I regularly use four neural network code libraries: TensorFlow, Keras, PyTorch, and CNTK. The libraries require Python. Managing all the different versions of these libraries is an annoying detail that has to be taken care of very carefully.

I recently did a significant update to my Python which required updates to all my libraries. For the past year and a half, I had been using Python version 3.5.2 contained in the Anaconda3 4.1.1 distribution. (Anaconda has become the clear default Python distribution, at least among my colleagues). I upgraded to Python 3.6. Summary: As I’m writing this blog post, my libraries are:

Anaconda3 5.2.0 (Python 3.6.5)
TensorFlow 1.10.0
Keras 2.2.2
PyTorch 0.4.1
CNTK 2.5.1

My first step was to uninstall existing Python and libraries. Next I installed the Anaconda3 5.2.0 distribution which contains Python 3.6.5 and over 400 compatible libraries such as NumPy, SciPy, and MatPlotLib. The installer executable is available at https://repo.continuum.io/archive/.

Next I installed TensorFlow 1.10.0 by going to https://pypi.org/project/tensorflow/1.10.0/ then saving file tensorflow-1.10.0-cp36-cp36m-win_amd64.whl to my machine. I installed using the command:

> pip install tensorflow-1.10.0-cp36-cp36m-win_amd64.whl

Next I installed Keras 2.2.2 by going to https://pypi.org/project/Keras/2.2.2/ then saving file Keras-2.2.2-py2.py3-none-any.whl to my machine. I installed Keras using the command:

> pip install Keras-2.2.2-py2.py3-none-any.whl

Next I installed PyTorch 0.4.1 by going to https://pytorch.org/ and then I selected Windows – pip – 3.6 – None which showed the URL of the .wh file as:

http://download.pytorch.org/whl/cpu/torch-0.4.1-cp36-cp36m-win_amd64.whl

This is the latest version of PyTorch. If I need to reinstall later, after a newer version of PyTorch is released, the Web page should have a link to “older versions”. Next I pasted the URL into a browser and did a Save As when prompted by the browser. I installed PyTorch using the command:

> pip install torch-0.4.1-cp36-cp36m-win_amd64.whl

Next I installed CNTK 2.5.1 by going to https://pypi.org/project/cntk/2.5.1/ then saving file cntk-2.5.1-cp36-cp36m-win_amd64.whl to my machine. I installed CNTK using the command:

> pip install cntk-2.5.1-cp36-cp36m-win_amd64.whl

Neural network code libraries are all relatively new and are updated frequently. This can make managing different versions somewhat of a headache, but that’s just a price that must be paid to be on the leading edge.

The library at St. Catherine’s Monastery in Egypt. Established in roughly 550 AD. Still in operation. Amazing.