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My problem is pretty similar to that described here: Can't install Electrum on Ubuntu - https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=3232490.0 (https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=3232490.0)
except that it's the latest version instead. Only once before did I come across a version that wouldn't install, I think I remember that it was 3.0.x, but then the following 3.0.y installed fine.

This time, the usual command in the Terminal results in:

Downloading Electrum-3.2.2.tar.gz (5.6MB): 5.6MB downloaded
Running setup.py (path:/tmp/pip-gu9a1hxq-build/setup.py) egg_info for package from https://download.electrum.org/3.2.2/Electrum-3.2.2.tar.gz
error in Electrum setup command: Invalid environment marker: python_version < "3.5"
Complete output from command python setup.py egg_info:
error in Electrum setup command: Invalid environment marker: python_version < "3.5"
----------------------------------------
Cleaning up...
Command python setup.py egg_info failed with error code 1 in /tmp/pip-gu9a1hxq-build
Storing debug log for failure in /home/~/.pip/pip.log

whereas re-doing ends up with:

0 upgraded, 0 newly installed, 0 to remove and 5 not upgraded.

After trying all sorts for hours, I would have gone for the solution under that thread's post #7:


but once I had downloaded and untar-ed Electrum-3.2.2.tar.gz, I got stuck, most likely because I hardly know anything about Linux — I just don't understand the line on the download page that says "In the electrum directory, run:
Would anybody be so kind as to explain this to me?

That's self-explanatory.

1. Open the terminal where the Electrum-3.2.2.tar.gz file is located;
2. Run tar -xzf Electrum-3.2.2.tar.gz to extract the files;
3. Go to the folder you just extracted the files into (cd Electrum-3.2.2);
4. Run python3 electrum;

Try this except run it with sudo: https://www.reddit.com/r/Electrum/comments/8y7o9z/electrum_will_not_start/e29k9wv/

Then do the sudo pip3 install again.

If that doesn't work pastebin the pip.log file it creates and share the link here.

Thank you. I followed your instructions, and it looked like everything had gone fine. The only strange thing, in the Terminal, was the line in orange, towards the end:

    Downloading Electrum-3.2.2.tar.gz (5.6MB): 5.6MB downloaded
  Running setup.py (path:/tmp/pip-q35jumu9-build/setup.py) egg_info for package from https://download.electrum.org/3.2.2/Electrum-3.2.2.tar.gz
Requirement already satisfied (use --upgrade to upgrade): pyaes>=0.1a1 in /usr/local/lib/python3.4/dist-packages (from Electrum==3.2.2)
Requirement already satisfied (use --upgrade to upgrade): ecdsa>=0.9 in /usr/local/lib/python3.4/dist-packages (from Electrum==3.2.2)
Requirement already satisfied (use --upgrade to upgrade): pbkdf2 in /usr/local/lib/python3.4/dist-packages (from Electrum==3.2.2)
Requirement already satisfied (use --upgrade to upgrade): requests in /usr/lib/python3/dist-packages (from Electrum==3.2.2)
Requirement already satisfied (use --upgrade to upgrade): qrcode in /usr/local/lib/python3.4/dist-packages (from Electrum==3.2.2)
Requirement already satisfied (use --upgrade to upgrade): protobuf in /usr/local/lib/python3.4/dist-packages (from Electrum==3.2.2)
Requirement already satisfied (use --upgrade to upgrade): dnspython in /usr/local/lib/python3.4/dist-packages (from Electrum==3.2.2)
Requirement already satisfied (use --upgrade to upgrade): jsonrpclib-pelix in /usr/local/lib/python3.4/dist-packages (from Electrum==3.2.2)
Requirement already satisfied (use --upgrade to upgrade): PySocks>=1.6.6 in /usr/local/lib/python3.4/dist-packages (from Electrum==3.2.2)
Downloading/unpacking qdarkstyle<3.0 (from Electrum==3.2.2)
  Downloading QDarkStyle-2.5.4-py2.py3-none-any.whl (118kB): 118kB downloaded
Installing collected packages: qdarkstyle, Electrum
Found existing installation: Electrum 3.1.3
    Uninstalling Electrum:
      Not removing or modifying (outside of prefix):
      /usr/share/pixmaps/electrum.png
      /usr/share/applications/electrum.desktop
      Successfully uninstalled Electrum
  Running setup.py install for Electrum
    changing mode of build/scripts-3.4/electrum from 644 to 755
    changing mode of /usr/local/bin/electrum to 755
  Could not find .egg-info directory in install record for Electrum==3.2.2 from https://download.electrum.org/3.2.2/Electrum-3.2.2.tar.gz
Successfully installed qdarkstyle Electrum
Cleaning up...

