new

new

A fast, single-binary CLI for scaffolding files and projects.

new index.html
new my-app --template react

Installation

go install github.com/DevShedLabs/new@latest

Or build from source:

git clone https://github.com/DevShedLabs/new
cd New
go build -o new .

Usage

Create a file

Detects the file type by extension and generates smart boilerplate automatically.

new index.html       # HTML5 skeleton
new main.go          # Go package main
new styles.css       # CSS reset + box-sizing
new app.ts           # TypeScript module stub
new script.sh        # Bash shebang + set -euo pipefail
new data.json        # Empty JSON object
new notes.md         # Markdown heading

Any extension without a built-in template creates an empty file.

Scaffold a project

Use --template (or -t) to scaffold a full project from a built-in template or user blueprint.

new my-site --template html
new my-app --template react
new my-app --template my-blueprint   # user blueprint from ~/.new/blueprints/

The project is created as a subdirectory of the current working directory.

Flags

Example with variables:

new my-app --template react --var Author="Jeffrey"

Built-in Templates

Blueprints

Blueprints are user-defined templates that live in ~/.new/blueprints/. Any blueprint directory placed there is immediately available as a --template value.

Blueprint resolution order:

1. ~/.new/blueprints/<name>/ — user blueprints take precedence
2. Built-in embedded templates

This means you can override any built-in template by creating a blueprint with the same name.

Creating a blueprint

A blueprint is just a folder of files. Template variables are rendered using Go's text/template syntax — {{.Name}}, {{.Author}}, etc.

~/.new/blueprints/
└── my-blueprint/
    ├── blueprint.yaml       # optional manifest
    ├── index.html
    └── src/
        └── main.js

Variable names in file paths are also rendered:

src/{{.Name}}.go   →   src/my-app.go

blueprint.yaml

The manifest is optional but recommended. It documents the blueprint and declares expected variables.

name: my-blueprint
description: My custom project starter.
vars:
  - Name
  - Author
defaults:
  Author: "Your Name"

Available variables

Roadmap

• new list — show available built-in templates and user blueprints
• new blueprint capture — snapshot an existing project into a blueprint
• Icon and favicon generation
• Variable prompting for blueprints that declare vars
• Remote blueprint fetching

License

MIT