If you have an always on internet connection, you can install software quite simply using the urpmi tool under mandrake -
http://www.urpmi.org/
If you have a dial up connection, use the following ways to install software -
1. Search the official site or your mandrake site for a RPM for your distro. If you find it, install it either graphically (double clicking it under your default file manager should do the trick), or from command line using "rpm -ivh filename". If it lists additional software as its dependancies, then download and install them too.
2. If you can't find an RPM, download the source code of the software, open a terminal (xterm, konsole, gnome terminal, aterm etc), browse to the directory containing the file.
Code:
tar xvzf xyz.tar.gz
Or
Code:
tar xvjf xyz.tar.bz2
Based on the file extension.
Then cd to the newly created directory
Use the following commands to build and install the software -
Code:
./configure
make
make install
This will take a while ...
Then, run the software you installed, if it is, say, mozilla, type
To run windows files under linux (emulation) use wine -
http://www.winehq.com/site/download