Bsoft is primarily a command-line package, with all the necessary code included in the package. However, from version 0.9, it includes a Tcl/Tk interface and a Tcl/Tk script, bshow, useful for the display of images and a few interactive manipulations. The Tcl/Tk version must be 8.3 or higher. Bsoft can be compiled without Tcl/Tk.

On most Unix boxes, the Tcl/Tk headers and libraries are installed in either /usr or /usr/local (look for /usr/include/tk.h or /usr/local/include/tk.h). The Bsoft compiler script, bmake, tries to find the Tcl/Tk headers automatically. There may be a version suitable for installation under VMS, but try at your own risk. Make sure the command "wish" is in your executable path.

Under Macintosh OSX 10.3 or earlier the only versions of Tcl/Tk supported are 8.4 or higher. The installation is different from other Unix platforms because of the directory structure under OSX. The following must be installed:

For Mac OSX 10.4, the Tcl/Tk libraries are included in the operating system. The Wish Shell application is now embedded in the Tk tree:

/System/Library/Frameworks/Tk.framework/Versions/8.4/Resources/Wish Shell.app