Installation

This page helps you put Echo on your computer and run your first program.

You will:

1. Open a Terminal (a window where you type commands).
2. Install Echo.
3. Check that Echo works.
4. Create a file named hello.echo.
5. Run it and see Hello, Echo!

Want to try Echo without installing? Use the Playground first, then come back here.

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What is a Terminal?

A Terminal (sometimes called a command line) is an app where you type short commands and press Enter. Echo’s install steps use the Terminal.

How to open it

Computer	What to open
macOS	Open Spotlight (⌘ Space), type Terminal, press Enter
Windows	Open the Start menu, type PowerShell, open Windows PowerShell
Linux	Open your system’s Terminal app

You type the commands from this page into that Terminal window, not into this documentation page.

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Before you install

Echo’s installer uses Python (version 3.10 or newer).

In Terminal, check:

python3 --version

On Windows PowerShell, try:

python --version

You should see a version number like Python 3.12.x. If the command fails, install Python 3.10+ from python.org, then open a new Terminal and try again.

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Install Echo (recommended)

These steps use a helper called pipx. You do not need to understand pipx in detail. It installs Echo so you can run the elang command.

macOS / Linux

Type these lines one at a time, pressing Enter after each:

python3 -m pip install --user pipx
python3 -m pipx ensurepath
pipx install echolang

Windows PowerShell

python -m pip install --user pipx
python -m pipx ensurepath
pipx install echolang

Open a new Terminal

After ensurepath, close the Terminal and open a new one. The new window is what picks up the install.

Check that it worked

In the new Terminal:

elang --version

Success looks like this (version number may match what you installed):

Echo 2.2.1

If you see that line, Echo is installed.

Command name

The program is named Echo. The command you type is elang. The download package is named echolang. Docs use elang.

If you see elang: command not found

1. Confirm you opened a new Terminal after install.

2. Run path setup again, then open another new Terminal:

   python3 -m pipx ensurepath

   On Windows PowerShell: python -m pipx ensurepath

3. Confirm the package is there: pipx list should mention echolang.

Still stuck? See Common mistakes for a longer checklist (including PATH details).

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Your first Echo file

1. Create the file

1. Open a simple text editor (TextEdit on macOS, Notepad on Windows, or any editor you like).
2. Paste this exact line:

say("Hello, Echo!");

3. Save the file as hello.echo.
4. Remember which folder you saved it in (for example, Desktop or Documents).

The .echo ending tells you (and Echo) that this file is an Echo program.

2. Run it from that folder

In Terminal, go to the folder that contains hello.echo.

Examples:

cd ~/Desktop

cd $HOME\Desktop

Then run:

elang hello.echo

3. Expected output

Hello, Echo!

If you see that, you ran Echo on your computer.

Next: Lesson 1 — Your first program (explains what each part means).

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For people who already develop software

The sections below are optional. Beginners can skip them.

Install from GitHub without cloning

pipx install git+https://github.com/deekshith-poojary98/echo.git

Same verify → hello.echo steps as above.

Install from a clone (repo root)

examples/ ships with the git repository only — it is not installed by pip/pipx.

git clone https://github.com/deekshith-poojary98/echo.git
cd echo
pip install .
# or for development: pip install -e .

From the repo root:

elang examples/language_feature_smoke.echo

Extra commands

• elang path/to/file.echo — run a file
• elang check [paths...]
• elang test [paths...]
• elang fmt [paths...] [--check]
• elang lint [paths...]
• elang builtins / elang builtins --count
• elang std / elang std --exports
• elang lsp
• elang ide / elang ide path/to/file.echo — desktop editor (edit → Run → output)

No path on elang / echolang / echo alone starts the REPL (see CLI and Execution Model).

Optional checks after install:

elang builtins --count
elang std

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See also

• Choose your path
• Lesson 1 — Your first program
• Common mistakes
• CLI and Execution Model