Most users on Windows and Debian-derived Linux systems (including Ubuntu, Mint, etc.), should be able to install QPlot using the binary files of the most recent release.
Those who wish to use the software on other systems, or simply prefer to compile from source, may follow these instructions.
To get started, you will need these prerequisites:
If you are reading this on a Linux system, chances are you can get all of these through your distribution's package manager. For instance, on Ubuntu:
sudo apt install g++ cmake git qtbase5-dev qtbase5-dev-tools libqt5svg5-dev
On Windows you may have to install the software from the websites provided above.
Download the source for QPlot from github. Open a terminal of your choice in a location on your computer of your choice and type:
git clone https://github.com/wagenadl/qplot.git
Of course, if you prefer, there are various graphical frontends for git that you may use instead of the command line.
After downloading, enter into the downloaded folder:
cd qplot
Then, let CMake figure out whether it has all prerequisites:
cmake -S . -B build -DCMAKE_BUILD_TYPE=Release
(but first see the Critical note for Windows users, below, if you are using Windows).
Do not ignore any errors at this stage.
Next, compile the software:
cmake --build build --config Release
(The “--config Release” is only needed on Windows, but is harmless on Linux.)
On Windows, it is particularly important that CMake uses the right versions of Qt and the C++ compiler. I have seen builds fail because different versions were used during different steps of the process. To be safe, it is best to define a few system variables before the first cmake command, by typing:
export CMAKE_PREFIX_PATH=/c/Qt/5.15.2/msvc2019_64/lib/cmake/Qt5 export PATH=/c/Qt/5.15.2/msvc2019_64/bin:$PATH export VCINSTALLDIR="/c/Program Files (x86)/Microsoft Visual Studio/2019/Community/VC"
Of course, you may have to adjust those to point to the appropriate location on your own system.
After building, you could simply type:
cd build make install
to install the programs in /usr/local/bin (or your operating system's equivalent), but it may be more attractive to create an installation package:
cd build cpack
On Ubuntu, that creates a .deb; on Windows, a .exe. The .deb may be installed like:
sudo dpkg -i qplot_0.6.0-1_amd64.deb
And the .exe may be installed by double-clicking it.
Development of QPlot occurs on github. I welcome bug reports, feature requests, as well as pull requests and constructive comments.
If you have any trouble installing QPlot, please drop me a line. I'd be sad to lose potential users due to resolvable stumbling blocks.