Automic VaultAutomic Vault

brew

Install ascii with Homebrew, apt, dnf, MacPorts, Nix, pacman, zypper

List ASCII idiomatic names and octal/decimal code-point forms. Version 3.32 via Homebrew; verified from local package data.

Install commandSecurity notes

install

Additional install commands

macOS

Homebrewverified · 100%
brew install ascii

local Homebrew formula metadata

MacPortsverified · 94%
sudo port install ascii

MacPorts ports tree · textproc/ascii/Portfile · source: api.github.com

Linux

Debian aptverified · 92%
sudo apt install ascii

Debian stable package indexes · ascii · source: deb.debian.org

Fedora dnfverified · 92%
sudo dnf install ascii

Fedora Rawhide package metadata · ascii · source: dl.fedoraproject.org

Nixverified · 92%
nix profile install nixpkgs#ascii

nixpkgs package indexes · pkgs/by-name/as/ascii/package.nix · source: api.github.com

Arch Linux pacmanverified · 92%
sudo pacman -S ascii

Arch Linux sync databases · ascii · source: geo.mirror.pkgbuild.com

openSUSE zypperverified · 92%
sudo zypper install ascii

openSUSE Tumbleweed package metadata · ascii · source: download.opensuse.org

overview

Package summary

List ASCII idiomatic names and octal/decimal code-point forms

Commands and aliases

  • ascii

history

Project history and usage

ascii is Eric S. Raymond's compact Unix reference utility for translating among ASCII character names, byte values, numeric bases, Teletype mnemonics, ISO/ECMA code positions, XML entity names, and slang names. Called without arguments, it prints a small ASCII chart.

Project history

The official NEWS file records the first release by Eric S. Raymond as version 1.0 in March 1990. Through the 1990s it accumulated ISO-style code table escapes, contributed changes, a splash-screen idea, and option changes; version 3.0 in July 2000 added HTML/SGML entity names.

The modern 3.x line continued as a maintenance-oriented C utility. The NEWS file records a 2010 license change to BSD and ANSI C cleanup, 2011 additions from Debian, a 2013 Makefile fix from MacPorts, a 2015 project metadata move away from Gitorious, 2017 binary table output, 2024 CLI flag handling updates, and 2026 hardening/packaging work.

Adoption history

The official resource page states that the code is usually packaged as `ascii` and displays Repology package status. The input package facts show the formula is available across Homebrew, Debian, Fedora/DNF, MacPorts, Nix, Arch, Ubuntu, and openSUSE/Zypper, reflecting the utility's long-lived role as a tiny reference program in Unix collections.

How it is used

Package users typically install it for fast terminal lookup: provide a character, number, escape, mnemonic, or entity name and ascii prints the corresponding representations; run it with no arguments to get a chart. Recent options can force output radix with `-d`, `-o`, `-x`, or `-b`.

Why package nerds care

ascii is package-nerd catnip because it is a small, old, useful command that survived several hosting eras and kept receiving portability and packaging fixes. The changelog explicitly names downstream pressure from Debian and MacPorts, and recent changes mention packager hardening flags, making it a clean example of a tiny utility shaped by distributions over decades.

Timeline

  • 1990-03: First public release, v1.0, by Eric S. Raymond.
  • 1995-12: v2.0 adds ISO-style code table escapes.
  • 2000-07: v3.0 adds HTML/SGML entity names.
  • 2010-10: v3.10 changes license to BSD and polishes code to ANSI C.
  • 2013-11: v3.13 adjusts Makefile behavior for MacPorts PREFIX convention.
  • 2015-04: v3.15 updates project metadata after Gitorious decline.
  • 2017-07: v3.17 adds binary code-point table output.
  • 2026-03: v3.32 allows packager hardening flags and radix-forcing options.

Related projects

  • Repology tracks packaged versions across distributions, and the official page embeds its package-status badge.
  • Downstream package systems named in the input include Homebrew, Debian, Fedora, MacPorts, Nix, Arch, Ubuntu, and openSUSE.

security posture

Risk level: green

narrow executable package without higher-risk signals.

Risk classifier

green risk · low confidence · appliance

Why

  • narrow executable package without higher-risk signals

Signals

  • metadata:no-higher-risk-signals

Install behavior

  • No Homebrew post-install hook is recorded in formula metadata.
  • Homebrew bottle metadata is available for 6 platform targets.
  • Build metadata lists 1 build dependencies.

Recommended review

Before unattended agent use, check whether the tool reads plaintext credentials, writes remote state, publishes artifacts, or shells out to plugins.

executables

Installed executables

CommandKindExposureNote
asciicliglobal executable

freshness

Version and freshness

These signals separate page generation age, package-manager activity, and upstream release comparison. Version lag is warned only when an evidence URL and comparable versions are present.

