Ipython notebook matplotlib gui backends dlopen import error on osx

Question

On OSX 10.11.6 using Anaconda python 2.7 when switching to (any) gui matplotlib backend from %matplotlib inline in jupyter ipython notebook generates:

ImportError: dlopen(/Users/.../anaconda2/lib/python2.7/site-packages/PyQt4/QtGui.so, 2): Library not loaded: @rpath/libpng16.16.dylib Referenced from: /Users/.../anaconda2/lib/libQtGui.4.8.7.dylib Reason: Incompatible library version: libQtGui.4.dylib requires version 39.0.0 or later, but libpng16.16.dylib provides version 34.0.0

Any suggestions which one of the mentioned libraries I am supposed to install/update or both? And how to find these for OSX?

I have exactly the same problem since I updated a bunch of my conda packages yesterday. I tried conda uninstall matplotlib followed by conda install matplotlib and it did not go away. — Bill

Bill Bill · Accepted Answer · 2016-09-19T05:12:58

Problem was solved after I did this:

conda update libpng

Which resulted in:

The following packages will be UPDATED:

    libpng: 1.6.17-0 --> 1.6.22-0

Ipython notebook matplotlib gui backends dlopen import error on osx

1 Answers