Template Folder

The folder of template files must be in a directory called template adjacent to the template manifest.json

Inside the template directory, you can store files in any shape you like.

Any file that is not a template format will be copied directly to its new location on render. More on that below

Using variables in filenames

Any variable defined in the manifest can be used in file names using handlebars syntax.

For example given the following manifest.json:

{
  "name": "my_template",
  "version": "0.1.1",
  "metadata": {
    "app_archetype": {
      "version": "0.1.2"
    }
  },
  "variables": {
    "foo": "bar",
  }
}

You would use the value of foo in a filename by adding it to the name like this:

my_{{foo}}_file.rb

Same goes for files too

Rendering files

AppArchetype is capable of rendering erb and hbs files

ERB

ERB is a ruby data templating language whereby you specify the values of variables in <%= %> tags.

For example given the above manifest, if you were wanting to render the value of foo into a README markdown file, you would:

• Add .erb to the name of the text file - README.md.erb
• Then inside the file add the tag: # Understanding <%= foo %>

On render the erb extension is removed. So given the above example, you would end up with a README.md file rendered with the following content:

# Understanding bar

Handlebars

Another option for rendering content is handlebars.

Handlebars is similarly a data templating language which substitutes text between {{ and }} with variables.

For example given the above manifest, if you were wanting to render the value of foo into a README markdown file, you would:

• Add .hbs to the name of the text file - README.md.hbs
• Then inside the file add the following: # Understanding {{foo}}

On render the hbs extension is removed. So given the above example, you would end up with a README.md file rendered with the following content:

# Understanding bar

Rendering templates

Sometimes it’s handy to render files that are templates into a project (i.e. a .hbs or .erb file that will be used as a template in the rendered project). If you want to do this, you need to append .template to the file to stop the renderer from attempting to render the template.

For example, if you wanted to render a handlebars file called README.md.hbs, in your template, append .template onto the end like this: README.md.hbs.template. When the file is rendered, the contents are copied and the .template extension is removed.

This allows app archetype templates to include app archetype templates.