HOWEVER... after this Electrum doesn't start anymore from the Launcher, as it used too! I only notice that that all refers to Python 3.4, not Python 3.5.

I've looked for a pip.log file, but only found one from yesterday (apparently the one refered to in my original post). Sorry for knowing so little about Ubuntu's way of working, I've been a Mac user for 30 years.

Robert

Thank you, it might be self-explanatory for you, but as said, I know preciously little about Linux. In this case, having very occasionally used the Terminal on a Mac, I could not understand a wording such as "open the terminal.. where a file is located", so I have worked on Abdussamad's reply first.

I see that you already know how to open a terminal. So, try to run those commands:

he's already installed it using pip3.

@OP open up a terminal and type:

If electrum doesn't run copy what it outputs in the terminal (ctrl+shift+c) and paste it on a pastebin site like pastebin.com. Then share the link with us here.

Thanks Abdussamad. Here it is (hopefully I got it right): https://pastebin.com/8dgekMdE

[Sorry, TryNinja, but I could only do one thing at a time, and it seems that to test your code, I would've had to start anew from the backup with v.3.1.2]

You just have to follow the guide:


TryNinja already posted how to accomplish this:



Thats literally all you have to do.

But you might consider using windows instead of linux. You seem to be extremely lost.
A better OS doesn't secure you more if you don't know how to handle it. In your case a windows setup should be more suitable.

Seems like the OP doesn't have Python installed or configured properly... They're missing the "typing" module:


I believe this is because it was added in Python 3.5, and OP seems to only have Python 3.4 installed:

perhaps try and see if this helps:

However, I would recommend that the OP tries upgrading Python first, that is likely to fix most of their issues:

do the following:

Salaam, and thank you very much. First of all: at last Electrum 3.2.2 is launching — and working as it should! However, after lauching it came with a message to the effect that it was updating to a new wallet format (can't remember the exact wording.) I assume this was to be expected?

Now, it's not clear to me whether it's only HCP / Post 10's suggestions (see my following reply to him) or if it is all of yours (these and the previous ones) and HCP's that got it working. At any rate, your clearly formulated and sensible help is highly appreciated, as always.

FYI, here's what I got after applying your two command lines:

1. Requirement already up-to-date: setuptools in /usr/local/lib/python3.4/dist-packages
Downloading/unpacking pip from https://files.pythonhosted.org/packages/0f/74/ecd13431bcc456ed390b44c8a6e917c1820365cbebcb6a8974d1cd045ab4/pip-10.0.1-py2.py3-none-any.whl#sha256=717cdffb2833be8409433a93746744b59505f42146e8d37de6c62b430e25d6d7
  Downloading pip-10.0.1-py2.py3-none-any.whl (1.3MB): 1.3MB downloaded
Installing collected packages: pip
  Found existing installation: pip 1.5.4
    Not uninstalling pip at /usr/lib/python3/dist-packages, owned by OS
Successfully installed pip

2. bash: syntax error near unexpected token `newline'

But it still didn't want to launch…

Thank you very much, it really helped: Electrum 3.2.2 is now lauching. And it is functional. But please see my reply above to Abdussamad Post 11 first, as I can't tell whether it's your two combined suggestions that fixed my problem.

Here is what I got after applying your two command lines:

1. (which I had already done several times): 0 upgraded, 0 newly installed, 0 to remove and 24 not upgraded. Only difference was now 24 instead of 5.

2. The directory '/home/~/.cache/pip/http' or its parent directory is not owned by the current user and the cache has been disabled. Please check the permissions and owner of that directory. If executing pip with sudo, you may want sudo's -H flag.
The directory '/home/~/.cache/pip' or its parent directory is not owned by the current user and caching wheels has been disabled. check the permissions and owner of that directory. If executing pip with sudo, you may want sudo's -H flag.
Collecting typing
Downloading https://files.pythonhosted.org/packages/05/2b/2b05bf1d5a9dd450447c9a5df3e118a465e5d3cb12b73b7220a5064a403f/typing-3.6.4-py3-none-any.whl
protobuf 3.4.0 has requirement six>=1.9, but you'll have six 1.5.2 which is incompatible.
Installing collected packages: typing
Successfully installed typing-3.6.4

After which it did launch.

