View source for Slicer:Slicer2.6 Getting Started

<div class="floatleft"><span>[[Image:3DSlicer.png|[[Image:3DSlicer.png| 3D Slicer Logo]]]]</span></div>

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<br /> THIS IS THE MOST UP-TO-DATE VERSION (MAY 2006)

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== Download Slicer (This is what users should download) ==

Download and unpack the appropriate [http://www.na-mic.org/Slicer/Download/Release Slicer archive]<nowiki>: this link gives you a precompiled ready-to-use Slicer 2.6 for the platforms stated below. </nowiki>

* '''Mac'''<nowiki>: darwin-ppc, darwin-x86 </nowiki>
* '''Linux'''<nowiki>: linux-x86, linux-x86_64 </nowiki>
* '''Solaris'''<nowiki>: solaris8 </nowiki>
* '''Windows'''<nowiki>: win32 </nowiki>

See the [[Slicer:Slicer2.6_Release_Notes|Release Notes]] for more information.

== Installation ==

You can run the toplevel slicer executable from any directory, but if you want to install it as a system-wide package we suggest the following methods:

* Unix/Linux:
** place the slicer2 distribution directory in /usr/local/lib/slicer2.6
** place a symbolic link in /usr/local/bin pointing to the executable for your platform in the distribution directory
** If you are running Ubuntu, see [[Slicer:Slicer2.6Ubuntu|Slicer2.6 on Ubuntu]] for more information.
* Windows:
** there is no windows installer, so you may put slicer in any convenient location. You may wish to put a shortcut to the slicer2-win32.exe on your desktop.
* Mac OS:
** No installation suggestions currently

== Follow the Tutorial ==

To learn more about using Slicer, refer to the [[Slicer:Workshops:User_Training_101|Slicer_User_Training_101]] page which contains tutorials and sample data for Slicer2.6.

== Build Slicer (This is for developers) ==

If you want to build your own copy of Slicer 2.6 from the source code, follow the instructions here: [[Slicer:Slicer_2.6_Building|Slicer:Slicer_2.6_Building]]

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== Notes for Mac OS X Users ==

To run Slicer on the Mac, you need to have the X server and from an xterm run the slicer2-darwin-ppc executable at the top level of the unpacked archive.

If you want to customize the X11 Application menu to launch slicer, you can use a syntax like the following:

 xterm -e /Users/pieper/slicer2.6/latest/slicer2/slicer2-darwin-ppc

Note that Slicer relies on the X11 system and must be launched from within an xterm. More information about X11 on the mac is here: http://developer.apple.com/darwin/runningx11.html X11 isn't installed by default on current Mac OS releases, so be sure to select it as an optional package from your installation DVD.

On the mac, the first click that raises a window to the front won't be passed on to that application.  This can be confusing in slicer since the buttons will highlight as you pass over them even if the window is not in the front.  To work around this, execute the following in an xterm:

 defaults write com.apple.x11 wm_click_through -bool true

=== Leopard (10.5) launch issues ===

With Mac OS X 10.5, the X11 package has changed (some say it has gotten worse).  Two options are available to work around these changes.

* Option 1: run the following commands in an xterm to bypass the slicer launcher:

 export SLICER_HOME=`pwd`
 wish launch.tcl

* Option 2: downgrade to an older version of X11 (see, for example,  http://aaroniba.net/articles/x11-leopard.html)

== Reporting Bugs ==

Please go to http://www.na-mic.org/Bug/ and report bugs for Slicer version 2.6.x. Information on [[Slicer:Bugs|How to enter bugs]] into the Slicer bug tracker.

== Where to go for Help ==

Compilation/development questions can be sent to the [mailto:slicer-devel@massmail.spl.harvard.edu Slicer Developer's Mailing List]. Questions about running Slicer can be sent to the [mailto:slicer-users@massmail.spl.harvard.edu Slicer User's Mailing List].

<br /> Archives of these lists are available at http://massmail.spl.harvard.edu/mailman/listinfo/slicer-devel and http://massmail.spl.harvard.edu/mailman/listinfo/slicer-users .