UV is a super-fast Python package manager and virtual environment tool built in Rust. It’s a drop-in replacement for pip, venv, and virtualenv, and it’s ideal for lightweight, reproducible Python environments — perfect for use with Zasper.

This guide shows how to create and configure a Python project using UV and register it as a Jupyter kernel for use in Zasper.

🔧 Step 1: Create a new project

Start by initializing a new Python project with UV:

uv init exampleUV
cd exampleUV
uv run main.py   # This command creates a `.venv` directory automatically

The .venv directory is your virtual environment — an isolated space where you can install dependencies without affecting your global Python installation.

🧪 Step 2: Activate the virtual environment

To use the environment in your terminal session:

source .venv/bin/activate

This activates the environment so that any Python or pip commands you run will use the local .venv.

📦 Step 3: Install packages

Install the ipykernel package, which allows the environment to be used as a kernel in Jupyter-based tools like Zasper:

uv pip install ipykernel

You can also install any additional libraries you need for your project at this stage.

🧠 Step 4: Register the kernel

Finally, make the environment available to Jupyter (and Zasper) by registering it as a named kernel:

uv run python -m ipykernel install --user --name=exampleUV

This creates a new kernel spec named exampleUV. You’ll now see it listed as an option in the Zasper kernel selector.

✅ You’re all set!

You can now launch Zasper, select the exampleUV kernel, and run code in your new environment. 🎉