- What resources do I need to run Magma on a PC?
-
You will need to have a Pentium, 486 or equivalent processor.
Magma can be run under Linux or Windows.
The minimum memory requirement is 16MB although for standard usage 32MB is
recommended and more is recommended for serious Magma usage.
On a 32-bit machine, Magma is capable of using up to 2.3GB of memory
under Linux or 1.2GB of memory under Windows.
Memory is the most important attribute of the PC since when you have a
big job, most of the time is spent swapping back and forth to disk which
improves dramatically with more memory. For very large runs,
the processor speed is generally
less important than the memory since when swapping occurs from lack
of memory, the processor speed cannot help at all.
With Athlon 64 or Opteron processors, there is no memory limit, and if
the computer has more than 4GB memory, this memory is fully usable by
Magma since there is a 64-bit address space.
Disk requirements are discussed in the next question.
- What disk space do I need to run Magma?
-
The packed distribution is about 10MB so that amount of space is needed
on any machine via which the Magma files are transferred to the final
machine.
The installed unpacked Magma files and directories take approximately this
much space:
| Executable: | 10-16MB (according to processor) |
| System packages: | 3MB |
| Libraries: | 20MB |
| Help files: | 3MB |
| HTML Help files: | 5MB |
| Handbook DVI+PS: | 4MB+8MB |
| Introduction DVI+PS: | 2MB+3MB |
| Other Doc, etc.: | 1MB |
An absolutely minimal Magma installation needs only the
executable and the system packages so can fit into about 13-20MB.
A full installation with all files unpacked would take about 60MB
but usually only one of the DVI or PS versions of the documentation
would be unpacked so the usage of a full installation would usually
be closer to 45MB. Also, many of the libraries are optional and may
not be needed by the user so can be packed away, while the HTML
version of the Help system may not be needed. Thus a reasonable
installation with full Help, useful libraries, and adequate
documentation would take about 20-30MB.
The external disk is also used for swap space (disk used as virtual
memory and swapped in and out of core memory as necessary). The
size of a Magma process which can be run is then of course limited
by the free disk space. So it is recommended that there be, say,
50-100MB free swap space always which can be used by Magma
processes and this figure should of course go up if very large jobs
are desired. When a Magma process finishes, the used swap space is
completely freed.
- How do I install Magma after it arrives?
-
The files are uncompressed and moved to appropriate directories.
The script which runs Magma has to be edited to include some local
pathnames, and the script which runs the HTML help must be edited
to include the local pathname of the directory containing the HTML files.
Full instructions are included and the entire installation procedure
usually takes no more than 5 to 10 minutes. Computational Algebra
Group staff can carry out the installation procedure upon request.
- In what form does Magma arrive after I order it?
-
Magma is delivered as a set of executable files, some databases, and
documentation in HTML format. The source code is not supplied.
- How is Magma delivered?
-
If the machine in question is connected to the Internet we will usually
transfer Magma by FTP. Otherwise we can send Magma on a cartridge or
floppy disk.
- What happens if I find a bug?
-
All users are encouraged to report bugs. The policy of the Computational
Algebra Group is to fix the bug immediately it is received.
If a user reports a bug which seriously hinders their work,
then we will endeavour to FTP a patch version to the user's site
within 7 days.
- What happens at the end of the licence period?
-
After the licence has expired Magma continues operating normally,
but you will no longer receive upgrades, bug fixes, or assistance
from Magma staff.
- I can't figure out how to access the printed Magma documentation.
Is it on-line?
-
Yes. Included with the Magma distribution are .dvi and .ps files of
all the volumes of documentation. The relevant files are:
- first.{dvi, ps}.gz
- relvXX.{dvi, ps}.gz
- catvXX.{dvi, ps}.gz
- intro.{dvi, ps}.gz
- examples.{dvi, ps}.gz
|
- hb1.{dvi, ps}.gz
- hb2.{dvi, ps}.gz
- hb3.{dvi, ps}.gz
- hb4.{dvi, ps}.gz
- hb5.{dvi, ps}.gz
|
A reasonable number of copies may be printed off for reference
by the Magma user community at your institution.
The important ones are intro.{dvi, ps} and hbX.{dvi, ps}.
The intro files contain the two volume book "An Introduction
to Algebraic Programming with Magma" which is an easy
introduction to the system with lots of examples. A person
starting to learn Magma is strongly urged to read the first
few chapters of Vol 1 and those chapters of Vol 2 that are
relevant to the use to be made of Magma.
The main reference is the Magma Handbook which comes in five
volumes hb1.{dvi, ps}, hb2.{dvi, ps}, hb3.{dvi, ps},
hb4.{dvi, ps}, and hb5.{dvi, ps}. Every
feature of the sytem is documented in these volumes. Their
content is also supplied as a html document for perusal with a
web browser.
- Is there a limit on the number of processes that can run simultaneously?
-
The licence allows the user to run an unlimited number of processes simultaneously.
- I am running Magma on one machine and want to run it on
another as well. Do I have to pay the licence fee again?
-
A 50% discount applies to the second machine. For full details mail us at
magma@maths.usyd.edu.au.
- Can I substitute one machine for another?
-
For users with an active licence, this is achieved by mailing us and
receiving a new pass file. If no current licence applies transfer is
not possible.
- How often do I receive new versions of Magma?
-
New versions of Magma are exported on approximately a six month cycle.
Each site with an active licence usually receives at least one update each year.
If features in any particular release are of interest to a particular
site that is not automatically updated, that site may request an upgrade.
- What happens if my machine is stolen?
-
Contact us with the details of your new machine, and we will supply
a new version of Magma for it.
- How do I order a copy of Magma?
-
To find information about ordering Magma click
here.
- I want to order a copy of Magma, but it will take weeks for the payment
to come through. Can I have a copy in the meantime?
- Yes. Once you have faxed us your order, we can immediately FTP Magma to
your machine.
