Installing SciPy

SciPy is the scientific Python library and is closely related to NumPy. In fact, SciPy and NumPy used to be one and the same project many years ago. In this recipe, we will install SciPy.

Getting ready

In Chapter 1, Winding Along with IPython, we discussed how to install setup tools and pip. Reread the recipe if necessary.

How to do it...

In this recipe, we will go through the steps for installing SciPy.

• Installing from source: If you have Git installed, you can clone the SciPy repository using the following command:

  git clone https://github.com/scipy/scipy.git
  
  python setup.py build
  python setup.py install --user   
  

  This installs to your home directory and requires Python 2.6 or higher.

  Before building, you will also need to install the following packages on which SciPy depends:

  • BLAS and LAPACK libraries

  • C and Fortran compilers

  There is a chance that you have already installed this software as a part of the NumPy installation.

• Installing SciPy on Linux: Most Linux distributions...