update installation instructions for Ubuntu/Debian packages (#1495)

doc/docs/Download.md

@@ -16,21 +16,16 @@ To receive notifications when new versions are released, subscribe to the [meep-
 Precompiled Packages for Ubuntu
 -------------------------------
 
-Precompiled packages of the out-of-date [version 1.3](https://github.com/NanoComp/meep/releases/tag/1.3) (September 2017) are available for [Ubuntu](https://packages.ubuntu.com/search?keywords=meep). We recommend Ubuntu as Meep and all of its dependencies can be installed using just one line:
+Precompiled packages of [Meep version 1.17.1](https://github.com/NanoComp/meep/releases/tag/v1.17.1) (January 2021) with Python interface will be available for [Ubuntu 21.04 ("Hirsute Hippo")](https://packages.ubuntu.com/hirsute/python3-meep) in April 2021. We recommend Ubuntu as Meep and all of its dependencies will be able to be installed using just one line:
 
 ```sh
-sudo apt-get install meep h5utils
+sudo apt-get install python3-meep h5utils
 ```
 
-You can also install the parallel version of Meep which is based on [OpenMPI](https://www.open-mpi.org/) using:
+You will also be able to install the [parallel version of Meep](https://packages.ubuntu.com/hirsute/python3-meep-openmpi) which is based on [OpenMPI](https://www.open-mpi.org/) using:
 
 ```sh
-sudo apt-get install meep-openmpi
+sudo apt-get install python3-meep-openmpi
 ```
 
-The Meep package for Ubuntu is in the process of being updated and will likely appear in Ubuntu 19.10 as derived from the [Debian package](https://packages.debian.org/search?searchon=names&keywords=meep).
-
-Amazon Web Services (AWS)
--------------------------
-
-The latest stable version of Meep preinstalled on [Ubuntu](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ubuntu) 16.04 can be accessed for free on Amazon Web Services (AWS) Elastic Compute Cloud (EC2) as an [Amazon Machine Image (AMI)](https://aws.amazon.com/marketplace/pp/B01KHWH0AS) provided by [Simpetus](http://www.simpetus.com/launchsims.html).
+These upcoming Meep packages for Ubuntu 21.04 are derived from the Debian 11 ("Bullseye") packages ([serial](https://packages.debian.org/bullseye/python3-meep) and [parallel](https://packages.debian.org/bullseye/python3-meep-openmpi)). Debian 11 is currently the testing distribution.

doc/docs/FAQ.md

@@ -35,11 +35,7 @@ For a list of more than 2500 published works which have used Meep, see the [Goog
 
 ### Can I access Meep in the public cloud?
 
-Yes. Meep is available preinstalled on Ubuntu on Amazon Web Services (AWS) Elastic Compute Cloud (EC2) as a free [Amazon Machine Image (AMI)](https://aws.amazon.com/marketplace/pp/B01KHWH0AS). To access this AMI, follow these [instructions](http://www.simpetus.com/launchsims.html).
-
-### Are professional consulting services available?
-
-Yes. [Simpetus](http://www.simpetus.com), a company started by Meep's developers and maintainers, provides professional consulting services for photonic design and modeling including development of turn-key simulation modules as well as training and technical support for getting up and running with Meep.
+Yes. Using a virtual instance running Ubuntu, you can install the [Conda package for Meep](Installation.md#conda-packages).
 
 Installation
 ------------

doc/docs/Installation.md

@@ -13,8 +13,6 @@ Meep's build systems uses the standard [GNU Autotools](https://en.wikipedia.org/
 
 Gzipped tarballs of stable versions of the source are available on the [releases page](https://github.com/NanoComp/meep/releases), and you can also do a `git clone` of the master branch of the [Meep repository on Github](https://github.com/NanoComp/meep) if you have Autotools installed. For more information, see [Build From Source](Build_From_Source.md).
 
