. You'll need a .desktop file for Firefox (though you may already have one). As root, edit/create /usr/share/applications/firefox.desktop, ensuring that it reads

   [Desktop Entry]
   Categories=Application;Network;X-Red-Hat-Base;
   Type=Application
   Encoding=UTF-8
   Name=Firefox
   Comment='WWW browser'
   Exec='/opt/firefox/firefox'
   Icon='/opt/firefox/icons/mozicon128.png'
   Terminal=false

   (Again, if you didn't install in /opt, or changed the name of the firefox directory, then you'll need to change the above accordingly.)
6. Log out and back in or restart the system (to up-date the GUI).

If you’re actually trying to install another version of OpenOffice, then click on the OpenOffice tag, as there may be an entry on that other version.

OpenOffice 2.4 has been released. Users of Red Hat Enterprise Linux 5.x should not run the setup routine. Instead

1. Uninstall any existing installation. If you have yum, then as root run

   yum remove openoffice.org-*

   If you must or would rather use rpm then use the command

   rpm -qa | grep openoffice | xargs rpm -e --nodeps

2. Unpack OOo_2.4.0_LinuxIntel_install_wJRE_en-US.tar.gz (or the version appropriate to a devil-language, if you use one of those) to your filespace.
3. Go into resulting OOH680_m12_native_packed-1_en-US.xxxx/RPMS/ (or to the OOH680_m12_native_packed-1_xx-xx.xxxx/RPMS/ corresponding to your devil-tongue).
4. As root, if you don't have a more recent version of a JRE than 6u4, then run

   rpm -U *.rpm

   otherwise run

   rpm -U openoffice*.rpm

5. As root, run

   rpm -U desktop-integration/openoffice.org-redhat-menus-2.4-*.noarch.rpm

   (NB: You will need to log-out and back-in for the Applications menu to be up-dated and list the OpenOffice components.)
6. Go to the directory in which libvclplug_gen680li.so.1.1 is found:

   cd /opt/openoffice.org2.4/program

7. As root, enter the following to get SELinux to accept the interface:

   chcon -t textrel_shlib_t libvclplug_gen680li.so.1.1

8. If you did not install the JRE above, then
   • Launch OpenOffice.

     /usr/bin/openoffice.org2.4

     (It will not be listed on the applications menu unless you have logged-out and back-in.)
   • Select

     Tools | Options… | OpenOffice.org | Java | Use a Java runtime environment

   • Choose one of the environments that is then listed.
   • Click the OK button.
   • Shut-down OpenOffice. (The change will be in effect upon next launch.)