compiling matplotlib in virtual env

[Laura Creighton]

Lots of egg problems can be fixed if you pip install this
package first.

https://pypi.python.org/pypi/ez_setup

However, you are trying to install matplotlib.
Your distro should have it already as a package (python-matplotlib
perhaps?  python3-matplotlib perhaps?) and you may want to get
it from there.  If you don't want to get it from there, you may
want to use conda instead of pip/easy_install and so on.
http://conda.pydata.org/docs/intro.html

If the scientific python stack, and not just matplotlib is in
your future, just use conda.  It is so much easier.

Laura