As the name suggests, PyQSO is written primarily in the [Python](https://www.python.org/) programming language (version 3.x). The graphical user interface has been developed using the [GTK+ library](https://www.gtk.org/) through the [PyGObject bindings](https://pygobject.readthedocs.io). Therefore, in order to run PyQSO, the Python interpreter must be present on your system along with support for GTK+. On many Linux-based systems this can be accomplished by installing the following Debian packages:
Several extra packages are necessary to enable the full functionality of PyQSO. Many of these (specified in the `requirements.txt` file) can be readily installed system-wide using the Python package manager by issuing the following command in the terminal:
* [cartopy](http://scitools.org.uk/cartopy/), for drawing the world map. This package in turn depends on python3-scipy, python3-cairocffi, cython, libproj-dev (version 4.9.0 or later), and libgeos-dev (version 3.3.3 or later).
There currently does not exist a Python 3-compatible Debian package for [Hamlib](http://www.hamlib.org). This library must be built manually to enable Hamlib support. As per the instructions on the [Hamlib mailing list](https://sourceforge.net/p/hamlib/mailman/message/35692744/), run the following commands in the Hamlib root directory (you may need to run `sudo apt-get install build-essential autoconf automake libtool` beforehand):
Assuming that the current working directory is PyQSO's base directory (the directory that the `Makefile` is in), PyQSO can be run without installation by issuing the following command in the terminal:
python3 bin/pyqso
If the Python package manager `pip3` is available on your system then PyQSO can be installed system-wide using:
sudo make install
Once installed, the following command will run PyQSO:
pyqso
## Documentation
Guidance on how to use PyQSO is available on [Read the Docs](http://pyqso.readthedocs.io/) and in the screencast below.
[![PyQSO: A Logging Tool for Amateur Radio Operators](https://img.youtube.com/vi/sVdZl9KnDsk/0.jpg)](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sVdZl9KnDsk)
The documentation can also be built locally with the following command:
make docs
which will produce an HTML version of the documentation in `docs/build/html` that can be opened in a web browser.