Monday, May 13, 2013

Notes on installing IPython

Notes to self on installing IPython on Puppy Linux:

First: when the site says the QTconsole is "built on QT", that does in fact mean that QT has to be installed first.

Second: QT's "configure" script has to be called with the '-qt-xcb' option (which tells the compiler to use its own version of some library or other).

Third: 'make'ing QT takes a couple of hours. Thank Eris it compiled successfully, or else I'd have kicked something.

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Fourth: I spoke too soon. QT's 'make install' terminated with an error the first time I ran it. This is a rare but known bug, and it fixes itself magically by running 'make -j4 install' instead.

Fifth: After installing QT, figure out where the 'qmake' program lives. For me, it was /usr/local/Qt-X.Y.Z/bin. If you're like me and that's not on your path, you'll need that location later.

Sixth: Install SIP. Now, PIP/the PyPI knows about SIP, but can't install it automatically because it uses a weird build procedure. Instead of the usual
$python setup.py install
instead you do
$python configure.py --options
$make
$make install
after you've downloaded and unpacked the tarball.

Seventh: same for PySide. Oh, and don't waste time with PyQt5. Apparently IPython's QT stuff needs 4 anyway. As in, it's hard-coded in.

Sunday, May 12, 2013

Infamous Potato Salad

Infamous Potato Salad:

2 lb potatoes (I've used both red and russet potatoes for this, and both work well.)
12 oz bacon
1 onion
A few sprigs fresh cilantro (or parsley)
1 cup mayonnaise
1/4 cup mustard (yellow is fine, dijon or other tasty mustard even better)
1/4 cup ranch dressing
1 pinch salt
1 shake black pepper

Peel and cube potatoes, cover with water in a pot, and heat to a boil. Once boiling, cover and simmer 15 minutes until soft.

While potatoes are cooking, fry bacon. While bacon is frying, cut up onion and cilantro and set aside (separate). When bacon is crispy, remove it from the pan and set to drain on a wire rack.  Fry the chopped onion in the bacon grease: I like it to be black and crumbly.

When the potatoes are soft, drain the water. Cut or crumble up the bacon and add, with the cilantro and onion, to the potatoes. Whip together mayo, mustard, ranch, salt, and pepper and toss everything together until well coated and mixed.

Chill an hour and serve. Makes about 8 servings.

Monday, May 6, 2013

Monday crockery

So I have no idea how tonight's recipe will go... and since we've got a long rehearsal beforehand, the possibility of utter disaster will make success that much sweeter!

Ahem. Anyway:

Boneless Ribs a la Huckleberry
In a barrel of odds and ends it is different; things get mixed up, and the juice kind of swaps around, and the things go better.
1 pkg boneless pork ribs (~1.5 lb)
1 onion
radishes (maybe 10)
2 or more parsnips
1 clove garlic
1/2 cup dry sherry or madeira
1 tbsp capers

Lay the ribs at the bottom of the crock pot. Peel the parsnips and cut them into two-inch strips. Slice the radishes so that the slices are no more than 1 cm thick. Chop up the garlic. Add all the veggies to the pot on top of the ribs, and pour the sherry on top of it all. Cook on low 6-7 hours.

Pictures to follow.