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Binaries packages for Linux, Mac OS X and Windows can be found on these pages. The source code, available below, should compile on most Linux and Mac systems as well as under Cygwin on Windows. However, I only have limited access to various distributions and versions of these operating systems. If you try to compile it yourself and encounter problems, please let me know.
After installation, the command cadabra will start the command line version and xcadabra will start the graphical front-end; on some systems there will also be an entry for Cadabra in your Applications or Start menu.
Linux
The latest Ubuntu version, 'Karmic Koala', has cadabra packages in the standard repositories. Just install with
sudo apt-get install cadabra
or use e.g. synaptic. You need to read no further.
Users of older versions of Ubuntu should preferably add the cadabra repository to their system and then install cadabra using any of the standard installation tools (e.g. synaptic or apt-get). To do this, add the following lines to /etc/apt/sources.list: (you can also do this using the GUI by going "Administration/Software Sources", clicking on the "Third Party Software" tab and then clicking "Add" for each line)
Jaunty (9.04):
deb http://ppa.launchpad.net/kasper-peeters/ubuntu jaunty main
deb-src http://ppa.launchpad.net/kasper-peeters/ubuntu jaunty main
Intrepid (8.10):
deb http://ppa.launchpad.net/kasper-peeters/ubuntu intrepid main
deb-src http://ppa.launchpad.net/kasper-peeters/ubuntu intrepid main
Hardy (8.04):
deb http://ppa.launchpad.net/kasper-peeters/ubuntu hardy main
deb-src http://ppa.launchpad.net/kasper-peeters/ubuntu hardy main
You may also want to install the pgp key which is used to sign these packages; import this file using the "Authentication" tab.
You can then install cadabra using
sudo apt-get install cadabra
or using any of the graphical installation tools. You will automatically be notified about updates.
Optionally, install the cmtt12.ttf font into your .fonts directory to improve the GUI display.
If you want to install the packages by hand (using e.g. gdebi or dpkg), use the direct link to the modglue packages and the direct link to the cadabra packages.
After installation, the command cadabra will start the command line version and xcadabra will start the graphical front-end (or choose cadabra from the Applications/Education menu).
Cadabra is now also part of Debian, and is available in the 'sid (unstable)' branch. Thanks to Gürkan Sengün for making this happen.
Packes for older Debian systems (Etch and Lenny) are available thanks to the work of Burkhard Bunk. Please consult the Debian packages page at the physics department of Humboldt University Berlin for instructions on how to install these. Note that their repository does not have the latest Cadabra version.
The packages below were created and tested on Fedora 9. These packages are relocatable. If you need packages for a different version of Fedora, please drop me an email.
| package | Fedora 9 RPM | Fedora 9 SRPM |
|---|---|---|
| breqn | breqn-0.94-1.i386.rpm | breqn-0.94-1.src.rpm |
| LiE | lie-2.2.2-1.i386.rpm | lie-2.2.2-1.src.rpm |
| libmodglue | modglue-1.13-1.i386.rpm | modglue-1.13-1.src.rpm |
| Cadabra | cadabra-1.16-1.i386.rpm | cadabra-1.16-1.src.rpm |
| extra font (optional) | cmtt12.ttf |
Store the font in the .fonts directory in your home directory; this will improve the GUI display.
After installation, the command cadabra will start the command line version and xcadabra will start the graphical front-end (or choose cadabra from the Applications/Education menu).
Packages for Cadabra, modglue and LiE are available in the science overlay of Gentoo. Users can access the science overlay using the layman utility:
- Type "layman -a science" to add the science overlay,
- add "sci-mathematics/lie", "sci-libs/modglue" and "sci-mathematics/cadabra" to your package.keywords (in /etc/portage)
- Type "emerge cadabra" to install cadabra and its dependencies.
Thanks to François Bissey for making this happen.
Other Linux distributions
If you need a package for a different Linux distribution, contact me by email or try to compile from source.
Mac OS X
Thanks to Kevin Horton, Martin Costabel and Pierre-Henri Lavigne, you can now get cadabra through Fink, for Tiger (10.4) and Leopard (10.5) systems on Intel and PPC. For more details see the Fink database record for cadabra. The breqn, LiE and modglue packages will be installed automatically.
