Download

You can use Fluid Construction Grammar in two ways:

  1. Using the FCG Editor (recommended)
  2. As part of the Babel software library

1. The FCG Editor

The FCG Editor can be downloaded for macOS, Microsoft Windows and Linux.

Step 1: Install Graphviz (optional, for optimal visualisations)

For visualising semantic networks in the web interface, one additional dependency needs to be installed, namely the Graphviz tool.

Linux

sudo apt-get install graphviz

macOS

If you have homebrew installed, use it to install graphviz.

Otherwise:
* Open Terminal.app
* Enter the following: xcode-select --install
* Install homebrew using these instructions
* Type the following in Terminal.app: brew install graphviz

Microsoft Windows

* Download the installer: graphviz-12.1.2.(64-bit).exe (64-bit) / graphviz-12.1.2.(32-bit).exe (32-bit)
* Double click to install — follow the installation procedures
* Click the magnifying glass in the lower left corner of the screen type, ‘control panel’ and open it.
* ‘Control Panel > System > Advanced system settings > Environment Variables…’
* Click ‘Path > Edit > New’
* Paste: C:\Program Files (x86)\Graphviz12.1.2\bin then ok in all windows. 

Step 2: Download the FCG Editor

Download the FCG Editor for your operating system and move it to the application folder. You can then launch it like any other program, for example by double-clicking it.

  • Linux
  • macOS
  • Microsoft Windows (For the moment, the application has not been signed for MS Windows, so you will need to click ‘More info’ and then ‘Run anyway’ upon opening the program.)

Step 3: First time using the FCG Editor

  1. Open the FCG Editor
  2. Click the ‘New’ button in the toolbar
  3. Click ‘Insert demo grammar’
  4. Then ‘Evaluate file’
  5. Wait until the ‘Evaluating…’ dialog window has disappeared
  6. Type a test utterance or meaning representation into the testing pane, e.g. the linguist likes the mouse.
  7. Click ‘Launch web interface’ and inspect the result

For getting started with FCG, we prepared a document that provides a brief introduction to its syntax and semantics. You can find it here.

2. Babel

If you opt for the full installation, you need to download FCG as part of the Babel software library. Babel is a flexible toolkit for implementing and running agent-based experiments on emergent communication. The Babel system includes advanced modules for constructional language processing and learning (Fluid Construction Grammar), conceptualising and interpreting procedural semantic structures (Incremental Recruitment Language), and conducting multi-agent experiments in simulated environments or using physical robots. The technical documentation for the Babel framework is available here .