Now, in what's quoted above, there appears to be some errors, in orange and in red — should these be corrected? If so, how?

I understand that it's difficult for many people, including myself, to keep track of all posts and the possible variety of solutions suggested within a single thread, but as said earlier (and quoted by yourself), I'm only able to try one thing at a time.


Now, let me try not to be too naughty. I've worked with Ataris, then Macs (when Atari went down the drain, partly for being too good at what they were doing) since the mid-80's. My partner worked with DOS since the early 80's, then moved to Macs too. I have used the Mac GUI of Electrum until the programmers decided not to support my OS any longer, some 3 years ago or so. Some people may be in a position to change computer and OS each and every time someone at Apple thinks it's funny (I doubt anybody in their right mind might think it's good business) to stop supporting a two-year old system, but, fortunately or not, that's not my case. So in 2015 I believe, if I didn't want to let my precious BTCs go into oblivion, I was forced into finding a solution. Which was installing Electrum on a VirtualBox image dedicated specifically to that: giving me access to my BTC wallet by running Electrum. In three years, I've never had a serious problem until now.

Like it or not, that's my real world. But, pardon me — did you say… Windoze ??? — like… you'd want me to buy a Wz machine and learn to use that crappy interface? A bit hilarious, I must say.

Incidentally, each and every time I need to pay out some BTCs I could ask my grandchild, who has Electrum 3.2.2 running on a Mac with Sierra. Not quite practical, though. Getting some sensible suggestions from sensible people on a discussion board like this one seems sounds like a much better idea, to me at least.

I don't get this habit of using virtualbox also. If you're running linux, virtual box is just going to slow you down isn't it?

Also, you could move to this directory "/home/~/.cache/pip/" and run ls -l to check its permissions and/or if the directory exists, however, not having cache on pip probably isn't too much of a problem.

If electrum runs now then you're good though.

Yes. you are right, it's quite slow, although it has become much faster after I updated Ubuntu while mucking about with this issue, and maybe also by getting rid of plenty of useless stuff (LibreOffice, Thunderbird) in the process. But I don't think speed is essential when using Electrum, as opposed to, say, a browser or a graphic app.

As said, the only purpose of using VirtualBox/Ubuntu (and a legacy version at that) was to run Electrum under a no longer supported MacOS. That was the best solution we found at the time, but if you know of anything better for that purpose, I'd be happy to hear about it (buying a PC for the sake of running Linux is not an option)

I'm not sure if there's a solution for you. My solution would be to replace mac osx with Ubuntu (but that's just because I hate macs, even more than Windows).

You might be able to ask a computer supplier if they'll give you an old computer (I know someone who got one that way as it cost the company more to recycle their machines then it does to just pass them onto other people). In some countries, depending on where you are, when you're finished with a computer, you either return it to the manufacturer or take it to be electrically recycled - either way, if the computer still "functions" (to a loose degree) they'll probably just try to give it away/sell it for a tiny price.

@jackg:

Macs must have made you really suffer. Even if I'd be far from admitting that they're perfect, I still don't know anything better, GUI-wise.

And yes, thank you, that could be a good idea. But right now everything related to security (essential in BTC matters, not?) in VirtualBox is “tunnelled” through the Mac OS (system firewall, Little Snitch, VPN interface etc.), so I'd have to evaluate your suggestion against acquiring new software for a system I don't know, setting it up, learning how to use it etc. When time and energies are not infinite…

Again, I believe that part of this is because you have the older version of python (3.4) installed.

I highly recommend upgrading to 3.5 or higher.

The orange part (sudo error) can be solved by doing what it suggested... Use "sudo -H" instead of just "sudo":

Thanks. Yes, before starting this thread I had also been led to believe that updating python to 3.5 from 3.4 might be part of the problem. But at the time I couldn't figure out how to do this update. And I still can't, unless the command you're giving me here is intended to do just that — which I'm not sure of (if you'll excuse me, I've gotten a bit lost between the various recommendations since the beginning.)

