How can I install pgfplots on the home directory with or without sudo rights?

Question

I need to use some packages at my uni network so I can compile my projects there too but I am pretty sure it doesn't have pgfplots (from looking at the log) perhaps some others.

All the tutorials seem to need access to admin directories so I can only install onto my home directory there. Is there a way I can install the package (and any others needed) to get it working anyway?

Oh and here is the relevant part of the log

(/usr/share/texmf/tex/generic/pgf/libraries/pgflibrarytikztopaths.code.tex
File: pgflibrarytikztopaths.code.tex 2006/10/16 v1.10 (rcs-revision 1.5)
)))

! LaTeX Error: File `pgfplots.sty' not found.

Type X to quit or <RETURN> to proceed,
or enter new name. (Default extension: sty)

Enter file name: 
! Emergency stop.
<read *> 

l.13 \usepackage
                {pgfplotstable}^^M
*** (cannot \read from terminal in nonstop modes)

I would not be able to make any change to things in the /usr/share/

directory without sudo I don't think

Further to this additional help with configuring the editor to be able to reference the pgfplots but also the tex files that the administrator has already installed will be useful (I am on on scientific linux but a general answer will be helpful)

EDIT: I have managed to persuade them to add the package so everyone can use it. I would still be interested in getting an answer to the question and also with sudo rights for comparison.

EDIT: I have not managed to get either method suggested in answers below working. When I try to compile a file with my pgfplots package in the preamble a file called pgfplotshandlers.code.tex just opens in kile.

When I call kpsewhich pgfplots.sty command it does now get my /Home/myusername/texmf/tex/latex/pgfplots/pgfplots.sty which is an improvement because before this command was saying nothing whatsoever.

UPDATE: I have not a .profile or .bashrc in my home directory on the guest computer.

Answer 1

make a new empty directory say ~/pgfplots download pgfplots_1.7.tds.zip from http://sourceforge.net/projects/pgfplots/

unzip the zip file into the empty directory. Then set your TEXINPUTS environment variable to

~/pgfplots/tex//: 

where the // means recursive directories below that, and the trailing : means search all the standard places as well.

Then you should be done.

To demonstrate, I just did this unzipping in to /tmp/pgf then

 $ kpsewhich pgfplots.sty

which produces the output:

/usr/local/texlive/2012/texmf-dist/tex/latex/pgfplots/pgfplots.sty

Showing it is picking it up from the standard TL2012 place

$ export TEXINPUTS=/tmp/pgf/tex//:

set the environment variable (use setenv for csh)

$ kpsewhich pgfplots.sty

Try again:

/tmp/pgf/tex/latex/pgfplots/pgfplots.sty

Now it picks it up from the locally installed file.

Answer 2

On Unix/Linux, TeXLive's default TEXMFHOME directory is ~/texmf. It should be enough to unzip the "tds" version (pgfplots_*.tds.zip) into ~/texmf in such way that the directory structure in the archive will be preserved, for example by running

$ mkdir ~/texmf #if it does not exist yet
$ cd ~/texmf
$ unzip path/to/pgfplots_*.tds.zip

should do the job (that should actually work for all TeX packages).

It that does not work, it would probably mean that your local TeX admin redefined the location of the TEXMFHOME directory. You may want to talk to them.