The Gaia Sandbox is a real-time, 3D, astronomy visualisation software that runs on Windows, Linux and MacOS. It is developed in the framework of ESA's Gaia mission to chart about 1 billion stars of our Galaxy. To get the latest up-to-date and most complete information, visit our wiki pages in https://github.com/ari-zah/gaiasandbox/wiki.
This file contains the following sections:
- Installation instructions and requirements
- Configuration instructions
- Running instructions
- Copyright and licensing information
- Contact information
- Credits and acknowledgements
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###1.1 Requirements
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Operating System - The Gaia Sandbox application runs on Windows, MacOS and Linux.
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Java - In order to run this software you will need the Java Runtime Environment (JRE) 7+ installed in your system. We recommend using the Oracle HotSpot JVM (http://www.oracle.com/technetwork/java/javase/downloads/index.html). Please mind the architecture, download the x86_64 version if your operating system is 64-bit.
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OpenGL - Also, you will need an operating system/graphics card that supports at least OpenGL 2.0.
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Hardware - Specific system requirements are yet to be determined.
###1.2 Installation and uninstallation
Depending on your system and your personal preferences the installation procedure may vary. Below is a description of the various installation methods available.
####1.2.1 Windows
Two windows installers are available for 32 and 64-bit systems.
gaiasandbox_windows_[version].exe- 32 bit installer.gaiasandbox_windows-x64_[version].exe- 64 bit installer.
Both versions will automatically install the JRE if it is not present in the system. To install the Gaia Sandbox, just double click on the installer and then follow the on-screen instructions. You will need to choose the directory where the application is to be installed.
In order to uninstall the application you can use the Windows Control Panel or you can use the provided uninstaller in the Gaia Sandbox folder.
####1.2.2 Linux
We provide 3 packages for linux systems. deb, rpm and a linux installer.
#####1.2.2.1 DEB
This is the package for Debian-based distros (Debian, Ubuntu, Mint, SteamOS, etc.).
Download the gaiasandbox_linux_[version].deb file and run the
following command. You will need root privileges to install a deb package in
your system.
sudo dpkg -i gaiasandbox_linux_[version].deb
This will install the application in the /opt/gaiasandbox/ folder
and it will create the necessary shortcuts.
In order to uninstall, just type:
sudo apt-get remove gaiasandbox
#####1.2.2.2 RPM
This is the package for RPM-based distributions (Red Hat, Fedora, Mandriva, SUSE, CentOS, etc.)
Download the gaiasandbox_linux_[version].rpm file and run the
following command. You will need root privileges to install a rpm package in
your system.
sudo yum install gaiasandbox_linux_[version].rpm
This will install the application in the /opt/gaiasandbox/ folder
and it will create the necessary shortcuts.
In order to uninstall, just type:
sudo yum remove gaiasandbox-x86
#####1.2.2.3 Linux installer
We also provide a Linux installer which will trigger a graphical interface
where you can choose the installation location and some other settings.
Download the file gaiasandbox_unix_[version].sh to your disk.
Then run the following to start the installation.
./gaiasandbox_unix_[version].sh
Follow the on-screen instructions to proceed with the installation.
In order to uninstall, just run the uninstall file in the
installation folder.
####1.2.3 OS X - Mac
For OS X we provide a gaiasandbox_macos_0_704b_d327966.dmg file
which is installed by unpacking into the Applications folder. Once unpacked, the
installer will come up, just follow its instructions.
####1.2.4 Compressed (TGZ) package
A gaiasandbox-[version].tgz package file is also provided. It will work
in all systems but you need to unpack it yourself and create the desired
shortcuts.
In Windows, use an archiver software (7zip, iZArc, etc.) to unpack it.
In Linux and OS X, you can use:
mkdir [target-directory]/
tar zxvf gaiasandbox-[version].tgz -C [target-directory]/
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###2.1 Running the Gaia Sandbox
In order to run the program just click on the shortcut provided in your operating system.
###2.2 Running from code
In order to run from code you will need gradle 2.6+ installed on your system. You can either follow the instructions on the gradle installation section or you can automatically install gradle in your linux distro:
# debian/ubuntu
sudo apt-get install gradle
# arch/manjaro
sudo pacman -S gradle
First, clone the GitHub repository:
cd $GIT_FOLDER
git clone https://github.com/ari-zah/gaiasandbox.git
Then, run the following commands to compile and run:
cd $GIT_FOLDER/gaiasandbox
gradle desktop:run
Et voilà! The Gaia Sandbox is running in your machine.
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In order to get the full up-to-date documentation, visit our Wiki pages in GitHub:
https://github.com/ari-zah/gaiasandbox/wiki
There you will find a thorough documentation of all the features of the Gaia Sandbox. If you need to load your data into the sandbox or just find out how to enable the 3D mode to experience it on your 3DTV, think no further, the Gaia Sandbox wiki is the way to go.
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This software is published and distributed under the LGPL (Lesser General Public License) license. You can find the full license text here https://github.com/ari-zah/gaiasandbox/blob/master/LICENSE or visiting https://www.gnu.org/licenses/lgpl-3.0-standalone.html
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The main webpage of the project is http://www.zah.uni-heidelberg.de/gaia2/outreach/gaiasandbox. There you can find the latest versions and the latest information on the Gaia Sandbox. You can also visit our Github account to inspect the code, check the wiki or report bugs: https://github.com/ari-zah/gaiasandbox
###5.1 Main designer and developer
- Toni Sagrista Selles
- E-mail: [email protected]
- Personal webpage: www.tonisagrista.com
###5.2 Contributors
- Dr. Stefan Jordan
- E-mail: [email protected]
- Personal webpage: www.stefan-jordan.de
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The author would like to acknowledge the following people, or the people behind the following technologies/resources:
- The DLR for financing this project
- The BWT, Bundesministerium für Wirtschaft und Technologie, also supporting this project
- My institution, ARI/ZAH
- Dr. Martin Altmann for providing the Gaia orbit data
- Libgdx
- libgdx-contribs-postprocessing
- HYG catalog
- PgsLookAndFeel
- Mark Taylor's STIL library
- The Jython Project
- Tom Patterson (www.shadedrelief.com) for some textures
- Install4j (multi-platform installer builder), for providing a free open source license
- Bitrock's InstallBuilder for providing a free open source license.
- And several online resources without which this would have not been possible
If you think I missed someone, please let me know.