Install Manic
Manic is a compiled desktop command-line application. The installer includes
the engine and its reviewed runtime assets; video export also needs ffmpeg.
macOS — Homebrew
This is the simplest macOS installation:
brew install --cask maniclang-x/tap/manic
manic version
Homebrew installs ffmpeg as a dependency and makes manic available on your
PATH.
macOS or Linux — installer
The installer detects the operating system and CPU, downloads the current
release, verifies its SHA-256 checksum, and installs under ~/.local:
curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/maniclang-x/manic/main/install.sh | sh
If needed, add Manic to your shell path:
export PATH="$HOME/.local/bin:$PATH"
Put that line in ~/.zshrc or ~/.bashrc to keep it after opening a new
terminal.
Windows — PowerShell
irm https://raw.githubusercontent.com/maniclang-x/manic/main/install.ps1 | iex
Open a new terminal after installation. Install ffmpeg separately and make
sure ffmpeg.exe is on PATH before exporting video or GIF files.
Linux server or container
Live preview needs a display. The Linux archive includes a helper for Ubuntu and EC2 that installs Xvfb, software OpenGL, ffmpeg, and headless audio support:
sudo bash /usr/local/share/manic/setup/ubuntu-headless.sh
manic-render story.manic --record out
If the archive was installed under ~/.local, use the corresponding helper
under ~/.local/share/manic/setup/.
Confirm the installation
manic version
manic status
manic check story.manic
check parses and validates without opening a window or consuming a preview.
Connect a Manic account
You can try Manic before signing in. Connect the installation when you want it to use your account’s preview and export balance:
manic login
manic status
Verify that the confirmation code in the browser matches the terminal. Manic source files are rendered locally; ordinary licence accounting does not upload the story source.
Upgrade
Homebrew:
brew update
brew upgrade --cask manic
Installer users can rerun the installation command. A normal reinstall should
keep ~/.manic, which holds this device’s installation identity and offline
accounting state.
For platform-specific prerequisites, manual archives, and security warnings, see the public installation reference and troubleshooting guide.