GiC v0.9.0

GiC v0.9.0

GiC (Gestalten in Code) is a deliberately small C-style language for learning programming through two-dimensional generative graphics. This stable release focuses on static workshop sketches: drawing, color, variables, conditions, repetition, and reusable functions.

The shared editor combines code editing and language assistance with a Canvas preview, diagnostics, examples, documentation, sketch open/save, and export. It is available as a browser application, an installable offline PWA without an integrated agent, and a dedicated-window desktop application. The optional desktop tutor is not required for authoring or running sketches. Animation and general-purpose application development are not the focus of this release.

GiC remains free to download, under the unchanged CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 license. Optional AI providers have their own account, availability, privacy, and pricing terms; copying content does not itself send it to a provider.

Included since beta5

• Shared teaching Skill: desktop and website documentation use the canonical gic-agent instructions and language reference. Desktop Settings shows actual support-file locations. The integrated tutor uses bundled instructions; external assistants can read installed copies when their tools permit it.
• Portable Skill delivery: matching Download skill (ZIP) and View raw skill links expose the instructions and complete reference. The ZIP also includes OpenAI display metadata and the GiC icon. Editor/PWA ZIP downloads use bundled content offline; viewing the website-hosted raw document requires a connection.
• Complete example copying: copy an example's description and exact source without loading it or changing the current sketch. The website includes a browsable examples catalogue and individual example pages.
• Portable documentation: copy complete individual pages, use their Markdown exports, or copy/download all documentation. llms.txt provides a discovery index and llms-full.txt provides the combined text. Editor copy/download actions use bundled content offline; an index does not guarantee that an AI provider will browse it.
• Content usability: transient, accessible clipboard confirmation, reduced-motion feedback, narrow-screen documentation layout fixes, and restored website page spacing.

These are content, delivery, and interface changes—not additions to the language core. Compare the merged source with beta5.

Desktop downloads

The release payload is four binaries and four matching original CI-generated SHA-256 manifests:

Platform	Binary	Distribution status
macOS Apple Silicon	GiC_0.9.0_aarch64.dmg	Developer ID signed, Apple notarized, and stapled; independently verified.
Windows x64 (Intel/AMD)	GiC_0.9.0_x64-unsigned-setup.exe	Unsigned NSIS installer; independently verified.
Linux amd64	GiC_0.9.0_amd64.AppImage	Independently verified package; best-effort distribution.
Linux amd64	GiC_0.9.0_amd64.deb	Independently verified package; best-effort distribution.

Each binary has a manifest named exactly <binary filename>.sha256. Intel Mac and Windows ARM installers are not included. Linux build success is not evidence of an actual Linux installation or launch.

Windows safety

The Windows installer is unsigned. SmartScreen may show “Windows protected your PC” or identify an unknown publisher. Only proceed if you downloaded the installer from this project's GitHub repository and trust the project. If available, choose More info → Run anyway. Never disable SmartScreen or other security protections. If school, workplace, or institutional policy blocks installation, ask the administrator; do not bypass that policy.

Verify a download

Download the binary and its matching .sha256 manifest from this project's GitHub Release, then run the applicable command in their directory. On macOS, shasum can verify any of the four files:

shasum -a 256 -c GiC_0.9.0_aarch64.dmg.sha256
shasum -a 256 -c GiC_0.9.0_x64-unsigned-setup.exe.sha256
shasum -a 256 -c GiC_0.9.0_amd64.AppImage.sha256
shasum -a 256 -c GiC_0.9.0_amd64.deb.sha256

On Linux, use sha256sum for your chosen package:

sha256sum -c GiC_0.9.0_amd64.AppImage.sha256
sha256sum -c GiC_0.9.0_amd64.deb.sha256

On Windows, use PowerShell and compare the computed SHA-256 hash with the manifest's first value, ignoring letter case:

Get-FileHash .\GiC_0.9.0_x64-unsigned-setup.exe -Algorithm SHA256
Get-Content .\GiC_0.9.0_x64-unsigned-setup.exe.sha256

A matching checksum confirms agreement with the downloaded manifest; it does not give the unsigned Windows installer a publisher signature. Stop if verification fails.

