Anaconda on MacOS Big Sur

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These days everything related with Data Science & AI in general you know the drill, you need python. MacOS come with python 2.7^ something, you can install python3 via Homebrew. Pip is the default package manager but we need more don’t we? here is their differences. Yep we don’t have time so here is what i’d read. If you’re curious mind want to know about what’s this all about, the rest of you it’s simple

Package, dependency and environment management for Python

Different between Conda and PIP

Conda

• It’s in binary meaning does not require compiler & can check dependencies.
• Any package type such as HDF5, MKL, LLVM, including python packages.

PIP

• It is source base, meaning require compiler & can’t check dependencies.
• Only python packages.

They both can work side by side. As this article is writing, Anaconda support full version with GUI and CLI. There is mini version called miniconda. No matter which version you installed they can be working exactly the same, you can always upgrade to fully conda version by installing some built in packages (around 160 of them).

Installation

Download Conda Graphical Installer file, there are two different route from here if you install it for the particular user or just in your hard drive. I am assuming that most of the terminals on Mac are zsh now.

How to fix “conda command not found” error even after installation.

For case 1 (installation for a user), replace xxx with your user name

echo $USER  // get current login user
export PATH="/Users/xxx/anaconda3/bin:$PATH"

or case 2(installation for all user/hard drive)

export PATH="/opt/anaconda3/bin/conda:$PATH"

Now open your terminal and type this

conda --version 

if you see the version number that you’d downloaded then you’re good to go.

Now try these useful commands

conda list // to list down all the current packages installed 
conda update conda // self upgrade 
conda update --all // update all packages
conda update xxx // replace xxx with your desire individual package

So what’s next

Learn how to use .condarc file for runtime configuration and download official cheat sheet for up and running in no time.

Thank you for your time & until next time.