How can you download programs to install on a Linux computer that's offline?

My biggest qualm with Linux right now (if any) is that my parents are still stuck without an Internet connection. So if I want to add Linux-based software I have to perform a miracle by downloading not only the package I want but every package it depends on too... right?



Is there something I'm missing that'll tell me what to get regardless, from another computer, so i don't have to worry about the process?How can you download programs to install on a Linux computer that's offline?
You'll still have to grab all the dependencies separately, but you can download the software offline. Linux programs take one of 3 forms: Debian packages (used in Debian and Debian-based distributions like Ubuntu), Red Hat packages (used in Fedora, CentOS, and so on), and tarballs. With Ubuntu and Debian at least, each maintains an online version of the repository (at http://packages.ubuntu.com and http://packages.debian.org respectively) that let you download the .deb packages manually and bring them over to your parents house. The package pages also include links to those package's dependencies, but there's a good chance that many of those packages are already installed.



Alternatively, I suppose if you have a phone with a data plan, you could tether the phone.How can you download programs to install on a Linux computer that's offline?
The dependencies are stored in the deb file, in the control file. But you could also just look at the entry on the packages file. Every dependency is listed with a red circle next to it along with a link to those packages. For instance, look at http://packages.ubuntu.com/kar鈥?/a>

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