[LinuxUsers] Asus Eee - Java / Package-Management / Terminal - Questions

[Randall Whitman]

Customer brought in Asus EeePC needing Java (JRE) installed (Eee PC 2G Surf).
First was thinking Synaptic should be the easiest way ... so I go
Settings -> Add/Remove Software, and an app comes up, but no packages
are listed.  Also tried to push the missing-plugin button in
in Firefox, but didnt get it automagically that way.
I did download the .bin from Sun.com (with Firefox), but then
I havent figured out how to run a shell (dont see it skimming menus,
nor Ctrl-Alt-F2).  So big TIA if anyone can tell me any of:

* How to make Synaptic actually function on the Eee PC;
* How to get to command-line shell on Eee PC;
* or any other convenient way to get Java for Firefox onto an Eee PC.

Randall


(yes i did some searches in Google, get a lot of great command lines that
i might could paste in, if i could in fact run a shell.)