[McIDAS #LWT-900470]: Installing McIDAS on CentOS 5

Hi Nathan,

re:
> I have an iMac with Parallels, and Parallels tools won't run under
> CentOS 6 too well. Maybe in Parallels 8. (sigh).

I am unfamiliar with Parallels.

re: A current Fedora VM will work?

> Yeah, they support up to Fedora 15. So I could install 14 o4 15 and run
> with it. Whichever one you'd recommend.

I would use Fedora 14, but that is because I really don't like the Gnome 3
environment provided by Fedora 15.  If you work in some other windowing
environment (e.g., KDE, Xfce or LXDE) then Fedora 15 should be OK for you.

re:
> They even support RHEL 6, but not CentOS 6. Crazy.

This is crazy.  As far as I know, CentOS6 _IS_ RHEL 6.

re: 64-bit would be my recommendation.

> Sounds good. I've got the RAM. hard drive, and processor to support it.

Either 32-bit or 64-bit work fine for McIDAS-X.  I run in a 64-bit environment
since that is where we are heading anyway.

re:
> To build McIDAS (after all the packages are done) do I just cd to the
> McIDAS directory, type "make all" then "make install" like I did for GEMPAK?

If you are running in a Linux VM, you would do the 'yum' installations
as 'root' and then become 'mcidas' to do the McIDAS-X build/install:

<as 'root'>
yum install blah, blah, ...

su - mcidas
-- download the current McIDAS tarball, mcunpack and mcinet2009.sh files
   to ~mcidas
chmod +x mcunpack
export McINST_ROOT=$HOME
./mcunpack

-- edit your Shell definition file (e.g., .cshrc for C shells, .bash_profile
   for bash, etc.) and set the things recommended in the Unidata McIDAS
   Users Guide:

Unidata HomePage
http://www.unidata.ucar.edu

  Software
  http://www.unidata.ucar.edu/software

    McIDAS
    http://www.unidata.ucar.edu/software/mcidas

      Documentation and Training
      http://www.unidata.ucar.edu/software/mcidas/#documentation

        The McIDAS user's guide ...
        http://www.unidata.ucar.edu/software/mcidas/current/users_guide/toc.html

          Installing McIDAS-X on Unix or Mac OS X Workstations
          
http://www.unidata.ucar.edu/software/mcidas/current/users_guide/InstallingMcIDAS-XonUnixorMacOSXWorkstations.html#63755

            Preparing the mcidas Account
            
http://www.unidata.ucar.edu/software/mcidas/current/users_guide/PreparingthemcidasAccount.html#22841

exit   <- exit and then relogin so that changes are made active

su - mcidas

-- verify that environment variables like MCDATA are now set (run 'env | grep 
^MC')
   If they are, then proceed with the build:

cd mcidas2009/src

make
make install

re: where will you be getting McIDAS-X

> I was on the UNIDATA website is where I saw it. I am a college student
> if that'd work. :-) I'm a college student with a part-time job at WeatherBug.
> I could download from SSEC if UNIDATA wouldn't permit it.

You can download Unidata McIDAS if it is to be used by you for your
activities as a student.  If McIDAS is to be used for the commercial
WeatherBug activities, you will be forced to get McIDAS-X from SSEC
and that will require that WeatherBug be a member of the McIDAS Users
Group (MUG).  If it is not, WeatherBug would have to join the MUG,
and that will cost.

Now, if WeatherBug is already a member in good standing of the MUG, you
will be allowed to download McIDAS-X from us.  I would have to verify
the membership standing with SSEC and then add the email address you
used when registering with the Unidata website to a 'McIDAS Exceptions List'
which is a list of non-.edu folks who are allowed to download
Unidata McIDAS-X.

NB: the installation procedures for SSEC McIDAS and Unidata McIDAS are
a bit different.  The procedures I outlined above are for Unidata
McIDAS, not SSEC McIDAS.

Whats the deal?

Our license to distribute McIDAS allows us to freely give Unidata McIDAS to
educational users in the U.S.  Educational users outside of the U.S.
have to affirm that they will abide by the requirements set forth by
SSEC for McIDAS-X use.  Non-educational users typically get McIDAS
directly from SSEC, but that requires that they/their organization belong
to the MUG.  SSEC allows MUG members to download Unidata McIDAS-X on
a case-by-case basis as long as they are member in good standing in
the MUG.  There are several of these kinds of sites in the U.S. that
choose to use Unidata McIDAS instead of SSEC McIDAS.

re:
> Thanks!

No worries.  Sorry for the overly long reply, but I need to make folks
aware of the McIDAS-X licensing restrictions that we must abide by.

Cheers,

Tom
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Ticket Details
===================
Ticket ID: LWT-900470
Department: Support McIDAS
Priority: Normal
Status: Closed