Using Mathematica on other computers

The math2374.nb file on the page where you download labs will work in (linux) IT Labs and Math Department labs. If you want to use the ShowLive command (and its relatives) with Mathematica on your home computer, you'll have to do a little work to install LiveGraphics3D.

Please note that we can't provide computer support for every known configuration. We'll try to walk you through the general process, but you'll have to do the steps on your own.

JLink Package

In order to use LiveGraphics3D within a notebook, you need to have the Mathematica packagage JLink. If you have Mathematica version 4.2 or later, it was probably installed automatically. Otherwise you'll have to download it on Wolfram.com. Follow the directions there to install it properly.

Installing LiveGraphics3D on Unix/Linux Machines

  1. Download "live.jar" into your home directory from http://www.vis.uni-stuttgart.de/~kraus/LiveGraphics3D/download.html.

    Now execute the following commands in a terminal. If you have Mathematica 5.0, you can copy and paste them from here; otherwise you need to change "5.0" to your version number.

    cd ~
    mkdir .Mathematica/5.0/AddOns
    mkdir .Mathematica/5.0/AddOns/Applications
    mkdir .Mathematica/5.0/AddOns/Applications/LiveGraphics3D
    mkdir .Mathematica/5.0/AddOns/Applications/LiveGraphics3D/Java
    mv ~/live.jar .Mathematica/5.0/AddOns/Applications/LiveGraphics3D/Java
    
  2. If all goes well, you should be able to start mathematica now and use math2374.nb to load all the commands you need.

Windows Machines

If the Windows machine you're using has a recent version of Mathematica (at least 4.2) then you should be able to use the math2374.nb file without installing the JLink package. Otherwise follow the links above to download and install it.

You should still download the "live.jar" file as described in the section above.

Once you click the button in math2374.nb, to load the commands, you will need to run one additional command to tell Mathematica where to fine the "live.jar" file:

AddToClassPath["C:\Documents and Settings\rogn0021\Desktop\live.jar"]

You should adjust the string inside the command to reflect where you saved the "live.jar" file. The pattern above would work on a Windows XP machine, for example, where my user name is "rogn0021" and I've saved the file on my desktop. If you're running Windows 98 and it's on your desktop, it might look more like:

AddToClassPath["C:\Windows\Desktop\live.jar"]

Summary

Let Jonathan Rogness (or your lecturer, or your TA) know if you're having trouble getting this to work. We can't provide technical support in general, but we recognize that the ability to use these commands in other labs would be helpful. We will certainly try to make sure it works in Unix IT Labs.