install

Additional install commands

macOS

Homebrewverified · 100%

brew install coin3d

local Homebrew formula metadata

Linux

Nixverified · 92%

nix profile install nixpkgs#coin3d

nixpkgs package indexes · pkgs/by-name/co/coin3d/package.nix · source: api.github.com

overview

Package summary

Open Inventor 2.1 API implementation (Coin)

Project links

Commands and aliases

coin-config

history

Project history and usage

Coin is the core Coin3D library, an OpenGL-based C++ 3D graphics library implementing the Open Inventor 2.1 API.

Project history

The official README says Coin began in 1995 as a scene graph rendering library for VRML 1.0 scenes, initially based on SGI's Qv parser. After several years of VRML-related extensions, the project was redesigned around an Open Inventor-like API and named Coin.

Coin reached Open Inventor 2.1 compatibility in autumn 2000. Its maintainers describe it as an independently developed implementation, not a code-sharing derivative of SGI Open Inventor.

Adoption history

Coin occupied a practical niche for scientific and engineering visualization software that wanted Open Inventor source compatibility on free software platforms.

The project later became the core of the broader Coin3D family of libraries and continued across Linux, Windows/Cygwin, and macOS development environments.

How it is used

Developers link against Coin as a C++ library for retained-mode scene graphs, Open Inventor compatibility, VRML-related formats, and OpenGL rendering. The package also installs coin-config for build integration.

Why package nerds care

Coin matters to packagers because it is an ABI-sensitive C++ graphics library. The README documents major/minor/micro compatibility rules and notes that Unix shared libraries use ABI-versioned libCoin names so different major runtimes can coexist.

Timeline

1995: Project starts as a VRML 1.0 scene graph rendering library.
1997: Maintainers begin a fundamental redesign toward an Open Inventor-style API.
2000: Coin reaches Open Inventor 2.1 compatibility.
2007: Maintainers move toward date-based release cycles while preserving ABI-based versioning.
2019: Coin 4.0.0 is released with API changes to improve Open Inventor 2.1 conformance.

Related projects

The official README positions Coin alongside other Open Inventor implementations and notes the wider Coin3D library family built around the core Coin library.

Sources

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.
Installs with 1 runtime dependencies.
Build metadata lists 3 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

Command	Kind	Exposure	Note
`coin-config`	cli	global 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 version4.0.10

manager updated2026-06-22

local dataok

upstreamnot checked

latest detectednot detected

https://github.com/coin3d/coin

infoNo cached GitHub release or tag data was available.https://github.com/coin3d/coinnone confidence

install metadata

Package metadata

Package key	brew:coin3d
Version	4.0.10
Package manager	Homebrew
Package manager page	https://formulae.brew.sh/formula/coin3d
Homepage	https://coin3d.github.io/
Repository	https://github.com/coin3d/coin
Upstream docs	https://coin3d.github.io/Coin/html
License	BSD-3-Clause
Source archive	https://github.com/coin3d/coin/releases/download/v4.0.10/coin-4.0.10-src.tar.gz
Last updated	2026-06-22T14:03:03-07:00
Pulse	updated
Dependencies	qtbase
Build dependencies	boost, cmake, doxygen
Uses from macOS	expat
Bottle	available (on arm64_linux, arm64_sequoia, arm64_sonoma, arm64_tahoe, sonoma, x86_64_linux)
Homebrew post-install	not defined
Service	none declared
Caveats	The Python bindings (Pivy) are now in the `pivy` formula.

registry facts

Source database details

Source Database	Homebrew formula API
Tap	homebrew/core
Full Name	coin3d
Version Scheme	0
Revision	0
Head Version	HEAD
Bottle Stable Root URL	https://ghcr.io/v2/homebrew/core
Deprecated	no
Disabled	no
Keg Only	no
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.

Nix95%

coin3d

nix profile install nixpkgs#coin3d

normalized package name match
Matched by: Coin3d

nixpkgs package indexes · api.github.com · nixpkgs package indexes: pkgs/by-name/co/coin3d/package.nix from https://api.github.com/repos/NixOS/nixpkgs/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.

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.

Combined YAML source

View the package source record on GitHub.

combined/coin3d.yml

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

Install coin3d with Homebrew, Nix