Wondering how to install Atom Text Editor on Ubuntu 22.04 LTS?
Linux-based distributions have taken the world by storm. With their community-managed updates and versatile CLIs, Linux distributions have become the go-to operating system for those working in the field of Information Technology(IT).
If you have experience in programming and software development, you’re probably aware of text editors. Text editors are tools designed to improve the programming experience in several ways, such as enhanced visuals for syntax, highlighting variables and functions, etc.
One of the best text editors – Atom, is available on Linux. If you’re doing any projects related to web development, the Atom Text Editor is a must-have.
This guide will help you learn how to install Atom Text Editor on Ubuntu 22.04 LTS. We’ll review different installation methods and additional information on how to make the most of it.
That being said, let’s begin!
Method 1: Use $Apt Install to Install Atom Text Editor.
This method uses Ubuntu’s Command Terminal, specifically the $apt install command.
It should be noted that this guide is for Ubuntu 22.04 LTS. However, Atom was supported on previous versions of Ubuntu, so these steps should work for the previous version of Ubuntu.
Follow these steps to install the Atom Text Editor on Ubuntu:
- First, open the Command Terminal by pressing Ctrl + Alt + T. on your keyboard.
- Once the Terminal opens, use the following command to update all packages and repositories.
$ sudo apt update
- When the update is finished, install some necessary packages using the following command:
$ sudo apt install curl libcanberra-gtk-module dirmngr ca-certificates software-properties-common gnupg gnupg2 apt-transport-https
- Next, add the package key for Atom by typing the following in the Terminal:
$ curl -fsSL https://packagecloud.io/AtomEditor/atom/gpgkey | gpg --dearmor | sudo tee /usr/share/keyrings/atom.gpg > /dev/null
- Afterward, add the package for Atom by entering the following command:
$ echo "deb [arch=amd64 signed-by=/usr/share/keyrings/atom.gpg] https://packagecloud.io/AtomEditor/atom/any/ any main" | sudo tee /etc/apt/sources.list.d/atom.list
- Update your packages once again using the following:
$ sudo apt update
- Lastly, install Atom by using the following command:
$ sudo apt install atom
If you followed the steps correctly, then you should have Atom installed on your system. If it doesn’t work out for you, you could try the next method.
Method 2: Use the Snap Store to Install Atom Text Editor.
If the first method didn’t work out for you, don’t worry, as Atom can also be installed with the help of the Snap store.
The Snap store serves as an alternative to the apt package lists. It uses its own packages, better known as snaps, to install applications on Linux distributions.
Follow these steps to install Atom on Ubuntu 22.04 LTS using the Snap store:
- Start by opening the Command Terminal on your system. The shortcut for this is Ctrl + Alt + T.
- Once that’s done, type the following to update all the packages and repositories.
$ sudo apt update
- Next, make sure that the Snap store is available by typing the following:
$ sudo apt install snapd
- Wait for the installation to finish. Once that’s done, use the following command to install Atom using Snap packages.
$ sudo snap install atom --classic
If you followed the steps correctly, you should have Atom Text Editor installed on your system.
Method 3: Install Atom Text Editor Using the GUI Method.
If you feel the CLI methods are not your thing, you can always do the same using Ubuntu’s Graphical Interface. You can install Atom on your system using the GUI method at the expense of a few extra steps.
Like most applications with in-built support for Linux, the Atom Text Editor can be downloaded directly from the Ubuntu Software Store.
Follow these steps to install Atom Text Editor on Ubuntu using the GUI method.
- Start by clicking on the “Show Applications” icon. It should be located in the bottom left corner of the screen.
- Once that’s done, type “Ubuntu Software” in the search bar and click on the first result. You should see a new window pop up.
- Navigate to the search icon that is located on the top side of the window. Click on it to open the search bar for the software store.
- When the search bar opens up, type “Atom Text Editor” and click on the first result.
- Lastly, click on Install to begin the installation process. All that’s left to do now is to wait.
If you followed these steps correctly, you successfully installed Atom Text Editor using the GUI method.
Removing Atom Text Editor From Your System.
In case Atom isn’t working as intended, or you no longer wish to use it on your system, you can uninstall it from your system to free up the memory resources on your system.
Follow these steps to uninstall Atom Text Editor from your system:
- First, open the Command Terminal by pressing Ctrl + Alt + T. on your keyboard.
- When the Terminal opens up, type the following:
$ sudo apt remove atom
Wait for the process to finish. If you followed the steps correctly, you successfully learned how to install Atom Text Editor on Ubuntu 22.04 LTS.
In case you installed Atom using the Snap packages, use the following command to remove the Text Editor:
$ sudo snap remove atom
In case you wish to remove the package and its relevant key as well, execute the following commands:
$ sudo rm -r /etc/apt/sources.list.d/atom*.list
$ sudo rm /usr/share/keyrings/atom*.gpg
While Atom is a great tool for coding, it will become obsolete from December 2022 as GitHub plans to stop providing regular support to the project.
While Atom may be discontinued, there are many other Text Editors out there. For example, Kate is a text editor that’s been designed to handle documents and code and distinguish between the two. We recommend you check out the Kate text editor and learn more about it.
This concludes our guide on how to install Atom Text Editor on Ubuntu 22.04 LTS. If you have any comments or suggestions, let us know in the comment section down below.
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