More information:
I realized that I was 4 versions behind, the error I was seeing was in version 0.87
However:
Version 0.87.1 has the same error
Version 0.87.2 gives the following (though it works afterwards):
Python 2.4.2 (#67, Sep 28 2005, 12:41:11) [MSC v.1310 32 bit (Intel)] on win32
Type "help", "copyright", "credits" or "license" for more information.
>>> from pylab import *
C:\Python24\lib\site-packages\matplotlib\font_manager.py:456: UserWarning: Canno
t handle unicode filenames
warnings.warn("Cannot handle unicode filenames")
>>>
Version 0.87.3 seems to work just fine (no noticeable errors).
Version 0.87.4 causes a full interpreter crash with no errors (the crash raises one of Window's infamous "* has encountered a problem and needs to close. We are sorry for the inconvenience." dialogs).
So, I've got a temporary solution, in that I can just use version 0.87.3, but it's not a permanent solution as development of matplotlib goes forward. If anyone can explain what's going on I'd appreciate it.
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R. Padraic Springuel
Teaching Assistant
Department of Physics and Astronomy
University of Maine
Bennett 214
Office Hours: By Appointment only during the Summer