PSRCHIVE: Third Party Software

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Third Party Software

New users should note that if you are installing the software at an institution that already has the required third party packages (e.g. Swinburne, ATNF Epping and Parkes), then you can skip this section.

If PSRCHIVE is not finding a package that is installed on your system, please see the Package Detection notes.

Necessary

These packages provide basic functionality and must be installed before attempting to compile or install PSRCHIVE.

A Fortran, C, and C++ compiler; for example, the GNU Compiler Collection (GCC). PSRCHIVE currently compiles using GCC release series 3 and 4.

A Fast Fourier Transform (FFT) library, such as a single-precision version of the Fastest Fourier Transform in the West (FFTW). Please see our Download and Installation instructions. (PSRCHIVE can also make use of several vendor-supplied FFT libraries.)

Mac users only may need to install some additional packages.

Optional

PSRCHIVE can compile without these packages, but its subsequent use may be limited.

TEMPO2 pulsar timing data analysis software, maintained by George Hobbs at the Australia Telescope National Facility. PSRCHIVE may require TEMPO2 in order to handle PSRFITS files that make use of the TEMPO2 Predictor to model pulse phase. Please see our Download and Installation instructions.

TEMPO pulsar timing data analysis software, maintained at Princeton University and the Australia Telescope National Facility. PSRCHIVE utilizes TEMPO to generate the polynomials used to predict pulse phase.

The NASA CFITSIO subroutine library. This is necessary to compile the PSRFITS plugin. PSRFITS is the format used by the ATNF Wideband Correlator at Parkes.

PGPLOT Graphics Subroutine Library. PGPLOT is used to prepare publication-quality plots. Please see our Download and Installation instructions.

Troll Tech's Qt Open Source Edition Version 3. Qt is the system upon which the K Desktop Environment (KDE) is based, and it is used to build optional PSRCHIVE graphical user interfaces. Please see our Download and Installation instructions.

To use rhythm, you will also need the Qt PGPLOT device handler, qtdriv.

For CVS Access

If you wish to check out and compile the code from the CVS repository, you will need the following:

The Concurrent Versions System (CVS).

Secure Shell (SSH) version 2, such as OpenSSH or a suitable alternative.

The GNU autotools.

Group Installation Notes

It is often useful to install third party packages in a place that can be accessed and used by everyone in your research group. At the ATNF and Swinburne University, pulsar group software is installed in an NFS mounted disk named by the PSRHOME environment variable. The LOGIN_ARCH environment variable is used to further qualify the location of architecture-dependent executables and data.

As an example, assume that the PSRHOME environment variable is set to /psr and the LOGIN_ARCH environment variable is set to linux. Third party packages should be installed in the directory /psr/packages/linux.