Dependencies for scipy and matplotlib not handled by pip

I use pip to install almost all Python-based software on Ubuntu (currently 12.04 LTS), but have had persistent problems with scipy, whose installation always fails after a long installation process.

The logs are tedious, but the nub of the problem is that there are two dependencies not being met by pip because they are not Python-based:

1. FORTRAN: "Formula Translator"; what is needed is a compiler for the familiar scientific programming language of the 1960s and 70s; install gfortran with apt-get.
2. BLAS: "Basic Linear Algebra Subprograms", a library for handling linear algebra and other scientific programming problems; install libatlas-base-dev with apt-get.

After installation with apt-get, pip is able to install scipy and its Python-based dependencies without incident.

I think it is preferable to use pip in order to get current builds, rather than turning to the standard Ubuntu packages, which sometimes fall behind.

In the same way, there are dependencies for matplotlib that must be handled by apt-get:

1. libpng: library for handling PNG files; use libpng12-dev.
2. libjpeg: library for handling JPG files; use libjpeg-dev.
3. libfreetype: library for rendering fonts and bitmaps; use libfreetype6-dev.

After that, you should be able to install matplotlib smoothly with pip.

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