page generated2026-07-08
manager version3.32
manager updated
local dataok
upstreamnot checked
latest detectednot detected

http://www.catb.org/~esr/ascii/

  • infoNo package-manager update timestamp was available.low confidence
  • infoRelease/tag comparison is only available for GitHub repositories.http://www.catb.org/~esr/ascii/none confidence

install metadata

Package metadata

Package keybrew:ascii
Version3.32
Package managerHomebrew
Package manager pagehttps://formulae.brew.sh/formula/ascii
Homepagehttp://www.catb.org/~esr/ascii/
Repositoryhttps://gitlab.com/esr/ascii
Upstream docshttp://www.catb.org/~esr/ascii
LicenseBSD-2-Clause
Source archivehttps://gitlab.com/esr/ascii/-/archive/3.32/ascii-3.32.tar.bz2
Build dependenciesasciidoctor
Bottleavailable (on arm64_linux, arm64_sequoia, arm64_sonoma, arm64_tahoe, sonoma, x86_64_linux)
Homebrew post-installnot defined
Servicenone declared

registry facts

Source database details

Source DatabaseHomebrew formula API
Taphomebrew/core
Full Nameascii
Version Scheme0
Revision0
Head VersionHEAD
Bottle Stable Root URLhttps://ghcr.io/v2/homebrew/core
Deprecatedno
Disabledno
Keg Onlyno
URL Keys
  • head
  • stable

source database matches

Other package-manager records

Matches are pulled from external package-manager indexes and kept separate from local Automic Vault package links.

Debian apt95%

ascii 3.18-5

interactive ASCII name and synonym chart

http://www.catb.org/~esr/ascii/

sudo apt install ascii
  • Section: utils
  • Architecture: amd64
  • 1 dependencies
  • normalized package name match
  • Matched by: Ascii
Debian stable package indexes · deb.debian.org · Debian stable package indexes: ascii from https://deb.debian.org/debian/dists/stable/main/binary-amd64/Packages.xz
Nix95%

ascii

nix profile install nixpkgs#ascii
  • normalized package name match
  • Matched by: Ascii
nixpkgs package indexes · api.github.com · nixpkgs package indexes: pkgs/by-name/as/ascii/package.nix from https://api.github.com/repos/NixOS/nixpkgs/git/trees/master?recursive=1
Ubuntu apt95%

ascii 3.18-5

interactive ASCII name and synonym chart

http://www.catb.org/~esr/ascii/

sudo apt install ascii
  • Section: universe/utils
  • Architecture: amd64
  • 1 dependencies
  • normalized package name match
  • Matched by: Ascii
Ubuntu 24.04 LTS package indexes · archive.ubuntu.com · Ubuntu 24.04 LTS package indexes: ascii from https://archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/dists/noble/universe/binary-amd64/Packages.gz
dnf95%

ascii 3.32-1.fc45

Interactive ascii name and synonym chart

http://www.catb.org/~esr/ascii/

sudo dnf install ascii
  • License: BSD-2-Clause
  • Category: Unspecified
  • Architecture: x86_64
  • Source Package: ascii
  • 2 dependencies
  • 1 provides
  • normalized package name match
  • Matched by: Ascii
Fedora Rawhide package metadata · dl.fedoraproject.org · Fedora Rawhide package metadata: ascii from https://dl.fedoraproject.org/pub/fedora/linux/development/rawhide/Everything/x86_64/os/repodata/e5ca8ce900cd68f5419e1c39ae517343100b306336cbaeb70a3c153121d95094-primary.xml.zst
pacman95%

ascii 3.32-1

Utility for conversion between various byte representations and the ASCII character table

http://www.catb.org/~esr/ascii

sudo pacman -S ascii
  • License: BSD-2-Clause
  • Architecture: x86_64
  • 1 dependencies
  • normalized package name match
  • Matched by: Ascii
Arch Linux sync databases · geo.mirror.pkgbuild.com · Arch Linux sync databases: ascii from https://geo.mirror.pkgbuild.com/extra/os/x86_64/extra.db.tar.gz
zypper95%

ascii 3.32-1.2

List ASCII idiomatic names and octal/decimal code-point form

http://www.catb.org/~esr/ascii/

sudo zypper install ascii
  • License: BSD-2-Clause
  • Category: Unspecified
  • Architecture: x86_64
  • Source Package: ascii
  • 1 dependencies
  • 1 provides
  • normalized package name match
  • Matched by: Ascii
openSUSE Tumbleweed package metadata · download.opensuse.org · openSUSE Tumbleweed package metadata: ascii from https://download.opensuse.org/tumbleweed/repo/oss/repodata/be8d3611d25469107f32075a1697e69ec57a2b850b42348a658cc671ad5ec2b50760d02c3e59524d50da9a11d5be799bdaffba2e166e8ca8858512e3c0bd665d-primary.xml.zst
MacPorts95%

ascii

sudo port install ascii
  • normalized package name match
  • Matched by: Ascii
MacPorts ports tree · api.github.com · MacPorts ports tree: textproc/ascii/Portfile from https://api.github.com/repos/macports/macports-ports/git/trees/master?recursive=1

package graph

Links come from deterministic package relationships, av.db category and tag curation, ecosystem matches, and package hub membership.

Related tools

Same workflow

  • ascii2binaryShares av.db curated category or tags: ascii, cli, developer-tools.
  • cppmanShares av.db curated category or tags: cli, developer-tools, reference.
  • hexeditShares av.db curated category or tags: ascii, cli, developer-tools.
  • uni2asciiShares av.db curated category or tags: ascii, cli, developer-tools.
  • vilistextumShares av.db curated category or tags: ascii, cli, developer-tools.
  • howdoiShares av.db curated category or tags: cli, developer-tools, reference.

source trail

Generated from repository data

This page is generated by av-web from the private package SQLite artifact built by scripts/generate-pkg-sqlite.py.

Used sources

  • Geiger risk classifier
  • Nucleus package database
  • av.db category and tag curation
  • cross-ecosystem install command graph
  • curated package history
  • external package-manager database matches
  • package relationship graph
  • package version freshness
  • package-page enrichment