README.external

The following external tools are needed to build and/or use Maxima:

1) A supported Lisp implementation. See README-lisps.md.

2) To build Maxima in the standard manner, Bourne shell and make are
   required. See INSTALL.

3) Maxima can also be built using nothing except Lisp. See
   INSTALL.lisp.

4) Plotting uses gnuplot, <http://gnuplot.sourceforge.net>, by
   default. Plotting can also be done with Maxima's xmaxima
   application.

5) xmaxima requires Tcl/Tk, preferably version 8.5 or later.
   xmaxima is both one possible interface to  Maxima and a plotting
   program. As a graphical interface it is not required but as a
   plotting program it is required by some commands (plotdf, ploteq
   and scene).

6) drawdf requires Vtk and its bindings for Tcl/Tk.
 
7) The scene command requires python-vtk
 
8) Building Maxima from GIT additionally requires the GNU autotools.