@@ -229,9 +229,6 @@ means that the dependencies must be explicitly installed, either by :ref:`creati
229229(recommended) or by manually installing the following packages:
230230
231231- `meson-python <https://meson-python.readthedocs.io/ >`_ (>= 0.13.1).
232- - `ninja <https://ninja-build.org/ >`_ (>= 1.8.2). This may be available in your package
233- manager or bundled with Meson, but may be installed via ``pip `` if otherwise not
234- available.
235232- `PyBind11 <https://pypi.org/project/pybind11/ >`_ (>= 2.13.2). Used to connect C/C++ code
236233 with Python.
237234- `setuptools_scm <https://pypi.org/project/setuptools-scm/ >`_ (>= 7). Used to
@@ -240,10 +237,22 @@ means that the dependencies must be explicitly installed, either by :ref:`creati
240237- `NumPy <https://numpy.org >`_ (>= 1.22). Also a runtime dependency.
241238
242239
240+ .. _compile-build-dependencies :
241+
242+ Compilers and external build tools
243+ ----------------------------------
244+
245+ When setting up a virtual environment for development, `ninja <https://ninja-build.org/ >`_
246+ (>= 1.8.2) may need to be installed separately. This may be available
247+ as a `pre-built binary <https://github.com/ninja-build/ninja/releases >`_ or from a
248+ `package manager <https://github.com/ninja-build/ninja/wiki/Pre-built-Ninja-packages >`_
249+ or bundled with Meson. Ninja may also be installed via ``pip `` if otherwise not
250+ available.
251+
243252.. _compile-dependencies :
244253
245- Compiled extensions
246- -------------------
254+ Compilers
255+ ^^^^^^^^^
247256
248257Matplotlib requires a C++ compiler that supports C++17, and each platform has a
249258development environment that must be installed before a compiler can be installed.