Graphical Analysis is available as a Progressive Web App, at https://graphicalanalysis.app/ running within the Chrome browser. This PWA is tested on macOS, Windows, ChromeOS, and Android. The PWA is not compatible with iPadOS and iOS.

The Chrome browser is also available for Linux. As a result, it is possible, in principle, to use the Graphical Analysis PWA on a Linux device. We do not test this combination, and it may not always be stable. However, a number of users have reported normal function on a Linux computer. In December 2024 testing here at the office, we were able to get the progressive web app version of both Graphical Analysis and Spectral Analysis (spectralanalysis.app) to work via Bluetooth connection to the sensor, but not with USB connection. We found this to be true both on a modern Linux laptop and on a Raspberry Pi 4.

Here are some notes taken from the section of our website describing how to use Python with our Go Direct sensors on Linux. These explain how to get the necessary files in place:

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Run the following command in your terminal to install the godirect module for USB and BLE:

pip3 install godirect

Some Linux distributions will not include all of the tools required by the godirect module and its dependencies. If you see errors when you run the pip3 install, you might need to first install the two packages as shown below, before trying again:

sudo apt install libusb1.0.0

sudo apt install libudev-dev

In order to communicate with Go Direct devices over USB on Linux systems, you will need to provide a special udev rule that allows the device to be identified when it is plugged in. The rule file is located on our github directory. Use the following steps to download the rule file and then move it to the proper location:

• Download the rule file (vstlibusb.rules) from our github directory.
• Use the File Manager to move the vstlibusb.rules file to the Desktop
• Open the terminal
• Navigate to the folder containing the vstlibusb.rules file
  • Run the “cd” command to navigate to the Desktop
    • cd ~/Desktop
  • Run the “print work directory” command to verify that you are in the Desktop directory.
    • pwd
  • Run the “list” command to verify that the vstlibusb.rules file is on the Desktop.
    • ls
  • Move the file to the /etc/udev/rules.d directory using super-user privileges.
    • Run this command to move the file to the /etc/udev/rules.d directory:
      • sudo cp vstlibusb.rules /etc/udev/rules.d/.
  • The rule will not take effect until you plug in a Go Direct device by USB. If a Go Direct device is already connected to the Linux computer, disconnect it and plug it in again. You may need to reboot your device.

Before trying out the progressive web app, confirm the installation of the godirect module by showing the version information. Run the following command in the terminal:

pip3 show godirect

Running the pip3 show command will provide information about the installed package, including the version number. Should you need to update to a newer version in the future, run the following command in the terminal:

pip3 install godirect --upgrade

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You may need to turn on Experimental Web Platform features in chrome://flags/ to enable connection to GoDirect Bluetooth devices. To do this , just open a new tab in the Chrome browser and enter:

chrome://flags

If you are using Linux with our progressive web apps and have questions about their use with Linux, contact Vernier technical support and specifically mention that you are using the progressive web app with Linux.