__HEADER__([[[Frequently Asked Questions]]])

<h2>Frequently Asked Questions</h2>
<p>
The following page contains some questions often asked by users and developers along
with the answers. You'll find the following topics covered by this page
</p>
<ul>
  <li><a href="#packages">Using the packages</a></li>
  <li><a href="#about">About Octave-Forge</a></li>
  <li><a href="#compatibility">Matlab Compatibility</a></li>
</ul>

<h2 id="packages">Using the packages</h2>
 <h3 class="question" id="install">How do I install a package?</h3>
   <p>First you need to download the package, by going to the package 
      web page and clicking <em>download</em>. Then start Octave and go
      to the directory where you placed the downloaded package using
      the <em>cd</em> command. Then type
   </p>
      <code>pkg install package_file_name.tar.gz</code>
   <p>
      where <em>package_file_name.tar.gz</em> is the file name of the 
      package you downloaded.
   </p>
   <h3 class="question" id="missing_mkoctfile">When I run
       <code>pkg install xxxx </code> I get the error
       <code>configure: WARNING: no mkoctfile found on path</code>
       what am I doing wrong?
   </h3>
   <p>
      Your Octave installation does not include the <code>mkoctfile</code>
      script. In most Linux distributions this is provided in a separate
      package named something like <code>octavexxx-devel</code> or
      <code>octavexxx-headers</code>.
   </p>

 <h3 class="question">What's with the dependencies?</h3>
   <p>Some packages depend on functionality provided by other packages 
     in order to function properly. So if package A depends on package
     B, you need to install package B either before or at the same time
     you install package A.
   </p>
   <p>If you don't want to install the dependencies of a package, you
     can use the <em>-no-deps</em> flag for the <em>pkg</em> command
   </p>
     <code>pkg install -no-deps package_file_name.tar.gz</code>
   <p>
     If you choose to do this, you might experience problems with
     the package. So in general the <em>-no-deps</em> flag is not recommended.
   </p>
   
 <h3 class="question">How do I uninstall a package?</h3>
   <p>You simply type</p>
   <code>pkg uninstall package_name</code>
   <p>where <em>package_name</em> is the name of the package you want to uninstall
     (e.g. <em>image</em>).</p>
   
 <h3 class="question">How do I use the functions in a package?</h3>
   <p>You simply type</p>
   <p><code>pkg load package_name</code></p>
   <p>where <em>package_name</em> is the name of the package you wish to use.
     If you need to use all you packages, you can simply type</p>
   <p><code>pkg load all</code></p>
   <p>Often you simply add the above line to your .octaverc. That way your packages
     are all loaded when Octave is started.</p>
   
 <h3 class="question">I get a lot of weird errors during installation. What should I do?</h3>
   <p>If you get alot of weird errors during installation, it is often because you don't
     have the needed system packages installed. You should verify that you have the needed
     packages installed, by checking the package web page. If you are using GNU/Linux you often
     need to install developer packages. These are often called something that ends with <em>-dev</em>.
   </p>
   
<h2 id="about">About Octave-Forge</h2>
 <h3 class="question">What is Octave-Forge?</h3>
   <p>Octave-Forge is a collection of packages for <a href="http://www.octave.org">GNU Octave</a>.
     It also serves as a testbed for code, that eventually will end up in Octave.
   </p>
   
 <h3 class="question">How do i submit packages to Octave-Forge?</h3>
   <p>Currently we don't have a certain system for including packages, so you
     should just send a message to the <a href="archive.html">mailing list</a>
     describing your package.
   </p>
   
 <h3 class="question">I think I've found a bug in a package. What should I do?</h3>
   <p>You should report it to the developers. See <a href="bugs.html">this page</a>
     for details.
   </p>
   
 <h3 class="question">Where can I get more help?</h3>
   <p>You can always ask questions on either the <a href="archive.html">Octave-Forge mailing list</a>,
     or you can ask on the <a href="http://www.gnu.org/software/octave/archive.html">Octave help mailing list</a>.
   </p>
    
<h2 id="compatibility">Matlab Compatibility</h2>
 <h3 class="question">I'm using a certain Matlab toolbox. Is there an equivalent one for Octave?</h3>
   <p>Very often you can find a package that provides something quite similar to the Matlab toolboxes.
     Simply browse the <a href="packages.html">list of package</a> and see if something fits
     your needs. If you can't find anything you should feel free to ask on the
     <a href="archive.html">mailing list</a>.
   </p>
   
 <h3 class="question">Does Octave support feature XXX?</h3>
   <p>Octave supports most of the Matlab language, so in general the answer is Yes.
     The easiest way to check if your needs are supported by octave, is to install
     octave. 
   </p>

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