libRASCH

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The instructions are valid for versions up to 0.7. Most of the instructions are also valid for version 0.8; there should be no differences for the Linux version.

To use libRASCH version 0.8 and later on your Windows system, some DLL's from the Visual Studio 2005 development system are needed. If you do not have VS2005 installed on your system, you need to install the missing DLL's using a program ('vcredist_x86.exe') from Microsoft. You will find the program at Microsoft download page for vcredist_x86.exe. There you will find also a detailed description what the program will install.

If you have problems installing/using the binary distribution, please contact me (librasch@gmail.com).

When you want to compile libRASCH on your Windows system, Visual Studio 2005 is needed for version 0.8. A detailed description explaining how to compile libRASCH comes with the source distribution ('how_to_compile_on_win32.txt').

LIBRASCH_HOME is the top most directory of the libRASCH source code directory. The following topics are described below

• prerequisites for libRASCH
• Installation Linux
• Installation Windows (source code)
• Installation Windows (binary distribution)
• Installation of the Perl and Python interfaces
• Installation of the Octave, Matlab and Scilab interfaces

Prerequisites for libRASCH

On Windows, you need to install the libraries listed below only, if you want to compile libRASCH and RASCHlab. If you are using the binary distribution, the needed dll's will be installed when installing libRASCH.

During the installation of the libRASCH binary distribution on Windows, the following dll's are installed in the Windows system directory:

• zlib.dll
• intl.dll
• iconv.dll
• libxml2.dll
• libxslt.dll

!!! Attention !!!
If one of these dll's is already in the Windows system directory, then this dll will be overwritten (with the one coming in the libRASCH install file).

If you are using a modern Linux distribution, the following libraries should be already installed. If you have problems compiling libRASCH please check if an accompanying *-devel package is available and that it is installed.

gettext & libiconv

At the web-site of the gettext-win32 project - http://sourceforge.net/projects/gettext - you will find pre-compiled binaries for Win32. Please get the 'gettext' AND 'libiconv' distribution. For gettext, the runtime distribution is sufficient.

libxml2

At the web-site of the libxml2 project - www.xmlsoft.org - you will find pre-compiled binaries for Win32. If you are running Windows and zlib is not already installed on your system, please check if pre-compiled zlib binaries are available from the place where you get the libxml2-win32 version.

zlib (for Win32 only if it is not available from the libxml2-win32-download)

At the web-site of the zlib project - http://www.gzip.org/zlib/ - you will find pre-compiled binaries for Win32.

Qt (Linux only)

For the view-plugins under Linux, Qt is used as the GUI environment. Please check that Qt and the Qt-devel packages are installed. These can be found at www.trolltech.com.

Preparing the libraries on Windows

After the above mentioned libraries are downloaded and un-zipped, you have to tell the C-compiler where it can find the header-, lib- and dll-files. On my system I created the directories 'c:\usr\include', 'c:\usr\lib'. In these directories I copied the header-files ('include') and the lib- and dll-files ('lib'). Then I added these directories to the include-path and library-path in VisualStudio.

Installation under Linux

The build-system for libRASCH works with the usual commands:

• ./configure
• make
• make install (as root)

Configure

Run './configure' in LIBRASCH_HOME to set the default configuration. Available options to configure:

• --prefix=DIR : install libRASCH in directory DIR (default: /usr/local)
• --plugins=DIR : install plugins in directory DIR (default: $prefix/lib/librasch/plugins)
• --dont-write-config : do not create librasch.conf
• --general-config : write librasch.conf in directory '/etc' instead of the $HOME directory
• --oct-dir=DIR : directory where libRASCH octave-files are installed (default: depends on octave installation)
• --no-raschlab : do not compile and install RASCHlab
• --raschlab_prefix=DIR : install directory for RASCHlab (default: /usr/local/bin)
• --doc-prefix=DIR : directory where doc's will be installed (default: /usr/share/doc)
• --dont-install-doc : do not install documentation
• --force : write files even an error occurred
• --help : list the available options

Build libRASCH, libRASCH interfaces and RASCHlab

The './configure' script tries to check what languages (Perl and Python) and what programs (Octave, Scilab and Matlab) are installed. For the found languages/systems, the interfaces will be build when building libRASCH.

