For example, if you are adding a third party repository that references the PGP key ID of 6E80C6B7, the following will work as long as the key has been uploaded to a keyserver.

sudo apt-key adv --keyserver keyserver.ubuntu.com --recv-keys 6E80C6B7
gpg: requesting key 6E80C6B7 from hkp server keyserver.ubuntu.com
gpg: key 6E80C6B7: public key "Launchpad PPA for Banshee Team" imported
gpg: no ultimately trusted keys found
gpg: Total number processed: 1
gpg: imported: 1 (RSA: 1)

Typically, instructions on adding repositories give readers a two or three step process that involves apt-key reading a key from a text file or piped from a wget command. The above just cuts all that nonsense out.

The apt-key man page is a bit bare, but there are a few other options you might find interesting that are only mentioned in the commands help output.

apt-key
Usage: apt-key [command] [arguments]

Manage apt's list of trusted keys

apt-key add - add the key contained in ('-' for stdin)
apt-key del - remove the key
apt-key export - output the key
apt-key exportall - output all trusted keys
apt-key update - update keys using the keyring package
apt-key net-update - update keys using the network
apt-key list - list keys
apt-key finger - list fingerprints
apt-key adv - pass advanced options to gpg (download key)

Related posts:

1. Useful APT Aliases
2. Backup and Restore Package Lists in Ubuntu
3. Grep in Color

For example,

"sudo apt-get update" can be shortened to "agu".
"sudo apt-get install" can be shortened to "agi".
"sudo apt-get dist-upgrade" can be shorted to "agd".

A very simple way to create a set of command line aliases would be to add them to your ~/.bashrc file located in your users home directory. Here’s an example of some of my favorite APT aliases.

# Favorite Aliases
alias agu='sudo apt-get update'
alias agi='sudo apt-get install'
alias agd='sudo apt-get dist-upgrade'
alias agr='sudo apt-get remove'
alias ags='sudo aptitude search'
alias agsh='sudo apt-cache show'
alias afs='sudo apt-file search'
alias afsh='sudo apt-file show'
alias afu='sudo apt-file update'

To apply the changes immediately to your bash profile without having to log out, simply run the following command:

. .bashrc

Now, if you want to install the “vim-full” package, simply issue the following command:

agi vim-full

Remember, because “sudo” has been added to your alias, you don’t have to type it every time. It will prompt you to use the password the first time, and won’t ask again for the duration of the defined timeout period. Cool?

“apt-file” is a very useful package you should install. The alias is defined above, but is not installed by default. It allows you to search for file names in all packages from all your defined repositories. For example, lets say you’ve tried to run an application and it claims that your’re missing the library “libstdc++.so.5.0.7″. The following example tells you which packages contains a file with that name, which you can then install.

afs libstdc++.so.5.0.7
libstdc++5: usr/lib/libstdc++.so.5.0.7
libstdc++5-3.3-dbg: usr/lib/debug/libstdc++.so.5.0.7
agi libstdc++5

Although these examples have been geared towards Debian and Ubuntu, you can obviously use aliases on any Unix-like operating system. The technique of applying them just varies depending on the shell environment you are using. Have fun!

Related posts:

1. Grep in Color
2. Download PGP Keys with Apt-key