On macOS, the number of additional system packages that need to be installed is less than with Ubuntu systems.
Run the following commands from a Terminal:
brew install cmake boost sdl2 swig wget
brew install boost-python --with-python3
These commands will install the prerequisite system packages.
The robotics and control environment in OpenAI Gym make use of Multi-Joint dynamics with Contact (MuJoCo) as the physics engine to simulate the rigid body dynamics and other features. We briefly had a look at MuJoCo environments in Chapter 1, Introduction to Intelligent Agents and Learning Environments and learned that you can develop algorithms that can make a 2D robot walk, run, swim, or hop, or a 3D multi-legged robot walk or run using the MuJoCo environment. MuJoCo is a proprietary engine and therefore needs a license. Fortunately, we can get a free 30-day license!
Also, if you are a student, they offer a 1 year free MuJoCo Pro personal license, which is even better! For others, after the 30 days, sadly it costs a hefty sum (~$500 USD) for a 1 -year license. We will not be using the MuJoCo environments in this book because not everyone may be able to get hold of a license. You can always apply what you learn in this book regarding other environments to the MuJoCo environments if you have a license. If you plan to use these environments, you will have to follow the instructions in the MuJoCo installation section next. If not, you can skip it and go to the next section to set up OpenAI Gym.
Also, if you are a student, they offer a 1 year free MuJoCo Pro personal license, which is even better! For others, after the 30 days, sadly it costs a hefty sum (~$500 USD) for a 1 -year license. We will not be using the MuJoCo environments in this book because not everyone may be able to get hold of a license. You can always apply what you learn in this book regarding other environments to the MuJoCo environments if you have a license. If you plan to use these environments, you will have to follow the instructions in the MuJoCo installation section next. If not, you can skip it and go to the next section to set up OpenAI Gym.