Appendix: Build From Source

Installation: install.sh

A script is available for automatically building and installing the AstroScheduller Package on Linux/MacOS, but please note that the script has NOT BEEN FULLY TESTED on different devices and platforms at the point. The platforms that have been tested so far are as follows:

Ubuntu 20.04 LTS
Google Colab [Demo]

To use the script, run the following command in the terminal:

git clone https://github.com/xiawenke/AstroScheduller.git && cd ./AstroScheduller && bash ./install.sh

If the script does not work properly, please continue to the following classic way of installation.

In addition, AstroScheduller would like your help to improve the script (such as report an issue or even commit your script to the project).

Installation

AstroScheduller Python Package

Prerequisites

There are several python packages are required to run the AstroScheduller are listed below. All those packages are included in a standard Anaconda environment.

numpy
matplotlib
requests

The Astropy Package is not required by the AstroScheduller. However, it is highly recommended, since several AstroScheduller functions are compatible with Astropy objects (such as coordinates and time objects).

Using pip/setup.py

Firstly clone the project from the Github before installing AstroScheduller with the setup.py:

git clone https://github.com/xiawenke/AstroScheduller.git

Switch to the AstroScheduller directory:

cd ./AstroScheduller

Run the installation:

pip install ./

If pip for the Python on the device is not working for some reason, the following command can be used instead. However, please make sure all the packages required in section Prerequisites are installed and work properly.

python setup.py install

Once the installation process is completed, you may test the package by the following commands to see if it works:

(base) wenky@Wenkys-MacBook-Pro GitHub % python
Python 3.x.xx
Type "help", "copyright", "credits" or "license" for more information.
>>> import astroscheduller
>>>

So far you have finished with the Python part of the installation; the GoLang part of the AstroScheduller (called the AstroSchedullerGo) is not usually included in the Python package. The pre-build version of the AstroSchedullerGo Module is automatically downloaded from Github as the package has been imported if the internet is connected as well as a pre-built version for the platform is available.

If errors such as “The pre-build version of the AstroScheduller Module is not available” and “OSError: /xxx/xxx.so: invalid ELF header” is reported, it means there is no pre-build module available for your platform. In this case, please see Install the AstroSchedullerGo Modules for more information.

AstroSchedullerGo Modules

There are several pre-built versions of AstroSchedullerGo are provided, even though they are not guaranteed to perfectly work on all the devices and platforms.

To check if a pre-build version of the module is available for your platform, use the following Python scripts:

import astroscheduller as ash
ash.core().update()

The AstroSchedullerGo Module will be downloaded if a pre-build version is found; otherwise, an exception “The pre-build version of the AstroScheduller Module is not available” will be reported.

What if there is no pre-build version available for my platform?

If you are unfortunately not to be provided with a pre-build version, you may need to compile the source code yourself. The compilation process will be easy if you already have a GoLang environment on your device. To install the GoLang, see the official documentation Install the latest version of Go.

By using the following command to build the module:

cd /PATH/TO/ASTROSCHEDULLER/ && go build -buildmode=c-shared -o _scheduller.so ./*.go

For Windows users, use the following:

cd /PATH/TO/ASTROSCHEDULLER/ && go build -buildmode=c-shared -o _scheduller.so

Then, use the Python script below to install the module:

import astroscheduller as ash
ash.core().install("/PATH/TO/ASTROSCHEDULLER/_scheduller.so")