-The latest version of Meep preinstalled on Ubuntu can be accessed on Amazon Web Services (AWS) Elastic Compute Cloud (EC2) as a free [Amazon Machine Image (AMI)](https://aws.amazon.com/marketplace/pp/B01KHWH0AS). To access this AMI, follow these [instructions](http://www.simpetus.com/launchsims.html).
-
 Conda Packages
 ---------------
 
@@ -130,15 +128,11 @@ To install the PyMeep Conda package on a [non-networked system](https://docs.ana
 Installation on Linux
 -------------------------
 
-For most [Linux distributions](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Linux_distribution), there should be precompiled packages for most of Meep's prerequisites below, and we *highly* recommend installing those prerequisites using the available packages for your system whenever possible. Using precompiled packages means that you don't have to worry about how to install things manually. You are using packages which have already been tweaked to work well with your system, and usually your packages will be automatically upgraded when you upgrade the rest of your system. For easy access to the Python interface, we provide a binary installation in the form of Conda packages. Details can be found [below](#conda-packages).
-
-The following precompiled packages are available: BLAS and LAPACK possibly as part of a package for [Atlas BLAS](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Automatically_Tuned_Linear_Algebra_Software), Guile, MPI, and HDF5. One thing to be careful of is that many distributions split packages into two parts: one main package for the libraries and programs, and a **devel** package for [header files](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Header_file) and other things needed to compile software using those libraries. You will need to install **both**. So, for example, you will probably need both a `guile` package (probably installed by default) and a `guile-dev` or `guile-devel` package (probably *not* installed by default), and similarly for HDF5 etcetera. You will probably also want to install a `libpng-dev` or `libpng-devel` package in order to compile the `h5topng` utility in [h5utils](https://github.com/NanoComp/h5utils/blob/master/README.md).
+For most [Linux distributions](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Linux_distribution), there should be precompiled packages for most of Meep's prerequisites below, and we *highly* recommend installing those prerequisites using the available packages for your system whenever possible. Using precompiled packages means that you don't have to worry about how to install things manually. You are using packages which have already been tweaked to work well with your system, and usually your packages will be automatically upgraded when you upgrade the rest of your system.
 
-The easiest installation is on [Ubuntu](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ubuntu_(operating_system)) which has precompiled packages for Meep:
+There are upcoming packages for [Meep version 1.17.1](https://github.com/NanoComp/meep/releases/tag/v1.17.1) with Python interface for Ubuntu 21.04 ("Hirsute Hippo") ([serial](https://packages.ubuntu.com/hirsute/python3-meep) and [parallel](https://packages.ubuntu.com/hirsute/python3-meep-openmpi)) and Debian 11 ("Bullseye") ([serial](https://packages.debian.org/bullseye/python3-meep) and [parallel](https://packages.debian.org/bullseye/python3-meep-openmpi)) which will be released in April 2021.
 
-```sh
-apt-get install meep h5utils
-```
+In the meantime, the following dependencies are already available as precompiled packages: BLAS and LAPACK possibly as part of a package for [Atlas BLAS](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Automatically_Tuned_Linear_Algebra_Software), Guile, MPI, and HDF5. One thing to be careful of is that many distributions split packages into two parts: one main package for the libraries and programs, and a **devel** package for [header files](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Header_file) and other things needed to compile software using those libraries. You will need to install **both**. So, for example, you will probably need both a `guile` package (probably installed by default) and a `guile-dev` or `guile-devel` package (probably *not* installed by default), and similarly for HDF5 etcetera. You will probably also want to install a `libpng-dev` or `libpng-devel` package in order to compile the `h5topng` utility in [h5utils](https://github.com/NanoComp/h5utils/blob/master/README.md).
 
 Installation on macOS 
 -----------------------

doc/docs/index.md

@@ -61,11 +61,9 @@ For bug reports and feature requests, please file a [GitHub issue](https://githu
 Acknowledgements
 ----------------
 
-The Meep project is maintained by [Simpetus](http://www.simpetus.com) and the developer community on [GitHub](https://github.com/NanoComp/meep). [Acknowledgements](Acknowledgements.md) provides a complete listing of the project contributors.
+The Meep project is maintained by the developer community on [GitHub](https://github.com/NanoComp/meep). [Acknowledgements](Acknowledgements.md) provides a complete listing of the project contributors.
 
 Support and Feedback
 ---------------------
 
 If you have questions or problems regarding Meep, you are encouraged to query the [mailing list](https://www.mail-archive.com/meep-discuss@ab-initio.mit.edu/).
-
-Professional consulting services for photonic design and modeling including development of custom, turn-key simulation modules, training, technical support, and access to Meep in the public cloud via Amazon Web Services (AWS) are provided by [Simpetus](http://www.simpetus.com).