Package Managers and Distributions
The Python ecosystem is pretty vast and a consequence there are a multitude of ways to install and use Python and a multitude of Integrated Development Environments (IDEs) which are programs used to write Python Code and execute Python Code.
Due to this flexibility, the process of installation often appears fragmented and can become very confusing for a beginner.
Installer Name | Package Manager | Python Base Environment | Python Base Environment Channel | Python Version in Base Environment |
---|---|---|---|---|
Mambaforge | mamba | minimal | conda-forge (community channel) | 3.10 |
Anaconda | conda | data science distribution | conda (Anaconda Inc channel) | 3.10 |
Miniconda | conda | minimal | conda (Anaconda Inc channel) | 3.10 |
Miniforge | conda | minimal | conda-forge (community channel) | 3.10 |
Brief Installation Instructions
Brief installation commands below:
Installer
The Mambaforge or Anaconda Installer can be downloaded from here:
In Windows use the installer and use the Mambaforge Prompt or Anaconda Powershell Prompt instead of the Windows Terminal.
In Linux/Mac, it needs to be installed using the Terminal using the shell script file:
cd ~/Downloads
bash Mambaforge-Linux-x86_64.sh
Type q to quit reading the license agreement. Ensure you type yes to initialise Mambaforge/Anaconda. After installation close and reopen the Linux Terminal to refresh it. The prompt should display the Python environment (base) indicating that the Mambafore or Anaconda base Python environment is selected.
Updating the base env
To update the base environment in Mambaforge use:
mamba update --all
Do not attempt to update the Python base environment in Anaconda as it may break the base environment. Wait for the next standalone installer.
Spyder env
To create a new Python environment for the latest version of the Spyder IDE including its optional dependencies for Mambaforge use:
mamba create -n spyder python=3.11 spyder cython seaborn scikit-learn sympy openpyxl xlrd xlsxwriter lxml sqlalchemy
For Anaconda use:
conda create -n spyder python=3.11 spyder cython seaborn scikit-learn sympy openpyxl xlrd xlsxwriter lxml sqlalchemy -c conda-forge
To launch Spyder in Mambaforge use:
mamba activate spyder
spyder
To launch Spyder in Anaconda use:
conda activate spyder
spyder
To update the Python environment in Mambaforge use:
mamba activate spyder
mamba update --all
To update the Python environment in Anaconda use:
conda activate spyder
conda update --all -c conda-forge
JupyterLab env
To create a new Python environment for the latest version of the JupyterLab IDE (you may have to specify the latest version number) including its optional dependencies for Mambaforge use:
mamba create -n jupyterlab jupyterlab -c conda-forge
mamba activate jupyterlab
mamba install ipython cython seaborn scikit-learn sympy openpyxl xlrd xlsxwriter lxml sqlalchemy nodejs ipywidgets plotly jupyterlab-variableinspector ipympl pyqt
mamba create -n jupyterlab4rc jupyterlab -c "conda-forge/label/jupyterlab_rc"
mamba activate jupyterlab4rc
mamba install ipython cython seaborn scikit-learn sympy openpyxl xlrd xlsxwriter lxml sqlalchemy nodejs ipywidgets plotly jupyterlab-variableinspector ipympl pyqt
For Anaconda use:
conda create -n jupyterlab jupyterlab -c conda-forge -c conda-forge
conda activate jupyterlab
conda install ipython cython seaborn scikit-learn sympy openpyxl xlrd xlsxwriter lxml sqlalchemy nodejs ipywidgets plotly jupyterlab-variableinspector ipympl pyqt -c conda-forge
To launch JupyterLab in Mambaforge use:
mamba activate jupyterlab
jupyter lab
To launch JupyterLab in Anaconda use:
conda activate jupyterlab
jupyter lab
To update the Python environment in Mambaforge use:
mamba activate jupyterlab
mamba update --all
To update the Python environment in Anaconda use:
conda activate jupyterlab
conda update --all -c conda-forge
VSCode env
To create a new Python environment for the latest version of the Visual Studio Code IDE in Mambaforge use:
mamba create -n vscode python=3.11 notebook cython seaborn scikit-learn sympy openpyxl xlrd xlsxwriter lxml sqlalchemy nodejs ipywidgets plotly ipympl pyqt
In Anaconda, the base Python environment is normally used with Visual Studio Code.
Visual Studio Code needs to be installed separately using the appropriate package for your Operating System.
Once installed, launch Visual Studio Code using the start menu shortcut. Alternatively launch it from the Mambaforge Prompt (Windows)/Terminal (Linux) using:
mamba activate vscode
code
The Python extension should be installed within Visual Studio Code.
The Python Interpretter should be selected. In Visual Studio Code press ctrl, ⇧ and p to open up the command palette. Search for interpretter and select Python: Select Interpretter. Change the interpretter to the vscode Python environment or base Python environment.