diff --git a/bluesky/environments/environment_2024_3.yml b/bluesky/environments/environment_2024_3.yml
index 9cbb546e..2481bec7 100644
--- a/bluesky/environments/environment_2024_3.yml
+++ b/bluesky/environments/environment_2024_3.yml
@@ -15,112 +15,113 @@ name: bluesky_2024_3
 # https://github.com/BCDA-APS/bluesky_training/blob/main/bluesky/environments/admin/bluesky.md#bash-environment-variables
 
 channels:
-  - apsu  # Must be first for compatible epics-base, pyepics, pvapy
+  # - apsu  # Must be first for compatible epics-base, pyepics, pvapy
   - conda-forge
 
   # due to licensing Terms & Conditions,  don't use the defaults channel.
-  # - defaults
+  - nodefaults
+  # Note this advice: https://stackoverflow.com/questions/67695893/
 
 dependencies:
 
-  # --- Python core packages
-  - python >=3.11
-  - ipython
-  - jupyter
-  - jupyterlab
-  - notebook
-  - pip
-  - psutil
-
-  # --- testing and quality assurance
-  - black
-  - flake8
-  - pylint
-  - pytest
-  - pytest-notebook
-  - ruff
+  # Use conda to install only the basics and whatever pip can't install.
+  # This includes binaries such as Qt and hkl.
+  # Everything else by pip.
 
-  # --- Qt
+# -------------------------------------------------------
+  - python =3.11
+  - pip
+  - apsu::pvapy
+  - apsu::aps-dm-api >=8   # linux-64  osx-64 -- ONLY at APS!
+  - hkl   # linux-64
+  - nbconvert-pandoc
+  - pandoc >3
   - pyqt =5
   - qt =5
 
-  # --- general support packages
-  - apischema
-  - bitshuffle
-  - epics-base >=7.0.5
-  - h5py
-  - hdf5plugin
-  # - httpie
-  - imagecodecs-lite
-  - ipympl
-  - lxml
-  - numpy <1.999  # avoid any and all numpy 2.0 releases (includes 2.0.0aNNN)
-  - pandas
-  - pint
-  - pyEpics >=3.5.0
-  - pymongo
-  # - pysumreg
-  - scikit-image
-  - xlrd
-
-  # --- Bluesky framework packages
-  - apstools
-  - area-detector-handlers
-  - bluesky >=1.8.1,!=1.11.0
-  - bluesky-httpserver
-  - bluesky-kafka
-  - bluesky-live
-  - bluesky-queueserver
-  - bluesky-queueserver-api
-  - bluesky-widgets
-  - databroker-pack
-  - databroker =1.2
-  - hkl   # linux-64
-  - hklpy >=1.0.3
-  - httpx >=0.14  # issue #75
-  - ophyd >=1.7
-  - pydm
-  - tiled
-  # https://github.com/pydata/xarray/issues/6818
-  - xarray !=2022.6.0  # incompatible with numpy=1.20
-
-  # --- user-requested packages
-  - nexpy
-  - punx
-  - pvapy
-  # - pvmail
-  - pymca
-  - pyRestTable
-  - spec2nexus
-  - xrayutilities
-
-  # --- packaging and publishing
-  # - conda-build
-  - coverage
-  # - mamba
-  # - micromamba
-  - myst-parser
-  - nbsphinx
-  - pydata-sphinx-theme
-  - pygithub
-  - sphinx
-  - sphinx-design
-  - sphinx-tabs
-  - sphinxcontrib-napoleon
-  - twine
-  # - versioneer
-
-  # if not using this environment at APS, then comment these (and apsbss below)
-  - aps-dm-api >=8   # linux-64  osx-64
-  # LibMambaUnsatisfiableError: Encountered problems while solving:
-  #   - package c2dataviewer-1.7.6-py37_0 requires python >=3.7,<3.8.0a0, but none of the providers can be installed
-
   - pip:
+
+    # APS-only
     # - apsbss  # only works on APS subnet
-    # - c2dataviewer  # --- linux-64
-    - happi
-    # - mdaviz
+
+    # user-requested visualization packages
+    - c2dataviewer  # EPICS PVA images
+    - gemviz  # from tiled
+    - mdaviz  # MDA data files
+    - nexpy  # HDF5 and SPEC data files
+    - pymca  # HDF5 and SPEC data files
+
+    # --- user-requested packages
+    - https://github.com/BCDA-APS/adl2pydm/archive/main.zip
     - ophyd-registry
+    - punx
+    # - pvmail
     - pvview
-    # - tiled[all]
-    - https://github.com/BCDA-APS/adl2pydm/archive/main.zip
+    - pyRestTable
+    - spec2nexus
+    - xrayutilities
+
+    # --- Python core packages
+    - ipython
+    - jupyter
+    - jupyterlab
+    - notebook
+    - numpy <1.999  # avoid any and all numpy 2.0 releases (includes 2.0.0aNNN)
+    - psutil
+
+    # --- general support packages
+    - apischema
+    - bitshuffle
+    - h5py
+    - hdf5plugin
+    # - httpie
+    - imagecodecs-lite
+    - ipympl
+    - lxml
+    - pandas
+    - pint
+    - pymongo
+    # - pysumreg
+    - scikit-image
+    - xlrd
+
+    # --- Bluesky framework packages
+    - apstools
+    - area-detector-handlers
+    - bluesky >=1.12
+    - bluesky-httpserver
+    - bluesky-kafka
+    - bluesky-live
+    - bluesky-queueserver
+    - bluesky-queueserver-api
+    - bluesky-widgets
+    - databroker <=1.999
+    - databroker-pack
+    - happi
+    - hklpy >=1.1.1
+    - httpx >=0.14  # issue #75
+    - ophyd >=1.9
+    - pydm
+    - tiled[all]
+    # https://github.com/pydata/xarray/issues/6818
+    - xarray !=2022.6.0  # incompatible with numpy=1.20
+
+    # --- testing and quality assurance
+    - black
+    - flake8
+    - pylint
+    - pytest
+    - pytest-notebook
+    - ruff
+
+    # --- packaging and publishing
+    - coverage
+    - myst-parser
+    - nbsphinx
+    - pydata-sphinx-theme
+    - pygithub
+    - sphinx
+    - sphinx-design
+    - sphinx-tabs
+    - sphinxcontrib-napoleon
+    - twine