Installation Guide

This guide will help you install causal-agent in your preferred environment. Choose the installation method that best fits your needs.

Prerequisites 

Before installing causal-agent, ensure you have:

Python 3.10 or higher (Python 3.10 is recommended)
Git (for development installation)
An LLM API key (OpenAI, Anthropic, Google, etc.)

Quick Start (Recommended)

For most users, we recommend using pip with a virtual environment:

# Create and activate virtual environment
python -m venv causal_agent_env
source causal_agent_env/bin/activate  # On Windows: causal_agent_env\Scripts\activate

# Install causal-agent
pip install causal-agent

# Verify installation
python -c "import causal_agent; print('causal-aget=nt installed successfully!')"

# Test basic functionality
python -c "from causal_agent import run_causal_analysis; print('API imported successfully!')"

Installation Methods 

Method 1: pip (PyPI)

Install the latest stable version from PyPI:

pip install causal-agent

For development features (latest from GitHub):

pip install git+https://github.com/causalNLP/causal-agent.git

Method 2: Conda Environment 

Create a dedicated conda environment with Python 3.10:

# Create conda environment
conda create -n causal_agent python=3.10
conda activate causal_agent

# Install causal-agent
pip install causal-agent

# Or install from requirements file
git clone https://github.com/causalNLP/causal-agent.git
cd causal-agent
pip install -r requirements.txt
pip install -e .

Method 4: Development Installation 

For contributors and developers:

# Clone the repository
git clone https://github.com/causalNLP/causal-agent.git
cd causal-agent

# Create virtual environment
python -m venv venv
source venv/bin/activate  # On Windows: venv\Scripts\activate

# Install in development mode
pip install -e .

# Install development dependencies
pip install -r requirements.txt

# Run tests to verify installation
pytest tests/

Configuration Setup 

After installation, you need to configure your LLM provider:

Copy the example configuration:
```
cp .env.example .env
```

Edit the .env file with your API keys:

# OpenAI Configuration
OPENAI_API_KEY=your_openai_api_key_here

# Anthropic Configuration (optional)
ANTHROPIC_API_KEY=your_anthropic_api_key_here

# Google Configuration (optional)
GOOGLE_API_KEY=your_google_api_key_here

Verify configuration:

from causal_agent import run_causal_analysis

# Test with a simple example
result = run_causal_analysis(
    query="Test query",
    dataset_path="path/to/test/data.csv",
    dataset_description="Test dataset"
)

Environment-Specific Instructions 

Google Colab 

Install causal-agent in Google Colab:

!pip install causal-agent

# Set up API key
import os
from google.colab import userdata
os.environ['OPENAI_API_KEY'] = userdata.get('OPENAI_API_KEY')

# Import and use
from causal_agent import run_causal_analysis

Jupyter Notebook 

Install causal-agent in your Jupyter environment:

# Install in your current environment
pip install causal-agent

# Or create a new kernel
python -m ipykernel install --user --name causal_agent --display-name "Causal Agent Environment"

Verification 

Verify your installation with these tests:

Basic Import Test:

import causal_agent
print(f"Causal Agent version: {causal_agent.__version__}")

CLI Test:

causal-agent --help

API Test:

from causal_agent import run_causal_analysis

# This should not raise any import errors
print("Causal Agent API imported successfully!")

Complete Example:

from causal_agent import run_causal_analysis
import os

# Set API key
os.environ['OPENAI_API_KEY'] = 'your-api-key-here'

# Run a simple analysis
result = run_causal_analysis(
    query="What is the effect of education on income?",
    dataset_path="your_data.csv",
    dataset_description="Dataset containing education and income data"
)

# Print results
print(f"Method used: {result['results']['method_used']}")
print(f"Effect estimate: {result['results']['effect_estimate']}")
print(f"Interpretation: {result['results']['interpretation']}")

Next Steps 

After successful installation:

Complete the quickstart tutorial: Quickstart Tutorial
Try your first analysis: Your First Causal Analysis
Explore the user guide: User Guide
Check out tutorials: Tutorials & Examples

Getting Additional Help 

If you’re still experiencing issues:

Check the FAQ: Visit our GitHub Wiki
Search existing issues: GitHub Issues
Report a bug: Create a new issue with: - Your operating system and Python version - Complete error message - Minimal code example that reproduces the issue - Your dataset structure (without sensitive data)

When reporting issues, include:

# System information
import sys
import causal_agent
print(f"Python version: {sys.version}")
print(f"Causal Agent version: {causal_agent.__version__}")
print(f"Operating system: {sys.platform}")

# Error details
# Include the full error traceback
# Provide a minimal example that reproduces the issue