Command Line

The command line is where your Arturo journey begins: whether you want to experiment in the REPL, run a script, manage packages, or work with bytecode.

Using the command line

Run a script

To run an Arturo script, simply pass the script's path to Arturo:

arturo <script>

Tip
Script files typically use the .art extension

Evaluate a code string

To evaluate code strings directly, use --evaluate or -e followed by your Arturo code:

arturo --evaluate <string>

Double quotes within a double-quoted string must be escaped with a backslash:

arturo -e "print \"Hello, World!\""

Alternatively, if your code doesn't contain quotes, you can use single quotes to avoid escaping:

arturo -e 'print "Hello, World!"'

Strings can contain multiple statements and/or blocks, separated by commas or spaces, or concatenated when the preceding character is non-alphabetic.

Start the interactive console

To start the interactive console (REPL), simply type:

arturo

Or explicitly use:

arturo --repl

This is what Arturo's interactive console looks like:

REPL

Here you can easily experiment and see results immediately.

Bundle an executable

You can bundle your Arturo script into a standalone executable:

arturo --bundle <script>

To specify a custom name for the executable:

arturo --bundle <script> --as myapp

Caution
This feature is experimental and may change in future versions

Working with bytecode

Since Arturo is internally a bytecode-based VM, you can save and read bytecode directly.

Note
Bytecode is a form of instruction set designed for efficient execution by a software interpreter. Unlike human-readable source code, bytecodes are compact numeric codes, constants, and references that encode the result of compiler parsing and semantic analysis.

This allows you to share your code without exposing the source, or accelerate script execution by skipping the initial parsing phase.

Compile to bytecode:
arturo --compile <script>

This generates a <script>.bcode file alongside your script.

Execute bytecode:
arturo --execute <script>.bcode

Caution
Bytecode compilation and execution are experimental features

Package manager

Although Arturo's philosophy is batteries-included, it also comes with a built-in package manager for additional functionality.

List available packages

To list all locally installed packages:

arturo --package list

List remote packages

To fetch all packages available from the official repository:

arturo --package remote

Install a new package

To install a package:

arturo --package install grafito

Tip
If you use import 'grafito! in the REPL or a script and the package isn't installed, Arturo will automatically install it for you

Uninstall a package

To uninstall a previously installed package:

arturo --package uninstall grafito

Update all packages

To update all locally installed packages to their latest versions:

arturo --package update

Display options

Mute output colors

To disable colored output:

arturo --no-color <script>

This is useful when redirecting output to files or when working in environments that don't support ANSI colors.

Version and help

To display the current version:

arturo --version

To show the help screen:

arturo --help