Go - Installation & Toolchain

Install Go

Download from go.dev/dl and follow the installer for your OS. Then verify in a new terminal:

go version
# Expected: go version go1.xx.x darwin/amd64 (your OS/arch)

Quick OS-specific installs

• macOS (Homebrew):

  brew install go
  which go && go version
  

• Windows:

  winget install -e --id GoLang.Go
  # or: choco install golang
  # open a new PowerShell, then:
  go version
  

• Ubuntu/Debian:

  sudo snap install go --classic
  # or from tarball per go.dev/dl instructions
  go version
  

Add Go to PATH (if needed)

Most installers handle PATH. If not, add the Go bin and GOPATH bin to PATH:

# bash/zsh
export PATH=$PATH:/usr/local/go/bin:$(go env GOPATH)/bin

GOPATH vs Modules

• Go modules (Go 1.13+): the standard for dependency management. Use go mod init in your project root.
• GOPATH: legacy workspace mode. Prefer modules for new projects.

Environment

• GOROOT: where Go is installed (managed by installer).
• GOPATH: your workspace (default ~/go); binaries land in $GOPATH/bin.
• Add $GOPATH/bin to PATH to use installed tools.

Core Commands

• go run: compile and run a program
• go build: build a binary
• go test: run tests
• go fmt: format code
• go vet: static checks
• go get: add/update dependencies (modules)
• go mod tidy: clean up module file

Editor setup

• Install VS Code + Go extension, or GoLand, or your preferred editor.
• Enable "Format on save" to auto-run gofmt.

Quick Start

1. Create a folder: mkdir hello, cd hello
2. Init module: go mod init example.com/hello
3. Create main.go:

package main
import "fmt"
func main(){ fmt.Println("hello") }

Run with go run . or build with go build.

Exercises

1. Install Go and verify go version.
2. Initialize a module and run a simple program.