[kwlug-disc] dumb debian question: install local package, get deps from net?

[Robert P. J. Day]

Quoting Eric Gerlach <eric+kwlug at gerlach.ca>:

> On Thu, Aug 13, 2009 at 11:27:19AM -0400, Robert P. J. Day wrote:
>>   possibly the first in a series of silly debian questions since i've
>> never been a heavy debian user but am about to start.
>>
>>   i have a local .deb file, which has uninstalled dependencies.  i would
>> like the variation of
>>
>>   # dpkg -i blah.deb
>>
>> that would install that local file, but wander off to the net for any
>> deps.  i've tried a number of dpkg and apt-get variations, but haven't
>> found the right one.
>
> You'd think that would be one command, but as far as I know you'd be
> wrong.
>
> The way I usually do it is try to run the command you have described
> above, which fails.  Then I run:
>
>   # aptitude install blah
>
> Which then will go out, grab the deps, and install them as well as
> finishing the install of the original package.  You may substitute
> apt-get for aptitude if you don't like aptitude's awesomeness :-)
>
> Apparently gdebi will also do this for you, and it can be run from the
> command-line, despite its GNOME-sounding name.

   this is being done on a fairly old version of debian (3.1), and i'm  
trying to minimize how many other packages i need to install to get  
this to work.  on a similar line, i have an *upgrade* of a package  
file sitting on that system, and i can't figure out how to simply  
upgrade given that

1) i have the newer package file locally, but
2) i'd like the upgrade to consult the net for any dependencies

   i would have thought this would be easy, but my perusal of the  
variations of dpkg and apt-get doesn't seem to tell me what i'm after.  
  again, help?

rday