Verified binary SHA-256 hashes

These independently verified binary hashes provide a fixed comparison with the original CI manifests:

Binary	SHA-256
GiC_0.9.0_aarch64.dmg	76fde36e341b3b94a5a90471ddb2db06f1464f4cc2e8f3fa5b4204c8471b7cfe
GiC_0.9.0_x64-unsigned-setup.exe	08865c35ebbdf697ed3dd42e0a0f586e2cc013735ebef781e32d20635b4a5bd2
GiC_0.9.0_amd64.AppImage	88ca8edcc1f4f2996d882fa778c430f5991873702bc4e264bbc2687e221bae7c
GiC_0.9.0_amd64.deb	9887e4cf17fa222fe558f88475a2b433e4845313c32e5f33a7d82f352cb09175

Source and build provenance

Exact merged main source: 4dd8538c07e52bea77f90d1b26015b6e03d4d8a5. Product version: 0.9.0. macOS short version: 0.9.0; bundle build version: 0.9.5.

All three coordinated CI runs succeeded on this exact source:

• macOS — 38166788445, artifact ID 11712996581.
• Windows — 38166788349, artifact ID 11712877053.
• Linux — 38166788146, artifact ID 11712812180.

Independent artifact verification

All candidate artifact ZIP digests matched GitHub's recorded digests, and all four binaries passed their original CI-generated SHA-256 manifests.

• macOS: independent signature and Gatekeeper checks passed for the signed, notarized, and stapled Apple Silicon distribution. Application short/build versions were verified as 0.9.0 / 0.9.5.
• Windows: NSIS structure was verified and the x64 build target confirmed from CI provenance, not inferred from the installer stub. The PE certificate-table directory is zero: there is no embedded Authenticode signature, and the installer remains explicitly unsigned.
• Linux AppImage: verified ELF64 x86-64, AppImage type 2.
• Linux Debian: verified archive metadata for package gi-c, version 0.9.0, architecture amd64, and an ELF64 x86-64 executable payload. These package checks are not Linux install/run tests.

All eight public release assets were re-downloaded without authentication. Their bytes and SHA-256 hashes match the original CI artifacts and GitHub's asset digests; all four public manifests are unchanged and successfully verify their binaries. The actual v0.9.0 tag resolves to the source commit above, and GitHub identifies this stable release as Latest.

Native tests and build warnings

• macOS: 161 native tests passed; 1 live-provider test ignored.
• Windows: 159 native tests passed; 1 live-provider test ignored. The three credential tests passed as a subset of that total. Windows Clippy passed with warnings treated as errors.
• Linux: 161 native tests passed; 1 live-provider test ignored. Linux Clippy was not run.

Ignored live-provider tests are not provider acceptance. All three builds reported Vite chunks larger than 500 kB. Linux also reported an unused process::Command import; this unrelated warning remains unchanged.

Acceptance boundaries

Fabian authorized the stable v0.9.0 designation with outstanding acceptance documented. That designation does not declare the broader workshop milestone complete. Manual packaged lifecycle, install/launch, replacement/data preservation, uninstall, offline behavior, recovery, file/export, and provider sign-in/use/sign-out checks remain incomplete across the supported platforms. No actual Linux install/run acceptance is claimed.

Skill/reference ZIP imports were previously reported by Fabian in ChatGPT and Claude; the expanded archive with display metadata and icon, and provider teaching behavior, are not fully accepted on that basis. Live HTTP checks passed for the website Skill ZIP/raw text, documentation indexes, combined text, and all nine Markdown pages on the website and editor hosts. Those checks do not establish interactive clipboard/account acceptance or the complete deployed revision. Updating the website's beta.5 download links and deploying that separate change remain outstanding.