Re: Specifying path to a non standard package
- To: mathgroup at smc.vnet.net
- Subject: [mg59366] Re: Specifying path to a non standard package
- From: albert <awnl at arcor.de>
- Date: Sun, 7 Aug 2005 03:46:59 -0400 (EDT)
- References: <dd1ikr$1cc$1@smc.vnet.net>
- Sender: owner-wri-mathgroup at wolfram.com
Hi,
> -- I am using a package "SubscriptSymbols" in a notebook, with the
> statement: Needs["Utilities`SubscriptSymbols`"];
I was almost expecting that you would come up with questions like these
after seeing your first post :-)
> I must have the SubscriptSymbols.m file in the
> same directory as the notebook that uses it.
> Question
> -- How can I load the package from a specified working directory that is
> not part of the context paths known by mathematica? I've tried adding
> path info within the needs statement but that does not work.
The variable $Path is a list of directories where the kernel looks for
packages, so inculding yourworkdirectory in that list will make the kernel
find the file:
PrependTo[$Path,{"yourworkdirectory"}];
Since "." (current work directory) is usually also part of $Path it might
also work to just
SetDirectory["yourworkdirectory"]
before calling Needs. A pitfall is that the package you use wants to be a
'subpakage' of Utilities so it will not load correctly unless you put it
into a subdirectory Utilites of your workdirectory so that a recursive
listing of yourworkdirectory will look like this:
mymathfiletorun.m
Utilitis/
Utilities/SubscriptSymbols.m
now if you say:
PrependTo[$Path,{"yourworkdirectory"}];
Needs["Utilities`SubscriptSymbols.m"];
in mymathfiletorun.m (or mymathnotebook.nb) it should work. If you can't
make new subdirectories within your workdirectory, you will need to edit
the SubscriptSymbols.m file so that it does not think to be part of
Utilities. Usually you will only need to edit the BeginPackage-Call within
that file from
BeginPackage["Utilities`SubscriptSymbols`"]
to:
BeginPackage["SubscriptSymbols`"]
and of course put it right into workdirectory (no subdirectory) and load it
with Needs["SubscriptSymbols`"] after that change.
Changing the package from Utilities`SubscriptSymbols` to SubscriptSymbols`
might become more complicated, depending on what the package is doing. If
you are not experienced with how packages and contexts work in mathematica
it might take you some time to find out what will be needed to change in
that case so I would not recommend to do it if there are other
possibilities...
good luck,
Albert