Installing VPython for Macintosh OS 9 (unsupported)

Important: This is a limited, out of date version and is no longer supported.

You may wish to print this page for reference while installing VPython.

Recommended system configuration:

   PowerPC (will not run on old 68000 Macs)
   G3 or G4 processor (runs slowly on earlier PowerPC Macs)
   At least 64 MB of memory (runs very slowly if virtual memory is used). More memory is better!
   OS 8.1 or above. Runs on OS X in Classic mode.

Installing VPython (Python 2.2.1 plus the Visual module):

Step 1:

Install Python 2.2: Go to Jack's MacPython Page, download MacPython221full.bin or MacPython221full.hqx and install.

Step 2:

In the Python folder (where Python was installed), run ConfigurePythonClassic by double-clicking on it.

Step 3:

Download the file VPythonMac-2002-07-22.sit.hqx and decompress it.
Open the resulting folder and move all the files in it into the Python folder.
This will overwrite the existing file PythonCore.
If for some reason you wish to save the original PythonCore, it is important to move it out of the Python folder.
The VPython files include the following items:

   * PythonCore (which replaces the original PythonCore from your installation)
   * visual (a folder containing modules needed by the Visual 3D library)
   * Programs (a folder containing VPython demo programs)
   * Doc (complete documentation on Python as well as VPython; start in index.html)

Note: Keyboard interactions have not been implemented yet on the Macintosh version of VPython.

Step 4:

You may need to install OpenGL. OpenGL extensions come with OS 9.0 or higher, but not with previous systems. You can download these extensions from Apple.

After installing VPython, later versions of individual component zip files can be downloaded. These components are included with the complete VPython package for Mac but can be updated without reinstalling the whole package

For help with installation problems, see FAQ or
     Read archives or subscribe to the VPython user group

To start using VPython:

Running a program:

Drag a program file (for example, bounce2.py, found in the /Programs/Demos folder) onto PythonInterpreter, an application in the Python folder. To zoom into and out of the scene, drag the mouse with the CONTROL button held down. To rotate around the center of the scene, hold down the SHIFT key and drag the mouse.

Writing a program:

Use the editor of your choice. BBEdit Lite (http://www.barebones.com/products) is a nice free editor. Save your program as a text file, and (from the Finder) drag the file onto PythonInterpreter. For cross-platform portability, save your program files with a ".py" extension.

In the future we hope to offer a working Mac version of IDLE, the standard Python interactive development environment, from which you can edit and run programs, and which offers various useful features such as colorization of code, Python formatting options, and help locating errors. The version of IDLE that came with your Python installation does not work properly with VPython.

The IDE that comes with the Python installation can also be used as an editor, but if you run a program from the IDE, when you stop running the IDE quits as well, and you have to restart it.