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Setup our environment

In this lecture, we will recap the key technologies needed for the Usable AI course and set up the development environment.

We will cover the setup of essential tools for the course: Python and related packages. We will also discuss the basic usage of GitHub and Terminal commands.

We recommend the use of Jupyter Notebooks, VSCode or Google Colab for the course.

If you are new to these tools, follow the instructions below to set up your environment and check out the tutorials to get started.

If you are unfamiliar with the terminal or Git, or if you would like to refresh your knowledge, we recommend visiting the other setup section of this course.

Tutorials:

Cloning the repository

Github is a platform where you can store your code and collaborate with others. Git is a version control system that allows you to track changes in your code. If something goes wrong, you can always revert to a previous version.

To get started, you need to clone the repository to your local machine. This will create a copy of the repository on your computer.

  1. Installing GIT:
  2. Windows: Download Git for Windows and install. You can use Git Bash or Command Prompt after installation.
  3. macOS: Git often comes pre-installed. If not, install Xcode Command Line Tools (xcode-select --install) or get the official installer.

  4. Linux: Install via your package manager, e.g. sudo apt-get install git (Debian/Ubuntu) or sudo dnf install git (Fedora).

  5. Configure Git (All Platforms): After installation, open a terminal and set your name and email for commits: 

    git config --global user.name "Your Name"
git config --global user.email "your.email@example.com"
    You can check your configuration with: 
    git config --list

  6. Navigate to the Repository:

  7. Clone the Repository:

    • Click on the "Code" button at the top right corner of the page.
    • Copy the URL under "Clone with HTTPS".
    • Open a terminal on your computer and run git clone [URL] (replace [URL] with the copied URL).

    Note: You can also use the download ZIP option if you don't want to use Git. Note: If you are using SSH, you can use the SSH URL instead of HTTPS.

  8. Navigate to the Repository:

    • Go to the cloned repository on your local machine.

The files in the repository are now available on your local machine. You now have access to the course materials in your local environment.

Updating the Repository

In case there are updates to the repository, you can pull the changes to your local machine. This will ensure that you have the latest version of the course materials.

  1. Navigate to the Repository:

    • Open a terminal and navigate to the cloned repository on your local machine.

  2. Pull the Changes:

    • Run git pull origin main to pull the changes from the main branch of the repository.

The changes from the main branch will be merged into your local repository. You now have the latest version of the course materials on your local machine.

Setting up the Python Environment

We suggest using Miniforge or Miniconda to install python packages and setup your environment. You can also use Anaconda, but it is a larger package and may take longer to install. Alternatively, you can also setup your own python environment using pip and virtualenv (this approach will not be covered in this document).

Step 1: Install Miniforge

Miniforge is a minimal installer for Conda, a package manager and an environment manager. Here's how to install it:

  1. Download Miniforge:

    • Visit the Miniforge download page.
    • Choose the version suitable for your operating system (Windows, macOS, or Linux).
    • Download the appropriate installer.

  2. Install Miniforge:

    • Windows: Run the downloaded .exe file and follow the on-screen instructions.
    • macOS/Linux: Open a terminal, navigate to the folder containing the downloaded file, and run bash Miniforge3-MacOSX-arm64.sh (adjust the filename as needed).

  3. Verify the Installation:

    • Open a new terminal window.
      • On Windows, you can look for the Miniforge Prompt.
    • Type conda list. If Miniforge is installed correctly, you'll see a list of installed packages.

Step 2: Create a Conda Environment

Creating a separate environment for your Data Science projects is good practice:

  1. Create a New Environment for this course:

    • Run the command: conda env create -f environment.yml. This will create a new environment called usableai with all the necessary packages installed.

  2. Activate the Environment:

    • Run: conda activate usableai.

  3. Launch Jupyter Lab:

    • Run: jupyter lab.
    • This will open Jupyter Lab in your default web browser.

Step 4: Verify Installation

Make sure everything is installed correctly:

  1. Open a New Notebook in Jupyter Lab:

    • In Jupyter Lab, create a new notebook.

  2. Test the Packages:

    • Try importing the packages: import numpy as np, import pandas as pd, import matplotlib.pyplot as plt.
    • If there are no errors, the packages are installed correctly.

Additional Tips

  • Updating Conda: Keep Conda and your packages updated with conda update conda and conda update --all.
  • Managing Environments: View your environments with conda env list and switch between them using conda activate <env_name>.
  • Finding Packages: To find available packages, use conda search <package_name>.
  • Conda Cheat Sheet: For more commands, see the Conda Cheat Sheet.