pkg.sopackage field notes

brew / rank 4843

Install gnu-typist with Homebrew

GNU typing tutor. Version 2.10.1 via Homebrew; verified 2026-06-19.

install

Additional install commands

macOS

Homebrewverified · 100%
brew install gnu-typist

provider-native install command

overview

Package summary

GNU typing tutor

Commands and aliases

  • gtypist
  • typefortune

history

Project history and usage

GNU Typist, also known as gtypist, is a terminal typing tutor from the GNU Project. It combines a curses-based practice program with lesson files, keyboard-layout support, and a small lesson scripting language so users and teachers can adapt drills rather than consume a fixed course.

Project history

GNU FTP records gtypist releases from the early 2000s, with version 2.5 appearing in 2002 and a long release line through the 2.8, 2.9, and 2.10 series. The GNU project page presents it as an official GNU package and emphasizes text-mode portability across GNU/Linux, GNU/Hurd, Unix variants, and Windows builds using PDCurses and MinGW.

The project evolved around international lessons and modifiable tutorials. The GNU page lists lessons for several languages and keyboard layouts, and describes the tutorial format as a simple scripting language that contributors can write directly or submit as plain text for conversion.

Adoption history

GNU Typist is niche compared with graphical typing tutors, but it has remained packageable because it fits Unix education environments: it runs in a terminal, depends on curses, and stores lessons as text. Its ecosystem role is strongest in free-software education, multilingual practice material, and lightweight lab or remote-shell setups.

How it is used

Users run gtypist to navigate lessons, practice drills, and track errors and speed in a keyboard-focused interface. Teachers and contributors use the lesson format to create new tutorials, localize exercises, or adapt material for QWERTY, Dvorak, Colemak, and non-English practice.

Why package nerds care

The appeal is that a typing tutor can be packaged like any other GNU terminal tool: source tarballs, info/man documentation, curses portability, and lesson files that can be inspected and patched. It is a small example of GNU treating educational software as hackable text.

Timeline

  • 2002: GNU FTP archive lists gtypist 2.5.
  • 2008: GNU FTP archive lists the 2.8 series.
  • 2011: GNU FTP archive lists the 2.9 series.
  • 2025: GNU FTP archive lists the 2.10.1 release.

Related projects

  • Related projects include other free typing tutors named by the GNU page, such as KTouch, Tux Typing, Typespeed, and dvorak7min, plus curses and PDCurses for terminal interfaces.

security posture

Risk level: green

narrow executable package without higher-risk signals.

Risk classifier

green risk · low confidence · appliance

Why

  • narrow executable package without higher-risk signals

Signals

  • metadata:no-higher-risk-signals

Install behavior

  • No Homebrew bottle metadata was recorded.

Recommended review

Before unattended agent use, check whether the tool reads plaintext credentials, writes remote state, publishes artifacts, or shells out to plugins.

executables

Installed executables

CommandKindExposureNote
gtypistexecutableindexed executableDiscovered from the local executable index.
typefortuneexecutableindexed executableDiscovered from the local executable index.

freshness

Version and freshness

These signals separate page generation age, package-manager activity, and upstream release comparison. Version lag is warned only when an evidence URL and comparable versions are present.

page generated2026-08-03
manager version2.10.1
manager updated2026-06-19
local dataunknown
upstreamnot available
latest detectednot detected
  • okNo freshness warnings were generated.

install metadata

Package metadata

Package keybrew:gnu-typist
Version2.10.1
Package managerHomebrew
Homepagehttps://www.gnu.org/software/gtypist/
Last updated2026-06-19T12:31:20-07:00
Pulseupdated
Bottlenot recorded
Servicenone declared

source trail

Generated from repository data

This page is generated by av-web from the private package SQLite artifact built by scripts/generate-pkg-sqlite.py.

Used sources

  • Geiger risk classifier
  • Nucleus package database
  • curated package history
  • pkgdb category and tag curation