Mascot: The trusted reference standard for protein identification by mass spectrometry for 25 years

The current releases of Mascot Parser are:

  • Windows (Intel/AMD): 2.8.1
  • Linux (Intel/AMD): 2.8.1
  • Solaris (UltraSparc): 2.2.06
  • AIX (P4/5): 2.2.01

To obtain Mascot Parser, read the licence agreement carefully, then enter your email address to obtain the download links.

If you just want to browse the help file, this is available online, or can be downloaded as a Windows help file (chm). Some Windows security patches interfere with downloaded help files. If you cannot view topics, right-click the file, choose Properties, then Unblock.

System Requirements

64 bit system

Parser 2.8.0 and later require a 64-bit system. Please use Parser 2.7.0 if you require the 32-bit libraries. The download links for earlier versions are included in the download email.

Using the toolkit from Perl

Reasonable proficiency in Perl programming is required. Under Windows, ActivePerl and Strawberry Perl version 5.24.x, 5.26.x, 5.28.x, 5.30.x, 5.32.x (64 bit) must be installed. Under Unix, Perl 5.16.x, 5.18.x, 5.20., 5.22.x, 5.24.x, 5.26.x, 5.28.x, 5.30.x, 5.32.x, 5.34.x (64 bit) are supported. For a more detailed breakdown, refer to the help file, which can be downloaded using the link near the top of this page.

Please contact us if your Perl version is not listed and we can build a suitable version.

Using the toolkit from Java

Reasonable proficiency in Java programming is required. A Java jar library is supplied which accesses a C++ library (DLL/.so) via Java JNI. The Java toolkit has been tested on Oracle Java JSDK versions 1.4.1_01, 1.4.1_02, 1.5.0_06, 1.6.0_07 (Java SE 6), 1.7.0_3 (Java SE 7) and 1.8.0_161 (Java SE 8). The library should also be compatible with OpenJDK.

Please contact us if your Java version is not listed and we can build a suitable version.

Using the toolkit from Python

Reasonable proficiency in Python programming is required. Under Windows, ActivePython version 2.7, 3.4, 3.6, 3.7, 3.8 or 3.9 (64 bit) must be installed. Under Unix, Python 2.7, 3.4, 3.6, 3.7, 3.8 or 3.9 (64 bit) must be installed.

Please contact us if your Python version is not listed and we can build a suitable version.

Using the toolkit from C#

Reasonable proficiency in C# programming is required. Mascot Parser C# toolkit has been built using the Microsoft .NET Framework 4.0 and tested with the .NET Framework 4.5.

Using the toolkit from C++

Reasonable proficiency in C++ programming is required. Internally, the library makes extensive use of different STL containers, but this is mostly ‘hidden’ from the user of the toolkit. A working C++ compiler is required on the target platform. The following compilers are supported:

Platform Compilers supported
Microsoft Windows

Microsoft Visual Studio 2012 Update 3 (64 bit)
Microsoft Visual Studio 2013 Update 3 (64 bit)
Microsoft Visual Studio 2015 Update 1 (64 bit)
Microsoft Visual Studio 2017 15.7 (64 bit)
Minimal GNU for Windows (MinGW) using g++ version 4.9.2 (mingw special)

The library is supplied as a static .lib and as a DLL. In theory, it could be used with any compiler but since the implementation is C++ classes, it is probably only practical to use a Microsoft compiler or MinGW g++ due to disparate name mangling conventions.

DLL compiled for Visual Studio 2017 can be used with VS2019 and VS2022.

Linux (x86_64 only) Intel Linux compiler 2016 or later, GNU g++ 4.8.5 or later. Only 64 bit shared and static libraries are provided.
IBM AIX Visual Age C++ compiler 6.0 or later
Sun Solaris Sun WorkShop 6, C++ 5.3 compiler