Manage your software packages offline with APTonCD

Most Ubuntu users will value package management as one of the top features of their OS. Installing and updating software with APT/dpkg and their respective graphical user interfaces (i.e. Synaptic, Update manager and gdebi) is a breeze once you are accustomed to it.

However, the ease of use is dependent on the internet connection. If no connection is available, package management can become a pain.

Luckily there’s a new project called APTonCD to solve this problem and open up new possibilities.

The software allows you to create backups of all the packages available on your system. It will automatically scan your computer and present a list with all found packages. This list can be easily customized by deselecting entries or by adding more packages, which can be seen in this screenshot:

Once a disc is created it can be used to restore your computer after a reinstall or to install the software on another computer without the need of an internet connection.

The restore options look like this:

The software is not ground-breaking because there are ways to achieve the functionality with command line tools, but it is nice to see that Ubuntu offers more and more tools that allow even non-technical users to master advanced tasks with graphical tools.

APTonCD is in Ubuntu Feisty right now to test it. For more information, visit the APTonCD website.