How Can I Automatically Download New VLC Through Update Manager?

You need to check that a "multiverse" mirror is listed in your /etc/apt/sources.list.

Then open a terminal and type

sudo apt-get install vlc vlc-plugin-esd mozilla-plugin-vlc

if the multiverse mirror is not enabled then you need to enable it and run

sudo apt-get update
then run
sudo apt-get install vlc vlc-plugin-esd mozilla-plugin-vlc

if you need to check out http://ubuntuguide.org/wiki/Ubuntu:Hardy for dealing with adding of respositories

Simon, what exactly do I enter as a mirror in my sources.list concerning vlc?

VLC only gets added to the official repository after it gets tested, so it can take a while for them to show up in update manager.

If you desire the most up to date versions of some programs, you will invariably need to add a third party repository.

btw, I am assuming you wish to get your hands on VLC 0.9+, if that is the case then there is a very good writeup at http://tombuntu.com/index.php/2008/09/16/install-vlc-media-player-092-in-ubuntu/

Basically, you just have to add an entry in the "Third Party Software" tab, and use

deb http://ppa.launchpad.net/c-korn/ubuntu hardy main

as the APT Line. Then you just need to close out of the repositories list, hit Reload, and the newest vlc should be available.

Oh yeah, I forgot. I just tried upgrading to vlc and the vlc-nox package caused a minor conflict.

If you follow that guide (which I foolishly didn't) it has the instructions to remove vlc and then reinstall it when the new update is available.

code:
sudo apt-get remove vlc
sudo apt-get install vlc

Hi, drew, thanks for the reply. I got 2 questions for you:

1) So, this vlc isn't the offically new vlc? It's just beta?

2) What is vlc-nox? What does it do?

3) Since I got the old vlc, is there a way to configure it to allow drag and drop of movies into the window?

1) This is the latest release of VLC, not a beta. It is just not an official Ubuntu package. What has happened is that it is almost time for 8.10 to release and this package didn't get released soon enough to get included. It will probably be available fairly soon after 8.10 is released. What has happened is that a fellow user has taken the latest source, compiled it for Ubuntu, and packaged it so that we can install it without any hassle.

2) from the package info: "This package contains a version of VLC that does not require X and that is thus suitable for headless servers." Basically it is a VLC for streaming video to other computers without having to have a graphical desktop. I don't need it or use it, but it gets installed with the vlc package, so that's why it's important.

3) It should support drag and drop (or at least mine did), assuming you are using Gnome, open the file browser to a location with video files. Open up vlc near it, drag-drop and it should load up the file. You just have to be sure to drag it into the main part of the window, because if you hit the window title bar, it doesn't want to work.

Understood, Drew. I think I'll wait for 8.10 to be released first. Then, the new version of vlc will be made available then. Thanks alot dude!