Tools/Python Tools

Python can be used to achieve results similar to Octave or Matlab, but with the advantages of a fundamentally object-oriented general-purpose language. Additionally to numerical computation, packages allow to solve linear systems.

Numerical computation with Python mainly bases on the following libraries:

• NumPy for arrays, linear algebra, ...
• SciPy depends on NumPy, used to manipulate numbers, for signal processing, ...
• matplotlib for 2D plots

PyLab integrates these 3 libraries.

The Spyder IDE provides a MATLAB-like development interface. As a simple alternative, IPython provides a web-based GUI and Mathematica-like notebooks.

Installation

Mac OS

Donload Spyder. Copy the application to the Applications folder.

Launch Spyder, and in the console type:

t = linspace(0, 10, 100);
plot(t, sin(t));

Linux

Installation can be done on a package basis, with pip. An alternative would be easy_install.

Install the IDE:

sudo apt-get install spyder

This also installs numPy, sciPy and matplotlib.

Launch Spyder, and in the console type:

t = linspace(0, 10, 100);
plot(t, sin(t));

Windows

Download Python(x,y) to install Python and other components of your choice.

Python(x,y) 2.7.3.1

During the installation make sure to have pip selected in the list of available modules.

To update spyder to the current version you have to remove the old one first.

To remove spyder v. 2.1.11 open a console and enter

pip uninstall spyder

and then install the newest spyder (at the time of writing this: v. 2.2.0rc) with

pip install spyder