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Getting Started with Incan

Prerequisites

  • Rust (1.85+): install via rustup
  • git: to clone the repository
  • make: for the canonical make-first workflow

These instructions assume a Unix-like shell environment (macOS/Linux). If you’re on Windows, use WSL:

  • WSL install guide: https://learn.microsoft.com/windows/wsl/install

Install/build/run (canonical)

Follow: Install, build, and run.

Your First Program

Create a file hello.incn:

def main() -> None:
    println("Hello, Incan!")

Run it:

If you used make install:

incan run hello.incn

If you used the no-install fallback:

./target/release/incan run hello.incn

Project Structure

To scaffold a full project with an entry point, test file, and manifest, use the standard project lifecycle path. It is the simplest path for most first projects.

incan new my_project --yes
cd my_project

This creates a ready-to-run layout:

my_project/
├── src/
│   └── main.incn          # Entry point ("Hello from my_project!")
├── tests/
│   └── test_main.incn     # Starter test
├── README.md
├── .gitignore
└── incan.toml             # Project manifest

You can run it immediately:

incan run
incan test

When you run incan new in an interactive terminal without --yes, it prompts for the project name, version, description, author, and license. Use incan init instead when you are already inside an existing directory and want to add Incan project files there.

For the full walkthrough — adding modules and tests — see: Your first project.

Next Steps