GNU LilyPond program usage: 2.1.1 Setup for MacOS X

### 2.1.1 Setup for MacOS X

#### Using Python scripts on MacOS 10.3 or 10.4

LilyPond binaries for MacOS X do not provide Python, but Python 2.4 or newer is required by `convert-ly`. Therefore, if you use MacOS 10.3 or 10.4, you must install a newer Python version from http://python.org/download/, then edit the first line of `convert-ly` and `lilypond-book` as follows: if the Python binary you just installed is in your PATH, the first line should be

>     #!/usr/bin/env python

otherwise it should be

>     #!/path/to/newly_installed/python

#### MacOS X on the command line

The scripts — such as `lilypond-book`, `convert-ly`, `abc2ly`, and even `lilypond` itself — are included inside the `.app` file for MacOS X. They can be run from the command line by invoking them directly, e.g.

>     path/to/LilyPond.app/Contents/Resources/bin/lilypond

The same is true of the other scripts in that directory, including `lilypond-book`, `convert-ly`, `abc2ly`, etc.

Alternatively, you may create scripts which add the path automatically. Create a directory to store these scripts,

>     mkdir -p ~/bin
>     cd ~/bin

Create a file called `lilypond` which contains

>     exec path/to/LilyPond.app/Contents/Resources/bin/lilypond "$@"

Create similar files `lilypond-book`, `convert-ly`, and any other helper programs you use (`abc2ly`, `midi2ly`, etc). Simply replace the `bin/lilypond` with `bin/convert-ly` (or other program name) in the above file.

Make the file executable,

>     chmod u+x lilypond

Now, add this directory to your path. Modify (or create) a file called `.profile` in your home directory such that it contains

>     export PATH=$PATH:~/bin

This file should end with a blank line.

Note that path/to will generally be `/Applications/`.

Other languages: français, español, deutsch.

#### Application Usage