Klipp

Klipp is a Ruby gem that you can use to replicate folder structures, while doing extensive search-and-replace operations on filenames, directory names and file contents.

I developed Klipp as an alternative to the templating system of Apple's Xcode, to use while developing iOS projects. However, there are no Apple or Xcode specific features in Klipp, so you can use it for pretty much any textfile-and-directory-based template.

Install Klipp with RubyGems:

$ gem install klipp

Then run Klipp from the command line and read the instructions:

$ klipp

When you execute klipp the first time, it will create a .klipp folder in your home directory, where it will search for template directories. Each template has one .klippspec file. Upon first use however, you will not have any specs. For starters you might try my personal specs by executing:

$ git clone https://github.com/epologee/klipp-specs.git ~/.klipp/epologee

After that, you can call klipp template list to see the specs it includes.

I've borrowed some of the terminology of Klipp from the RubyGem and CocoaPods community, which is why you see things like this:

• .klippspec files defining the structure of a template (compare to .gemspec and .podspec)
• Klippfile files used to setup a new project from an existing template (compare to Gemfile and Podfile)
• The ~/.klipp folder containing your templates (compare to ~/.cocoapods)

You use klipp from the terminal, as a command line tool. For example, if you have a template setup in the ~/.klipp/ folder called iPhoneProject, you can call commands like:

• klipp template list to list your templates
• klipp create iPhoneProject interactively prompts you to enter the values required for the template. This works well with very small templates, like creating a new class.
• klipp prepare iPhoneProject to create a new Klippfile for the iPhoneProject template. You edit the Klippfiles by hand to supply it with strings, numbers and booleans. This is easier for templates with more required values.
• klipp create to create a new project from a Klippfile, relative to your current directory.
• klipp create -f to re-create the project, overwriting the existing one.

You can always just start by running klipp and have the terminal tell you what commands to add to get your desired result.

The gem in its current state is very usable. It's got decent rspec coverage (96%+) and I personally use the publicly available gem build for all my templating needs. There are however areas in which I would love the project to evolve more:

• Better terminal output during the creation process.
• The ability to update an existing Klippfile when the corresponding project.klippspec is updated underneath.
• Better feedback when something is missing, like token values or terminal commands.
• A setup to share your templates, like the specs from CocoaPods and RubyGems projects.

So if you're willing to help, feel free to fork and send those pull requests!