Installing SCID in Ubuntu

SCID is a free, cross-platform chess database application. Can be used to edit PGN files and do loads of other stuff.

Unfortunately there is no PPA or deb files available to install the app in Ubuntu, so you have to get the tarball available at the site and install manually. If you try to configure the tarball you’ll get an error saying that it cannot find Tcl and Tk in the system, even though you have Tcl/Tk installed. The reason is you need to have the developer channels of Tcl/Tk installed for SCID.

Here’s how to install SCID in Ubuntu:

1. Install Tcl/Tk developer channels using the command:

sudo apt-get install tcl8.5-dev tk8.5-dev

(8.5 is the latest release)

2. Download the SCID tarball and extract in a temporary location

3. Go to the extracted location in a terminal and enter the following commands:

./configure BINDIR=/usr/local/bin

sudo make install

To run SCID, press Alt+F2, type scid and press enter.

 

6 responses on “Installing SCID in Ubuntu

  1. vaclamar

    Thanks for great useful tutorial.
    Before sudo make install must be run sudo apt-get install build-essential for installing of C++ compiler yet.

  2. Tiger-Oli

    Dear Thameera!

    Thank you SO, SO much for helping me with the installation of SCID vs PC. I have tried for hours to put it all together, and whereas I managed to install the old SCID on my Ubuntu, I failed with SCID vs PC for various reasons. It was a real maze, and it got more frustrating by the minute. Now, the morning after so to speak, I tried again and came across your installation procedure – never have I found it described anywhere else like this, and – it worked perfectly (even for a rather rookie-ish ubuntu rookie like me).

    So, thanks!

    Tiger-Oli

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