How to install Adobe AIR in Ubuntu

by on September 17, 2008

This guide will walk you through the steps required to install Adobe AIR in Ubuntu Linux. It’ll also show you how to install an AIR application.

  1. Start by downloading Adobe AIR.
  2. Once the download has completed, open a Terminal (select Applications -> Accessories -> Terminal). Use the cd command to switch to the folder that you downloaded the AIR file to. If you saved the file on your Desktop, type:

    cd ~/Desktop

    3. To make the file executable, enter the command:

    chmod +x adobeair_linux_b1_091508.bin (where adobeair_linux_b1_091508.bin is the name/version of Adobe AIR for Linux that you downloaded).
    Finally, to run the installation, type:

    ./adobeair_linux_b1_091508.bin (again, where adobeair_linux_b1_091508.bin is the name/version of Adobe AIR for Linux that you downloaded).

  3. The AIR installation interface will launch. Click I Agree to begin.

  4. AIR doesn’t take too long to install.

  5. Once it has completed, click the Finish button.

  6. Now it’s time to find an AIR application to install. For the sake of this tutorial, I installed Twhirl, a Twitter, FriendFeed, identi.ca and Seesmic client. Some pages will automatically detect which Operating System you’re using, and incorrectly tell you that AIR isn’t supported on it (see screenshot below). Ignore that message, locate the download link, and download the file.

  7. You can open the file directly after it has been downloaded using the Firefox Open with feature, or just save the file and double-click it once the download has completed.

  8. The AIR Application Installer will open, and prompt you to install the AIR app.

  9. Depending on the application, you might end out w/ a new desktop icon for it.

  10. And now you have an AIR app running in Ubuntu!

  • Devicepedia

    Thanks for the instruction. It will help me a lot.

  • Ubuntu is but one of umpteen Linux distributions. I’d like to know why you think you instructions only apply to Ubuntu?

  • It’s one of umpteen but it also the fastest growing. It also attracts a lot of new users. Therefore, it doesn’t hurt to target that audience. People who aren’t using Ubuntu or realize that Ubuntu is Linux–if they’re using Ubuntu I’m sure they do–don’t need to complain that they said Ubuntu instead of Linux in general and already know how to do this.

  • Scott –

    See Patricks’ answer :)

  • Jeff

    Sadly, outside of the app you suggested, I’m unable to download anything remotely useful from Adobe Air Marketplace. Even though I have Air installed and running (after following your instructions), all of Adobe’s choices say that my platform (Ubuntu 8.04) is not supported. When I click the “Install Now” links on each of the apps, the picture momentarily changes color but nothing else happens. Is there a better place to get Adobe Air apps than from their website?

  • Gary Costello

    Nice page, good tip about Ubuntu… wish it was more prodominant in my region… who knows, maybe sometime soon??? ;)

  • Ragflan

    Yeah. Outside of the applications that people always mention, none of the air applications found on Adobe’s site can be installed. I click on the Install button in the flash animation for ANY app, and I get a really long middle finger with a ring that has a Windows logo on it.

    I’m having a bad Linux day. It’s one of the those days, I wish something worked without me having to bend over backwards. I love Ubuntu, but today’s not the day. =(

  • owlsky

    装AIR程序的时候出现：
    ————
    无法安装此应用程序。请尝试重新安装。如果问题仍然存在，请与应用程序作者联系。错误# 5100
    ——————
    请教怎么解决？我用的是Fedora10

  • kokusho uzumaki

    Excelente informacion hasta un neofito como yo pudo entenderlo aunque ahora ya no es de rueba, asi solo tien que cambiarle el nombre para hacerlo ejecutable

  • Thanks a lot, it helped me a lot. Really useful article

  • Good and easy to follow instructions – I’ve just set up Adobe AIR on Ubuntu 9.04; it works with no problem, and I’ve installed several different AIR applications very easily.

  • +wag

    初めまして。Ubuntu8.04をデスクトップで利用しております。
    こちらの説明のお陰で、AIRランタイムをスムースにインストールすることができました。
    もちろん、自作のAIRアプリもUbuntu上で動作しています。
    ありがとうございました。

  • Marco

    Qualcuno mi sa dire se l’applicazione Air funziona anche senza desktop come KDE e GNOME? Posso installarlo e usarlo solo con il server X ?

  • Excellent step-by-step instructions for installing Adobe Air for Ubuntu…. worked perfectly… thanks!

    For all of those who are sounding rather disgusted about Adobe Air… I’ve been using it for several months with Ubuntu 8.10 (just formatted and started over with 9.10 – we’ll see how it works)… particularly TweetDeck… It is true, some of the apps seem to work better than others, but I’m not sure it’s because of the platform, as it’s supposed to be platform independent. (I may have had some issues with my own computer [proprietary drivers problems, etc]).

    I DO know this: YOU MUST HAVE a working Flash Player installation and plugin for your browser up and working, or you won’t even be able to download the .air file for any given app (the work-around that I was using for this issue was to “view source” of the download page, and find the URL for the .air file, go directly to that page (which don’t typically physically exist on the adobe.com site), and download will start from there).

  • hello

    hey a mi me dice que no existe el fichero o directorio, que hago? necesito el adobe air ayuda por favor

  • carlos

    Hola, no he podido instalar , tengo el 9.10, de la pagina me descarga el instalador, en el escritorio, es a este a quien le tengo que cambiar el nombre??? podria ayudarme???
    saludos

  • Jav

    Respuesta de Patrick +1.

    Si tanto sabes de Linux, hazlo y deja de quejarte.

  • pablo andres

    por que cuando estoi hasindo los pasos en terminal aldarle enter me aparece no exite ficheros >&

  • Luis

    El procedimiento funciona perfectamente, la única modificación que hice en mi equipo fue instalr Tweetdeck en vez de Twhiril.
    Gracias por el aporte

    LVV

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