Ubuntu running `pip install` gives error 'The following required packages can not be built: * freetype'
No. pip will not install system-level dependencies. This means pip will not install RPM(s) (Redhat based systems) or DEB(s) (Debian based systems).
To install system dependencies you will need to use one of the following methods depending on your system.
Ubuntu/Debian:
apt-get install libfreetype6-devTo search for packages on Ubuntu/Debian based systems:
apt-cache search <string>e.g:
apt-cache search freetype | grep devRedhat/CentOS/Fedora:
yum -y install freetype-develTo search for packages on Redhat/CentOS/Fedora based systems:
yum search <string>e.g:
yum search freetype | grep develMac OS X: (via Homebrew)
brew install freetypeTo search for packages on Mac OS X based systems:
brew search <string>e.g:
brew search freetype
I had to install libxft-dev in order to enable matplotlib on ubuntu server 14.04.
sudo apt-get install libfreetype6-dev libxft-devAnd then I could use
sudo easy_install matplotlib