This post documents the installation of Ipython in Windows 8.
As an example of Don Knuth’s Literate Programming, Ipython is simply great.
One can devise the mathematical equations of a model, code the numerics and run the program against data.The full lifecycle of science, in a single sheet.

1) Install the “Python” runtime. Version 3.x is recommended, from this link.

2) Suppose that the version has been installed in: “C:\Python3.4”. Add this directory as well as “C:\Python3.4\Scripts” to the system path

3) Save this file in the same directory “C:\Python3.4”, and running cmd as administrator, from a shell issue

python ez_setup.py

4) A C compiler is needed to compile extensions. Among various choices this is the simplest:

• Install Visual C++ 2010 Express (download).

• Install Windows SDK for Visual Studio 2010 (also know as the Windows SDK v7.1). This is required for 64bit extensions.

  Before installing the Windows SDK v7.1:

  • Do not install Microsoft Visual Studio 2010 Service Pack 1 yet. If you did then you have to reinstall everything.
    Uninstalling the Service Pack removes components so you have to reinstall Visual C++ 2010 Express again.
  • Remove all the Microsoft Visual C++ 2010 Redistributable packages from Control Panel\Programs and Features.

5 ) Create a vcvars64.bat file in C:\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft Visual Studio 10.0\VC\bin\amd64 that contains :

CALL "C:\Program Files\Microsoft SDKs\Windows\v7.1\Bin\SetEnv.cmd" /x64

6)  Issue as admin

easy_install ipython[all]

then

pip install markupsafe

Finally, run it

 
ipython notebook

After that, the page

"http://localhost:8888/tree"

will open in the browser and  under the heading Files->Upload

unzip this minimal ipython notebook and load it. The first ipython program is up: it can be executed and modified intereactively.

Categories: Computing