Additional to libRASCH, RASCHlab is build. If you do not want to build RASCHlab, use the '--no-raschlab' option when calling './configure'. The default installation place of RASCHlab is '/usr/local/bin'. This can be overwritten using the '--raschlab_prefix' option.

Just type 'make' in LIBRASCH_HOME to compile the library, all plugins, interfaces and RASCHlab.

The library-files (librasch.so*) will be at LIBRASCH_HOME. The plugin-files will be at 'LIBRASCH_HOME/plugins/bin'.

If you don't want to compile the view-plugins, use 'make skipgui'.

Installation

With 'make install' in LIBRASCH_HOME you install libRASCH and RASCHlab in the directory selected with './configure'. If you choose to install libRASCH in a system directory (e.g. in '/usr/local/...'), you have to be 'root' when installing libRASCH.

If the installation path (e.g. '/usr/local/lib') is not in your library path (LD_LIBRARY_PATH or set in '/etc/ld.so.conf'), add this path to LD_LIBRARY_PATH or add it to '/etc/ld.so.conf'. If you added the path to the file '/etc/ld.so.conf' you have to run ldconfig (as root; when using a RedHat distribution, you have to type '/sbin/ldconfig' to run ldconfig).

Additionally, the interfaces for Perl, Python and Octave are installed. For the installation of the Matlab and Scilab interfaces, see below.

Compiler/Linker options

After the installation, the script 'librasch-config' will be installed in the 'PREFIX/bin' directory (PREFIX choosed during 'configure', default: '/usr/local/bin'). The script returns the needed options for the compiler and linker. The following options are available:

• --cflags -- returns the C compiler options for libRASCH
• --libs -- returns the linker options for libRASCH
• --prefix -- returns installation directory
• --plugin-dir -- returns directory where plugins were installed
• --version -- returns the number of the installed libRASCH version

Installation under Windows (source code)

Build

For building libRASCH and RASCHlab under Windows, the Compiler from Microsoft is needed. The VisualStudio project files are included.

In VisualStudio, open the project-file 'librasch.dsw' in LIBRASCH_HOME. If VisualStudio asks to localize some sub-projects, press 'Cancel'. (The binary version of these plugins can be obtained from rasch@med1.med.tum.de). To compile libRASCH and the plugins select 'Erstellen->Erstellen in Stapelverarbeitung...' (don't know the English menu names, something like 'create->create in batch mode...'). If you don't have Matlab installed, don't select the Matlab sub-project. Additionally you need to add the directory 'LIBRASCH_HOME' to your library directories and 'LIBRASCH_HOME/include' to your include directories (under menu 'Extras->Options->Directories').

!!! Also be sure that you installed the libraries mentioned above (in the section 'Prerequisites') and that you told your compiler/linker where it can find the header- and lib-files of the libraries.

Compiling libRASCH and RASCHlab with 'nmake' is not working at the moment. You have to use VisualStudio. (This will be fixed in the future.)

librasch.dll (or libraschd.dll when building the debug version) are saved in LIBRASCH_HOME. The plugins are in 'LIBRASCH_HOME\plugins\bin\Debug' or 'LIBRASCH_HOME\plugins\bin\Release'.

Installation

Copy the dll-file(s) to the Windows system directory. You need also to copy the dll-files of the libraries (mentioned in section 'Prerequisites') to the Windows system directory (or add the directories to search path for dll's).

Configure

The file librasch.conf (initial version can be found in LIBRASCH_HOME) is the configuration file for libRASCH. The config-file use XML to store the configuration options.

At the moment the only configuration which is needed is the path of the plugins ('LIBRASCH_HOME\plugins\bin\[Debug|Release]').

When libRASCH is initialized, it will look for the file in 1) the current directory and 2) in the Windows directory. Choose whatever directory you like to store librasch.conf.

