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help: confused about python flavors....

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  help: confused about python flavors.... amar Singh <jagteraho2006@gmail.com> - 2012-03-06 20:06 -0800
    Re: help: confused about python flavors.... Steven D'Aprano <steve+comp.lang.python@pearwood.info> - 2012-03-07 06:24 +0000
      Re: help: confused about python flavors.... Mark Lawrence <breamoreboy@yahoo.co.uk> - 2012-03-07 09:15 +0000
    Re: help: confused about python flavors.... Dennis Lee Bieber <wlfraed@ix.netcom.com> - 2012-03-07 09:41 -0500
      Re: help: confused about python flavors.... amar Singh <jagteraho2006@gmail.com> - 2012-03-07 09:16 -0800

#21304 — help: confused about python flavors....

Hi,

I am confused between plain python, numpy, scipy, pylab, matplotlib.

I have high familiarity with matlab, but the computer I use does not
have it. So moving to python.
What should I use? and the best way to use it. I will be running
matlab-like scripts sometimes on the shell prompt and sometimes on the
command line.

Please help. Thanks in advance.

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#21305

On Tue, 06 Mar 2012 20:06:37 -0800, amar Singh wrote:

> Hi,
> 
> I am confused between plain python, numpy, scipy, pylab, matplotlib.

Python is a programming language. It comes standard with many libraries 
for doing basic mathematics, web access, email, etc.

Numpy is a library for doing scientific numerical maths work and fast 
processing of numeric arrays.

Scipy is another library for scientific work. It is separate from, but 
uses, Numpy.

Matplotlib is a project for making graphing and plotting of numeric data 
easy in Python.

Pylab is a project to be Python's version of Matlab: it intends to be an 
integrated bundle of Python the programming language, Numpy, Scipy, and 
Matplotlib all in one easy-to-use application.


> I have high familiarity with matlab, but the computer I use does not
> have it. So moving to python.
> What should I use? and the best way to use it. I will be running
> matlab-like scripts sometimes on the shell prompt and sometimes on the
> command line.

Pylab is intended to be the closest to Matlab, but I don't know how close 
it is. Also, Pylab is NOT compatible with Matlab: its aim is to be an 
alternative to Matlab, not to be a clone. So it cannot run Matlab scripts.

You might also like to look at Sage:

http://www.sagemath.org/

Sage is a Python project aimed to be an alternative to Mathematica.


Ultimately, you will have to look at the packages, see their features, 
perhaps try them for a while (they are all free software, so the only 
cost is your time), and decide for yourself which one meets your needs. 
We can't answer that, because we don't know what you need.


-- 
Steven

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#21311

On 07/03/2012 06:24, Steven D'Aprano wrote:
> On Tue, 06 Mar 2012 20:06:37 -0800, amar Singh wrote:
>
>> Hi,
>>
>> I am confused between plain python, numpy, scipy, pylab, matplotlib.
>
> Python is a programming language. It comes standard with many libraries
> for doing basic mathematics, web access, email, etc.
>
> Numpy is a library for doing scientific numerical maths work and fast
> processing of numeric arrays.
>
> Scipy is another library for scientific work. It is separate from, but
> uses, Numpy.
>
> Matplotlib is a project for making graphing and plotting of numeric data
> easy in Python.
>
> Pylab is a project to be Python's version of Matlab: it intends to be an
> integrated bundle of Python the programming language, Numpy, Scipy, and
> Matplotlib all in one easy-to-use application.
>
>
>> I have high familiarity with matlab, but the computer I use does not
>> have it. So moving to python.
>> What should I use? and the best way to use it. I will be running
>> matlab-like scripts sometimes on the shell prompt and sometimes on the
>> command line.
>
> Pylab is intended to be the closest to Matlab, but I don't know how close
> it is. Also, Pylab is NOT compatible with Matlab: its aim is to be an
> alternative to Matlab, not to be a clone. So it cannot run Matlab scripts.
>
> You might also like to look at Sage:
>
> http://www.sagemath.org/
>
> Sage is a Python project aimed to be an alternative to Mathematica.
>
>
> Ultimately, you will have to look at the packages, see their features,
> perhaps try them for a while (they are all free software, so the only
> cost is your time), and decide for yourself which one meets your needs.
> We can't answer that, because we don't know what you need.
>
>

Matplotlib is excellent, it has an extensive pile of docs and examples, 
and the mailing list is extremely helpful.

-- 
Cheers.

Mark Lawrence.

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#21319

On Tue, 6 Mar 2012 20:06:37 -0800 (PST), amar Singh
<jagteraho2006@gmail.com> declaimed the following in
gmane.comp.python.general:

> Hi,
> 
> I am confused between plain python, numpy, scipy, pylab, matplotlib.
> 
> I have high familiarity with matlab, but the computer I use does not
> have it. So moving to python.
> What should I use? and the best way to use it. I will be running
> matlab-like scripts sometimes on the shell prompt and sometimes on the
> command line.
> 

	If Matlab compatibility is a high constraint, I'll speak heresy and
suggest you might look at Octave
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GNU_Octave

	Python is stand-alone programming/scripting language. Numpy is an
extension package adding array/matrix math operations but the syntax
won't be a direct match to Matlab; Scipy is an extension package that,
well, extends Numpy. Matplotlib is a separate package for graphical
plotting of array data. {simplistic explanation}

-- 
	Wulfraed                 Dennis Lee Bieber         AF6VN
        wlfraed@ix.netcom.com    HTTP://wlfraed.home.netcom.com/

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#21326

On Mar 7, 9:41 am, Dennis Lee Bieber <wlfr...@ix.netcom.com> wrote:
> On Tue, 6 Mar 2012 20:06:37 -0800 (PST), amar Singh
> <jagteraho2...@gmail.com> declaimed the following in
> gmane.comp.python.general:
>
> > Hi,
>
> > I am confused between plain python, numpy, scipy, pylab, matplotlib.
>
> > I have high familiarity with matlab, but the computer I use does not
> > have it. So moving to python.
> > What should I use? and the best way to use it. I will be running
> > matlab-like scripts sometimes on the shell prompt and sometimes on the
> > command line.
>
>         If Matlab compatibility is a high constraint, I'll speak heresy and
> suggest you might look at Octavehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GNU_Octave
>
>         Python is stand-alone programming/scripting language. Numpy is an
> extension package adding array/matrix math operations but the syntax
> won't be a direct match to Matlab; Scipy is an extension package that,
> well, extends Numpy. Matplotlib is a separate package for graphical
> plotting of array data. {simplistic explanation}
>
> --
>         Wulfraed                 Dennis Lee Bieber         AF6VN
>         wlfr...@ix.netcom.com    HTTP://wlfraed.home.netcom.com/

Thanks everyone for helping me on this.

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