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+---
+layout: page
+title: Libraries
+---
+
+A myriad of fascinating and useful libraries are out there for Ruby,
+many released as [a convenient *gem* file][1]. Other libraries are
+released as archived (.zip or .tar.gz) directories of source code. Let’s
+take a look at finding libraries and installing them for your own use.
+
+###  <a id="finding-libraries" />Finding Libraries
+
+[**RubyForge**][2] is a popular home for Ruby libraries. One good spot
+to browse is its [software map][3], which lists libraries by topic. (If
+you end up creating your own libraries, you can [register][4] your
+project at Rubyforge to get free Subversion access, web space, and
+mailing lists.)
+
+The [**Ruby Application Archive**][5] (or RAA)
+is a directory of all manner of Ruby software, categorized by function.
+Right now, the [Database][6] category has the most entries, leading by 1
+over [Net.][7] [HTML][8] and [XML][9] are also popular categories.
+There are even 4 [Physics][10] entries.
+
+###  <a id="using-rubygems" />Using RubyGems
+
+As stated on the [RubyGems website][1], “RubyGems is the premier ruby
+packaging system. It provides a standard format for distributing Ruby
+programs and libraries, and an easy to use tool for managing the
+installation of gem packages.” In some ways, it is a distribution
+packaging system similar to, say, apt-get, targeted at ruby software.
+The official gems repository is [RubyGems.org][11].
+
+Ruby 1.9 and the Windows installer includes RubyGems, so you may not
+need to install it separately. Please refer to [Installing
+RubyGems](#installing-rubygems) below, if next gem commands do not work
+for you.
+
+#### Searching for Gems
+
+The **search** command can be used to look for gems of a certain name.
+To search for the word “html” in the name of a gem:
+
+    {% highlight bash %}
+    $ gem search html --remote
+    *** REMOTE GEMS ***
+    html-sample (1.0, 1.1)
+    {% endhighlight %}
+
+A sample Ruby gem, just to illustrate how RubyGems works.
+
+(*The `--remote` flag indicates that we’ll be searching the official
+Gemcutter gems.*)
+
+#### Installing a Gem
+
+Once you know which gem you’d like to **install**\:
+
+    {% highlight bash %}
+    $ gem install html-sample
+
+You can even install just a certain version of the library using the
+`--version` flag.
+
+    {% highlight bash %}
+    $ gem install html-sample --version 1.0
+    {% endhighlight %}
+
+#### Listing All Gems
+
+For a complete **list** of all gems at Gemcutter:
+
+    {% highlight bash %}
+    $ gem list --remote
+    {% endhighlight %}
+
+To list only gems you’ve installed, leave off the flag.
+
+    {% highlight bash %}
+    $ gem list
+    {% endhighlight %}
+
+For more on using RubyGems, see [**the official manual**][12], which
+includes examples for using gems in your Ruby scripts.
+
+###  <a id="installing-rubygems" />Installing RubyGems
+
+To install RubyGems, download the latest version of RubyGems from its
+[downloads page][13]. Extract the archive and run `setup.rb`. On some
+operating systems you may need to do this as root.
+
+For example, on Linux:
+
+    {% highlight bash %}
+    $ tar xzvf rubygems-1.7.2.tgz
+    $ cd rubygems-1.7.2
+    $ su -# ruby setup.rb
+    {% endhighlight %}
+
+If you need some further direction on how to install Ruby, check out the
+[**installation chapter**][14] in the RubyGems manual.
+
+[1]: http://docs.rubygems.org 
+[2]: http://rubyforge.org/ 
+[3]: http://rubyforge.org/softwaremap/trove_list.php 
+[4]: http://rubyforge.org/register/ 
+[5]: http://raa.ruby-lang.org/ 
+[6]: http://raa.ruby-lang.org/cat.rhtml?category_major=Library;category_minor=Database 
+[7]: http://raa.ruby-lang.org/cat.rhtml?category_major=Library;category_minor=Net 
+[8]: http://raa.ruby-lang.org/cat.rhtml?category_major=Library;category_minor=HTML 
+[9]: http://raa.ruby-lang.org/cat.rhtml?category_major=Library;category_minor=XML 
+[10]: http://raa.ruby-lang.org/cat.rhtml?category_major=Library;category_minor=Physics 
+[11]: http://rubygems.org/ 
+[12]: http://rubygems.org/read/chapter/1 
+[13]: http://rubyforge.org/frs/?group_id=126 
+[14]: http://rubygems.org/read/chapter/3