Anyway, I've applied it, but it doesn't get me very far, apparently. This is what I'm getting:

Requirement already satisfied: typing in /usr/local/lib/python3.4/dist-packages (3.6.4)
protobuf 3.4.0 has requirement six>=1.9, but you'll have six 1.5.2 which is incompatible.

Still quite perplexing…

I would suggest you really need to update your version of Python then... however, it looks like Python3.5 may not be to friendly with Ubuntu 14.04 (https://askubuntu.com/a/682875), so you need to be careful with how you do this.

You can follow some of the suggestions there... or maybe consider setting up an Ubuntu 16.04 virtual machine (that comes with a higher version of Python pre-installed) see the bottom answer: https://askubuntu.com/a/882723

Seems complicated, but I'll try to work it out as soon as I get a chance. And get back to you to tell you the result. Thanks a lot for helping making clear that I still don't have 3.5 installed.

I can't remember if I have mentioned earlier that Ubuntu 14.04 is the last version that will run in VirtualBox 4.3.34, which is the last version that will run under MacOS 10.6.8. At least that's the way I understand it.

Well, I found a few minutes, and for once it went like charm. I just had to run the commands in that thread in two steps, first:
then:
So I figure that I now have 3.5 installed. Only ??? after this: the following discussion of symlinks (which I assume to mean aliases in my speech) seems to indicate that 3.4 will remain active. How will Electrum figure out which Python version to play with? Not that I'd like to fiddle about with any symlinks, after all those warnings (wouldn't know where to begin with anyway), but just out of curiosity...

You can simply try typing: python -V
And see what it says... You may need to use python3 or python35 to get it to run the 3.5 version...

Once you figure out the exact command needed to make python35 run, you can the use: pythoncommand spectrum

For instance: python35 electrum

That will start Electrum using the correct version of Python...

Sorry to get back to you so late… This is what I'm getting:

"python -V": Python 2.7.6

"python3 -V": Python 3.4.3

"python35 -V":
No command 'python35' found, did you mean:
 Command 'python3m' from package 'python3-minimal' (main)
 Command 'python3' from package 'python3-minimal' (main)
python35: command not found

So I don't know where things are at. Thought I'd managed to get 3.5 installed?

Sorry to have to somehow repeat myself, but I wouldn't know how to "figure out the right command needed..."

If you managed to successfully install it by sudo apt-get install python3.5, you do have python 3.5 installed.
You need to type python3.5 instead of python35.

So, this command:


Then you can open electrum with this python version by typing:
inside the electrum directory

Good, thanks a lot. So "python3.5 -V" gives Python 3.5.5.

However, when I enter "cd Electrum-3.2.2" (which is what I think I could understand from an earlier reply), I get:

bash: cd: Electrum-3.2.2: No such file or directory

But I do actually have 3.2.2 installed (and running, for that matter) ???

The "cd" command (short for "change directory") will only look in the current directory if you don't pass it the full path... Depending on which directory you are in when you type "cd Electrum-3.2.2", then the system might not see that directory. It doesn't "search" your entire file system looking for it. So you need to know exactly where it is.

Where did you download and extract the Electrum-3.2.2.tar.gz file?


Also, apologies for the bad reply before... I was using my phone on a break at like 4am, and obviously didn't proofread the message before I sent it :P ::)

Not a problem, I'm only too happy to find people willing to help! I'm working on the rest, will be back in a few minutes...

I just cannot remember, it's all been very confused, over three weeks ago (posts 4 to 12 in this thread). Possibly, I downloaded it from the Mac interface, then moved it over to the Ubuntu desktop and unpacked it there. It got deleted afterwards.

I tried to do some searches as best as I could with the terminal, this is what I got:

~$ locate electrum|grep bin
/usr/local/bin/electrum
~$ locate electrum 3.2.2|grep bin
/usr/local/bin/electrum

This is what I then found in that directory (sorry, I don't know how to upload a screenshot here). The dates stamps on all those files (July 13) except the last one (qr, = 2015) seem to indicate that they are those that were installed at the time, three weeks ago:

/usr/local/bin/easy_install
/usr/local/bin/easy_install-3.4
/usr/local/bin/electrum
/usr/local/bin/pip
/usr/local/bin/pip3
/usr/local/bin/pip3.4
/usr/local/bin/qr

