# Install crystal-icr with Homebrew, Nix Interactive console for Crystal programming language. Version 0.9.0 via Homebrew; verified from local package data. ## Install ```sh sudo av install brew:crystal-icr ``` Additional install commands: ### macOS - Homebrew (100%): ```sh brew install crystal-icr ``` Evidence: local Homebrew formula metadata ### Linux - Nix (92%): ```sh nix profile install nixpkgs#icr ``` Evidence: nixpkgs package indexes: pkgs/by-name/ic/icr/package.nix from https://api.github.com/repos/NixOS/nixpkgs/git/trees/master?recursive=1 ## Package facts - **Package key:** brew:crystal-icr - **Package manager:** Homebrew - **Package manager page:** - **Version:** 0.9.0 - **Source summary:** Interactive console for Crystal programming language - **Homepage:** - **Repository:** - **Upstream docs:** - **License:** MIT - **Source archive:** - **Generated:** 2026-07-08T07:18:31+00:00 ## Executables - icr (cli) - icr (alias) ## Dependencies - bdw-gc - crystal - libevent - libyaml - openssl@3 - pcre2 - readline ## Install behavior - Post-install hook: not defined - Bottle: available on arm64_linux, arm64_sequoia, arm64_sonoma, arm64_tahoe, sonoma, x86_64_linux ## Freshness - Page generated: 2026-07-08 - Package-manager version: 0.9.0 - Local data: ok - Upstream repository: https://github.com/crystal-community/icr - Upstream latest detected: v0.9.0 (current) - info: No package-manager update timestamp was available. ## Project history and usage ICR, short for Interactive Crystal, is a REPL-like console for the Crystal programming language. It exists because Crystal is normally compiled, so an interactive shell has to simulate the Ruby-style irb experience by generating and running Crystal programs behind the scenes. ### Project history The official GitHub repository was created in 2016 under the crystal-community organization. Its README presents the tool as an interactive console for Crystal and credits Potapov Sergey as creator and maintainer, with later community contributors adding support for newer Crystal versions, records, require flags, syntax highlighting, and maintenance. ### Adoption history ICR is a smaller companion package rather than part of Crystal's core distribution. The README documents source installation with make, use as a shard dependency, and an Arch AUR package; the supplied package metadata adds Homebrew and Nix packaging, showing that language-adjacent developer tools often get packaged separately from the compiler. ### How it is used ICR is used like irb for Crystal: each submitted instruction is accumulated into a generated Crystal program, executed, and presented as if only the new instruction ran. It supports requiring local files or shards from the command line and includes console commands such as paste, debug, quit, exit, and reset. ### Why package nerds care ICR is significant mostly as a packaging companion to Crystal. Its usefulness depends on matching the installed Crystal compiler, readline, and LLVM development files, so it illustrates why language ecosystems often need small auxiliary formulae beyond the main runtime. ### Timeline - 2016: The official GitHub repository was created. - 2021: The repository's last pushed timestamp in the GitHub API indicates maintenance activity through the Crystal 0.x/early 1.x era. ### Related projects - ICR is directly tied to Crystal and Shards. The README also points to inf-crystal.el as an editor integration for connecting Emacs to an ICR subprocess. ### Sources - - ## Security Notes generalized runtime or code generation signal. - **Geiger risk:** yellow / medium - generalized runtime or code generation signal ## Source Database Details - **Source Database:** Homebrew formula API - **Tap:** homebrew/core - **Full Name:** crystal-icr - **Version Scheme:** 0 - **Revision:** 3 - **Bottle Stable Root URL:** - **Deprecated:** no - **Disabled:** no - **Keg Only:** no - **URL Keys:** stable ## Other Package-Manager Records - Nix - icr: installed executable or alias match | nixpkgs package indexes: pkgs/by-name/ic/icr/package.nix from https://api.github.com/repos/NixOS/nixpkgs/git/trees/master?recursive=1 ## Related links - [Source-control packages](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/source-control-tools/) - Belongs to a source-control command family. - [Secret-risk packages](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/secret-risk-packages/) - Has protected-tool coverage, approval-gate, or non-low Geiger security signals. - [Terminal utility packages](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/terminal-utilities/) - Matched terminal and command-line workflow metadata. - [Text processing packages](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/text-processing-tools/) - Matched text, document, or structured-data processing metadata. - [crystal](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/crystal/) - Runtime dependency declared by Homebrew. - [libevent](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/libevent/) - Runtime dependency declared by Homebrew. - [openssl@3](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/openssl-3/) - Runtime dependency declared by Homebrew. - [pcre2](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/pcre2/) - Runtime dependency declared by Homebrew. - [ipython](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/ipython/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: cli, developer-tools, repl. - [ptpython](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/ptpython/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: cli, developer-tools, repl. - [amber](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/amber/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: cli, crystal, developer-tools. - [bpython](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/bpython/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: cli, developer-tools, repl. - [commandbox](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/commandbox/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: cli, developer-tools, repl. - [crystalline](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/crystalline/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: cli, crystal, developer-tools. - [eva](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/eva/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: cli, developer-tools, repl. - [evans](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/evans/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: cli, developer-tools, repl. - [thors-anvil](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/thors-anvil/) - Local package facts share a topical domain. Shared terms: cli, developer, developer-tools, interactive, libevent. ## Combined YAML source View the package source record on GitHub. [combined/crystal-icr.yml](https://github.com/automic-vault/db/blob/main/combined/crystal-icr.yml) ## Sources - Nucleus package database - Geiger risk classifier - package-page enrichment - curated package history - package version freshness - av.db category and tag curation - package relationship graph - external package-manager database matches - cross-ecosystem install command graph