Pretty IRB - Enhanced Interactive Ruby Shell

A beautiful, feature-rich IRB alternative with:

✨ Pretty Fonts & Colors - Beautiful syntax highlighting with colorized output 🔧 Auto-Correct - Smart suggestions for common mistakes using did_you_mean 🤖 AI Helper - Learn Ruby methods, best practices, and get code analysis 📜 History Manager - Search and replay command history 💾 Snippet Manager - Save and reuse code snippets 🔍 Variable Inspector - Inspect and analyze variables ⚡ Benchmarker - Performance testing and comparison 📖 Ruby Cheat Sheet - Quick reference for syntax and methods ⚡ Enhanced Readline - Better line editing with history support 💡 Helpful Hints - Smart error messages with correction suggestions

• Features
• Installation
• Quick Start
• Commands
• Documentation
• Development
• Contributing
• License

Add this line to your Gemfile:

gem 'pretty_irb'

Or install it yourself:

gem install pretty_irb

Launch Pretty IRB:

irb1
# or
pretty_irb

Try some commands:

# Basic evaluation
1 + 2                           # => 3

# String methods
"hello".upcase                  # => "HELLO"

# Array operations
[1, 2, 3].map { |x| x * 2 }    # => [2, 4, 6]

# Get help
help                            # Show all commands

# Learn Ruby
?explain(map)                   # Explain the map method
?example(class)                 # See class examples

# Save and reuse code
snippet save double "[1,2,3].map { |x| x * 2 }"
snippet load double

# Search your history
history search "map"

# Inspect variables
vars

Code is automatically syntax-highlighted with beautiful colors using the Rouge gem.

Common Ruby errors are automatically corrected and suggestions are provided:

• Method name typos (.lenght → .length)
• Variable name suggestions using did_you_mean
• Helpful error messages

Different data types are displayed with appropriate colors:

• Strings in blue
• Numbers in green
• Booleans in cyan
• Nil in gray
• Arrays and Hashes formatted nicely

Get instant help right in your REPL:

# Learn how a method works
pretty_irb >> ?explain(map)

# Get code examples
pretty_irb >> ?example(class)

# Learn best practices
pretty_irb >> ?practices(naming)

# Analyze your code for issues
pretty_irb >> ?debug("[1,2,3][0]")

# Quick reference
pretty_irb >> ?ref(operators)

See AI_HELP.md for detailed documentation.

Never lose your commands again:

# Search previous commands
pretty_irb >> history search map

# View recent history
pretty_irb >> history last 10

# Export for sharing
pretty_irb >> history export my_session.rb

Save and reuse code patterns:

# Save a useful snippet
pretty_irb >> snippet save double_array "[1,2,3].map { |x| x * 2 }"

# Load it later
pretty_irb >> snippet load double_array

# Search your snippets
pretty_irb >> snippet search array

Understand your current state:

# List all variables
pretty_irb >> vars

# Inspect specific variable
pretty_irb >> vars name

# Find by type
pretty_irb >> vars type:String

# Memory usage
pretty_irb >> vars memory

Measure and compare code performance:

# Benchmark code
pretty_irb >> bench "[1,2,3] * 100"

# Compare implementations
pretty_irb >> bench compare "(1..100).map { |x| x*2 }" vs "(1..100).collect { |x| x*2 }"

# Profile memory
pretty_irb >> bench memory "[1,2,3] * 1000"

Quick reference without leaving REPL:

# General overview
pretty_irb >> cheat

# Array methods
pretty_irb >> cheat array

# String methods
pretty_irb >> cheat string

# Available topics: array, hash, string, enumerable, file, regex, date

Errors include color-coded messages and helpful hints:

NameError: undefined local variable or method `foo'
💡 Did you mean?: for

• exit or quit - Exit the shell
• help - Show available commands
• clear - Clear the screen

• history - Show all command history
• history search KEYWORD - Search history
• history last N - Show last N commands
• history export FILE - Export to file
• history clear - Clear history

• snippet list - List saved snippets
• snippet save NAME CODE - Save code
• snippet load NAME - Load and execute
• snippet show NAME - View snippet details
• snippet delete NAME - Delete snippet
• snippet search KEYWORD - Search snippets

• vars - List all variables
• vars VARNAME - Inspect variable
• vars type:TYPE - Find by type
• vars search:KEYWORD - Search variables
• vars memory - Memory usage

• bench CODE - Benchmark code
• bench compare CODE1 vs CODE2 - Compare
• bench memory CODE - Profile memory

• cheat - Show general cheat sheet
• cheat TOPIC - Topic cheat sheet (array, hash, string, enumerable, file, regex, date)

• ?explain(method) - Explain a method
• ?example(topic) - Get code examples
• ?debug(code) - Analyze code
• ?practices(topic) - Learn best practices
• ?ref(keyword) - Quick reference

• AI_HELP.md - AI Helper features and examples
• ADVANCED_FEATURES.md - Advanced features guide with workflows
• QUICK_REFERENCE.md - Command quick reference
• CHANGELOG.md - Version history and changes

Setup:

# Clone the repo
git clone https://github.com/j14as/pretty_irb.git
cd pretty_irb

# Install dependencies
bundle install

Run tests:

rake spec

Try it locally:

bin/console
# or
ruby -I lib exe/pretty_irb

Build the gem:

gem build pretty_irb.gemspec

We welcome bug reports, feature requests, and pull requests!

1. Fork the repository
2. Create a feature branch (git checkout -b feature/amazing-feature)
3. Commit your changes (git commit -m 'Add amazing feature')
4. Push to the branch (git push origin feature/amazing-feature)
5. Open a Pull Request

• Follow Ruby style guide (use rubocop)
• Add tests for new features
• Update documentation as needed
• Keep commits atomic and well-described

• Use the GitHub Issues
• Include Ruby version and OS details
• Provide minimal reproduction steps

The gem is available as open source under the terms of the MIT License.

This gem is inspired by:

• Ruby's IRB - Interactive Ruby Shell
• Python's IPython - Advanced interactive computing
• Node.js REPL - Autocomplete and code introspection
• Pry - Advanced Ruby debugging and exploration

Special thanks to:

• Rouge - Syntax highlighting
• Reline - Enhanced readline
• did_you_mean - Smart error suggestions
• Colorize - Terminal colors

Made with ❤️ by Jayesh

If you find Pretty IRB helpful, please consider:

• ⭐ Starring the repository
• 🐛 Reporting issues
• 💡 Suggesting features
• 📝 Improving documentation