Installation trouble for Python 3.4. Version inconsistency, Difficultiy to choose right version

[SU-]

Hi,

I'm newbee in in this field but  too old in IT and Math.

I installed Python 3.4 on Windows XP. Works fine .
I've installed prerequisite packages mentioned on Lmfit web site by choosing rihgt version of them for XP.
They all work.
Then I' try to installed Lmfit but couldn't find any hint,info to understand which version should be installed or whether  it dosn't support Python 3.4.
There is also confusing info saying that Lmfit works Python 2.7 - 3.5... (no 3.4) but some other document mentions 3.4
It is also confusing supporting  2.7 and 3.5 by skipping 3.4. So I gave a shut and get error saying Python 3.5 is reqired.
It seems the only solution  installing  Ptyhon 2.7 .Am I correct?

I've also found different versions of Lmfit but there was no info to make sure which one should be downloaded or none .
It could be nice to make supported environment / major softwares clear.
I suggest to update WEB sites if there are such limitations.

One more thing.
numPy is one of the prereqs module and I've installed it but Lmfit (by pip) start to installed it all over again.It would be nice if Lmfit could check whether prereqs have already been installed.
 
Thank you for all to spent even a minute to read my post.
Kind regards

[Dima]

If you are new to python, I would recommend to uninstall the python you have installed, and then download and install the anaconda distribution from https://www.anaconda.com/distribution/ . Choose version python 3.7.

After that, from Anaconda prompt, run 'pip install lmfit'. This is sufficient to start using lmfit. (I have never tried it on Windows XP, only Windows 8 and 10. Also, pip requires Internet connection on your computer to download the package).

Regarding the python versions, there are two major incompatible branches: 2.x and 3.x. The latest in each branch currently is 2.7 and 3.7. Therefore, the requirement >=2.6 means either 2.6 or 2.7, but not any of 3.x. The requirement >= 3.5 means 3.5, 3.6, 3.7.

Best regards,

Dima.

[SU-]

  Thank you Dima.

  Python 3.7 dosen't run on Windows XP. It's clear. If I useone of  3.x series the only option is 3.4  for XP.

  I've tried installing P2.7 stand alone  and by Anaconda  with no success.

  For P34 works on XP (I've installed and tested)  I'm looking for a suitable version (if there is) of Lmfit to run with Python 3.4.

  I've spent days, but I'm not giving up and  keep digging :)

 
 

[Matt Newville]

On Fri, Sep 6, 2019 at 3:24 AM SU- <seval....@gmail.com> wrote:

Hi,

I'm newbee in in this field but  too old in IT and Math.

I installed Python 3.4 on Windows XP. Works fine .
I've installed prerequisite packages mentioned on Lmfit web site by choosing rihgt version of them for XP.
They all work.
Then I' try to installed Lmfit but couldn't find any hint,info to understand which version should be installed or whether  it dosn't support Python 3.4.
There is also confusing info saying that Lmfit works Python 2.7 - 3.5... (no 3.4) but some other document mentions 3.4
It is also confusing supporting  2.7 and 3.5 by skipping 3.4. So I gave a shut and get error saying Python 3.5 is reqired.
It seems the only solution  installing  Ptyhon 2.7 .Am I correct?

That is not really correct.  As Dima said, if you are starting out, using Python 3.7 is recommended.

What is not correct is your starting premise of "I installed Python 3.4 on Windows XP. Works fine.".

Windows XP reached its end of life 5 years ago.  In fact, Windows 7 will reach its end of line in Jan, 2020.

Coincidentally, Python 2.7 will also reach its end of life in Jan, 2020.  Python 3.4 reached its end of life over a year ago.  I am not sure when Python 3.5 will beretired, but I would expect that to happen within a year. 

So, "Python 3.4 on Windows XP" does not "run fine".   It is running without any support or security updates.

Lmfit is an all volunteer effort.  We really only support one version at a time, have no updates for older series other than to say "get the latest version".   We try to support versions of numppy and scipy that were released within the past two years, but don't actually guarantee that.   The next version (0.9.15) will be released before the end of the year and will be the last version to suppot Python 2.7.  At the same time, we will release lmfit 1.0 which will be approximately feature-equivalent to 0.9.15 but work only with Python 3.5 and higher.

I've also found different versions of Lmfit but there was no info to make sure which one should be downloaded or none .
It could be nice to make supported environment / major softwares clear.
I suggest to update WEB sites if there are such limitations.

One more thing.
numPy is one of the prereqs module and I've installed it but Lmfit (by pip) start to installed it all over again.It would be nice if Lmfit could check whether prereqs have already been installed.
 

It does.  That how pip works.  But, by default, pip also installs the latest version of the package you ask for, so if you do

    pip install lmfit

it will install the latest version of lmfit.  And that depends on numpy >= 1.10 and scipy >= 0.19, so if those packages are too old, they will be updated.

 

Basically:

  Don't use Windows XP.  Starting now with Windows 7 would be a very bad idea. 

  Don't use Python 3.4.  Starting now with Python 2.7 would be a very bad idea.

If you insist on running an out-dated OS or an out-dated verson of Python, you won't be able to use the latest version of lmfit or many other packages.  Off hand, I do not recall which versions of lmfit support Python 3.4.  Older versions can be found at github, but that is all the hint or support I will offer for finding or using older versions.

--Matt

[Faustin Carter]

Matt is right in principle that you should upgrade, but I understand that sometimes that just isn't possible due to old hardware constraints, crappy vendor software constraints, etc... I've had to deal with some form of that in every lab I've ever worked in.

I poked through the version history on GitHub and it looks like lmfit version 0.9.0rc1 is the first version to explicitly support python 3.4, so you should try installing that version from PyPI with pip. If that doesn't work, then work your way back through versions from there.

I strongly recommend starting fresh with Anaconda 3.4 if possible as it will simplify the numpy, scipy, and matplotlib installs and keep you away from needing admin access on Windows. You should also try your installs in a fresh python environment. 

In the future, learning how to poke through old versions of code and read the install docs and requirements files and learning how to use virtual environments are going to be crucial skills for you to acquire if you are going to keep having to use out of date software.

Cheers,

Faustin

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[seval.uzunal]

Thank you for contribution.

 I'm well aware of the difficulties to suport old versions and start with latest ones is better.

I do have XP  and canot buy a new personal computer nowadays.

I'll not be Python developer, all I want is to understand scientific modeling ploting approaches.

By getting clue from you I've just complete instaling P27 and major package  including Lmfit

I do beleive in I'll learn a lot  by runing  them even though they are expired.

Thank you for all .