Pooch manages a data registry by downloading your data files from a server only when needed and storing them locally in a data cache (a folder on your computer).

Pooch's main features: * Pure Python and minimal dependencies. * Download a file only if necessary (it's not in the data cache or needs to be updated). * Verify download integrity through SHA256 hashes (also used to check if a file needs to be updated). * Designed to be extended: plug in custom download (FTP, scp, etc) and post-processing (unzip, decompress, rename) functions. * Includes utilities to unzip/decompress the data upon download to save loading time. * Can handle basic HTTP authentication (for servers that require a login) and printing download progress bars. * Easily set up an environment variable to overwrite the data cache location. * Automatically download your data files so you don't have to keep them in your GitHub repository. * Make sure everyone running the code has the same version of the data files (enforced through the SHA256 hashes).