But I do not know how to see the electrum file's version number. Anyhow, after this I tried these commands:

~$ cd /usr/local/bin/electrum
bash: cd: /usr/local/bin/electrum: Not a directory
~$ cd usr/local/bin/electrum
bash: cd: usr/local/bin/electrum: No such file or directory
~$ cd usr/local/bin/
bash: cd: usr/local/bin/: No such file or directory
~$ cd /usr/local/bin/
/usr/local/bin$ python3.5 electrum
Error: No module named 'dns'. Try 'sudo pip install <module-name>'
/usr/local/bin$

... from which I don't know where to go. As you see it's not really getting me very far...

You might just simply download and unzip the file again. These 5 steps take about 1 or 2 minutes.


1) Open a console and navigate to the path you'd like to put electrum in.

2) Download electrum with this command:

3) Unzip the file:

4) Enter the directory:

5) Finally run electrum:

Sorry, I just don't understand. As said, at this point I do have 3.2.2 already installed and running as it it supposed to, so it's difficult for me to see the point.

According to this:



you are not able to find the directory. And this also is the reason that you can't start electrum. You just don't know where you put that file.
So you can either search your harddrive for the electrum folder and then simply run these 2 steps:


Or download it again, which takes 1 additional minute of your precious time, following all 5 steps.

I can only reiterate — again, again — that I now have Electrum 3.2.2 running, which, as most people might assume, implies that I can start it. Kindly peruse the thread over again, if you're still in doubt.

If you already have it running... then I'm not sure what your current issue is? ???

Why are you trying to use the "cd Electrum3.2.2." command? Were you just trying to follow the instructions on the Electrum website (and the ones given by bob123) and wondering why you got an error message? ???

Since your initial problem was that you were unable to upgrade to 3.2.2, you might want to lock the thread now because everything is working as it should ?

If you somehow still believe that something is not working as intended, please give a detailed description of what you think should happen and what actually happens.
For me it seems like you don't have a clue what you are actually doing inside the terminal, and just believe to have an error because the output you see should be different according to google.

Gentlemen/-ladies,

First of all: apologies for not having a better perception of the fact that the attention span and historical memory of a tortoise are of one kind, and those of a moth another. Throughout this thread I have on several occasions tried to make two things clear:

1. that as the owner of an Electrum wallet and an older MacOS, I have by necessity no other viable alternative than that of running the Linux port of the application under Ubuntu on a virtual image exclusively dedicated to that;

2. that I am not at all familiar with the linguistics in use among Linux habitués. While the English language is only one of those I fuddle with, I did attempt to explain myself as clearly as possible in this particular tongue.

Thus, in post #13 of 16.07 (and again in #27), I stated that, thanks to the suggestions of either Abdussamad (https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=profile;u=85981 (https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=profile;u=85981)) or HCP (https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=profile;u=867786 (https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=profile;u=867786)), or most likely thanks to the suggestions of both of them, I had got 3.2.2 to work.

Then, in post #19 of 20.07, and again in #21, HCP (https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=profile;u=867786 (https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=profile;u=867786)) — yes… that's you — recommended that I upgrade Python to v. 3.5. This is what everything on this thread has been dedicated to since then. Step by step, with some difficulties on my part, viz. the above about my understanding Linux Terminal lingo.

As by now I was fine with 3.2.2, one side of me (and of my household) has been inclined to drop the whole thread, thank you and good bye, yet another side was more than willing to listen respectfully to someone apparently knowledgeable who suggested that I didn't just leave Python at v. 3.4, or at v. 2.7.6 for that matter. Even if I couldn't see what I'd get out of upgrading to 3.5 in the short term.

So here we are, back to the last Terminal lines at post #30: 1. Python 3.5.5 installed; 2. don't know to have Electrum "catch" it (or vice-versa, to have 3.5.5 "catch" Electrum), if it is not already doing so; 3. don't know at this point whether it's useful or not.

If you have Electrum 3.2.2 running, then it's probably best to just leave things as they are. The advice to upgrade to Python 3.5.5 was more to prevent any future issues with Electrum being unable to find required libraries etc.

Yes, future developments were also what I had in mind, but I guess I'll let it rest for now, as you suggest. And hope that the next update doesn't bring me back here right away. Thanks again, to you and Abdussamad.