When libRASCH was installed using the binary distribution, the path of the plugins will be set in the Registry. The windows version of libRASCH looks first in the Registry. If no Registry entry is found, the above described directories are used to search for 'librasch.conf'.

Installation under Windows (binary distribution)

The binary distribution of libRASCH consists of:

• librasch.dll (the core library)
• libRASCH plugins
• m-files and interface-DLL for usage of libRASCH in Matlab
• RASCHlab
• documentation
• libxml2.dll and libxslt.dll (from the libxml2 project)
• intl.dll and iconv.dll (from the gettext-win32 project)
• zlib.dll (from the zlib project)

The binary distribution is an executable installing all files.

To install libRASCH and RASCHlab, just run the file downloaded (with extension '.exe'). If a version previous to 0.5.3 was installed, please remove this version before installing the new verion.

The dll's 'librasch', 'libxml2', 'libxslt', 'intl', iconv' and 'zlib' will be installed in the Windows System directory (e.g. 'C:\WINNT\System32'). The remaining files will be installed in the directory selected during the installation process. In the start menu of the current user, an 'libRASCH' entry is added. There you will find entries to RASCHlab and the documentation.

The configuration of libRASCH is done by the installer. In the Registry the path of the plugins will be set (HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE/Software/libRASCH/plugin_path). No further configuration is needed.

Installation of the Perl and Python Interfaces

Linux

The interfaces are compile and installed during building and installing libRASCH.

Perl

Go to LIBRASCH_HOME/interfaces/perl and do the following steps

  perl Makefile.PL
  make
  make install
  

Python

Go to LIBRASCH_HOME/interfaces/python and do the following steps

  python setup.py build
  python setup.py install
  

Installation of the Octave, Matlab and Scilab Interfaces

Octave

Note: At the moment only the Linux version is supported because there is no support for shared libraries in the Windows version of Octave.

The interface is compiled when building libRASCH and installed when libRASCH is installed. The m- and oct-file are installed in the $localoctfiledir (set by Octave).

If you want to install the files in a different directory, set the directory when calling configure with the option --oct-dir. In this case, you need to add this directory to your Octave LOADPATH. I have a '.octaverc' file with the following entry in my HOME directory: LOADPATH = [ ".:/home/rasch/src/librasch/interfaces/octave/m_files//:", LOADPATH ];

Matlab

Windows

When libRASCH was installed using the binary distribution, only the path to the m-files has to be set in Matlab ('File->Set Path...'). The path is 'INSTALL_DIR\matlab'. INSTALL_DIR is the directory chosen during installation.

If the source code distribution is used, the Matlab sub-project has to be compiled in VisualStudio and in Matlab the path to the m-files ('LIBRASCH_HOME\interfaces\matlab\m_files') has to be set.

Linux

The interface is compiled when building libRASCH. The interface files are saved in LIBRASCH_HOME/interfaces/matlab/m_files.

To use libRASCH in Matlab, you need to add the path to the 'm_files' directory ('LIBRASCH_HOME/interfaces/matlab/m_files') in Matlab ('File->Set Path...').

Scilab

Note: Only Scilab 2.7 and up is supported. Additionally, at the moment only the Linux version is supported, the Windows version will be supported in the near future.

The path of the Scilab directory was set when running the configure script. If the configure script prints a message, that Scilab was not found, you have to set the path by hand. In the file LIBRASCH_HOME/Makefile.incl, set the variable 'SCILAB_PATH' to the path where Scilab was installed on your system. To get this information, start Scilab and print the value of the variable 'SCI' (just type 'SCI' on the Scilab prompt).

The interface files are build when building libRASCH and saved in the directory LIBRASCH_HOME/interfaces/scilab/sci_files.

To use libRASCH in Scilab, go to the 'sci_files' directory and enter Scilab. On the first time, you need to create a Scilab library. This is done with the following command:

   genlib('librasch', './');  // this is only needed the first time
   

To use libRASCH, you need to perform the following commands after starting Scilab (assuming you are in the directory 'LIBRASCH_HOME/interfaces/scilab/sci_files'):

  exec loader.sce;
  lib('./');