Installation Instructions#

Introduction#

This document contains instructions for installation of the packages we’ll be using during the course. You will be following the training on your own computer, so please complete these instructions. The instructions include Windows, Mac and Linux specific sections.

Note for Mac users

We do not recommend working through this course on versions of macOS without an app store: upgrade to at least macOS 10.9 (Mavericks).

If you encounter any problem during insallation and you manage to solve them (feel free to ask us for help), it would be greatly helpful if you’d add an issue to the course repo, explaining the problem and solution (Note: you’ll require a GitHub account for this). By doing this you will be helping to improve the instructions for future users! :tada:

What we’re installing#

  • the Python programming language (version 3.8 or greater) and Conda

  • a selection of Python software packages that will be used during the course (via a Conda environment)

  • git for the version control module

  • a suitable text editor

Please ensure that you have a computer (ideally a laptop) with all of these installed. Even if you think you have all of these things already, it’s worth reading through the prerequisite pages to make sure.

Unfamiliar with the command line?#

Familiarity with the command line isn’t a prerequisite for the course, but you may need to make use of it at some points. Some of the install steps require you to enter commands in a prompt (terminal or console window) on your computer.

If you’re working on a Mac or Linux computer, simply open the Terminal app when you arrive at these steps. If you’re on a Windows PC, we recommend installing the Git Bash terminal which is covered in the next step.