New to Python?

This guide walks you from no Python on your machine to a working Particula installation. You will

1. pick a code editor
2. pick a python package manager,
3. create / activate an isolated environment,
4. install Particula, and
5. explore the documentation.

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1 · Learn a few Python basics 📚

New to programming? Spend an evening with the free course “Python for Everybody.”
Videos + quizzes + e‑textbook: https://www.py4e.com

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2 · Install the essential tools

Choose one code editor. You can always try others later, but this is a good starting point.
The table shows the most common choices:

Tool	Why you need it	Where to get it
Visual Studio Code	Full‑featured editor with great Python support	Download VS Code
Spyder	Scientific IDE, MATLAB‑like	Download Spyder
Google Colab	Nothing to install – runs in the browser	Google Colab

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3 · Install a Package Manager

Pick one package manager. Conda is used in the step‑by‑step below, but uv or pip will also work (guides linked).

Package Manager	Why you need it	Where to get it
uv	Rust‑powered, lightning‑fast	uv installation guide
pip	Comes with Python	pip installation guide
Conda / Miniconda	Easiest way to manage multiple Pythons	Miniconda installers

Install Git if you plan to contribute code (optional for pure user):

• Windows/macOS: https://git-scm.com/downloads
• Linux: sudo apt install git or your distro’s package manager

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4 · Install Particula in an isolated environment

Follow their dedicated guides:

• Install with uv
• Install with pip
• Install with conda

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5 · Next steps

• Ready to dive deeper? Browse the documentation and example gallery.
• Want to contribute code? See the Contributor Setup and install Particula in editable [dev,extra] mode.

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Troubleshooting 🛠️

Common pitfalls

• command not found for python, conda, uv, or pip
  The tool is not on your system PATH. Close/re‑open the terminal or follow the installer’s instructions to add it to your environment variables.

• No module named particula
  You’re running a Python interpreter where Particula isn’t installed.
  Activate the correct environment (conda activate particula, source .venv/bin/activate, etc.) or select it inside your editor.

• C compiler missing
  Some optional dependencies need a compiler.

  - Windows → “Build Tools for Visual Studio”
  - macOS → xcode-select --install
  - Linux → sudo apt install build-essential (or your distro equivalent)

• “Permission denied” / read‑only file system Work in a directory where you have write permission, or add --user when using pip (less reproducible),
  or create the environment in your home folder.

Still stuck? Ask a 🤖

Copy the error message into a Large‑Language‑Model chat (e.g. OpenAI ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini) and request an explanation plus possible fixes.