Note: Installing through Fink can take quite a while, because various libraries and other tools will have to be installed if you do not have an up to date Fink installation already. Be patient, it will complete eventually.
Follow these steps:
- Make sure that you have the Apple XCode tools installed (this requires a free registration).
- Install Fink and update the basic installation according to the instructions on the Fink web site.
- Enable unstable packages (there is an option in the Fink Commander, or you can edit "/sw/etc/fink.conf" or run "fink configure").
- Make sure that the "SelfUpdateMethod" in "/sw/etc/fink.conf" is set to "rsync".
- Rebuild the fink index and package list with "fink selfupdate; fink update-all"
- Install cadabra with "fink install cadabra". When asked about your TeX installation, choose option 1. Do the same when asked about ghostscript and giflib.
- If you already have an installation of TeX, copy the newly installed "breqn" style files to your style directory using "cp -R /sw/share/texmf-local/tex/latex/breqn/ ~/Library/texmf/tex/latex/macros/".
After installation, the command cadabra will start the command line version and xcadabra will start the graphical front-end. If it doesn't, send me an email.
Thanks to Greg Wright, cadabra is available for Mac OS X users through MacPorts; see the record for cadabra for details and the currently available version.
Simply type "sudo port install cadabra" and all required software will be installed automatically (note: this may install some software which you already have installed from other sources). If you do not want the graphical user interface, add the +no_gui option at the end.
After installation, the command cadabra will start the command line version and xcadabra will start the graphical front-end.
Windows
A new but still somewhat experimental Windows version is now available (for XP; there is a problem on Vista which is being worked on). If you have tried to install the Windows version before, please try again and let me know if things are any better now. You will need to:
- Install TeX (tested with a full install of MikTeX version 2.7)
- Install Cadabra using the installer (latest update: 8-Apr-2009).
- Go to the MikTeX settings panel, click the 'Roots' tab and add the path C:\Program Files\Cadabra\texinputs to the list (you may have to adjust this if you installed cadabra in a non-standard location).
- Install the font cmtt12.ttf (go to the control panel, click 'fonts', then 'install new font' from the 'file' menu).
I would appreciate if you can send me an email about your experience with the Windows version, so I can get rid of any remaining problems.
You can of course also run the Linux version of Cadabra on Windows by installing a virtual machine, installing Ubuntu Linux in it, and then installing the Ubuntu packages listed above. This will automatically install all required additional libraries, so it is a relatively painless procedure (and it has the added benefit that you can also run other Linux software from within Windows). This is easier than you might think.
Virtual machines used by cadabra users include VirtualBox and VMware
If instead you want to install Ubuntu alongside a Windows installation, this is a one-click procedure with Wubi.
Source code
Installing from source should be no harder than with any other well-behaved GNU tools, i.e. it should be as simple as configure/make/make install. However, you will need to have some additional libraries and tools installed before you can compile cadabra itself. In particular,
- gmp (configured with --enable-cxx) (on Debian, apt-get install libgmp3-dev libgmpxx3)
- pcre with C++ wrapper enabled (on Debian, apt-get install libpcre3-dev lib)
- LiE (no Debian package available, but see the Ubuntu package above)
In order to compile the graphical front-end (add the --enable-gui flag to configure) you also need
- gtk+
- gtkmm
- dvipng
- LaTeX
- the breqn package for LaTeX
Cadabra's configure script will look for these libraries and programs, and tell you when you need to install them. Consult the documentation of these programs/libraries for installation instructions.
You then need to compile and install my modglue library, which is used to connect the various pieces of cadabra together. Download this version here, since it's tuned to cadabra:
This should be a matter of configure/make/make install. Finally, compile and install cadabra itself,
Again, this should be a matter of configure/make/make install. If compilation succeeds, you can also try "make test" for some self-tests (which should all pass).
As always, please mail me if you need help.
After installation, the command cadabra will start the command line version and xcadabra will start the graphical front-end.
Development version
I am testing the upcoming public release; the development version is at 1.20.
If you want to be on the bleeding edge, download the latest development version here (last update: 06-Feb-2010).
The latest version can always be obtained from the public GIT repository at http://repo.or.cz/w/cadabra.git.
If you play with the development version and find any problems, please let me know.