# St Setup Project

> Smalltalk (Pharo/Squeak) project boilerplate creator. Use when the user asks to create a new Pharo/Smalltalk project from scratch, when project structure is missing (no src/ directory or .project file), when the user wants to start a new Smalltalk development project, or when setting up BaselineOf, Core, and Tests package structure.

- Skill: `mumez/st-setup-project` (Agent Skill, multi-file: 2 files)
- Install (CLI): `npx skillmds@latest add mumez/st-setup-project`
- Raw SKILL.md: https://api.skillmd.com/api/skills/mumez/st-setup-project/raw
- Safety review: pending
- Works with: Claude Code, Claude.ai, OpenAI Codex
- Category: Coding & Dev Tools
- Author: mumez (https://skillmd.com/u/mumez)
- Updated: 2026-09-17
- Page: https://skillmd.com/skills/mumez/st-setup-project

---


# Set Up Smalltalk Project Boilerplate

Create a complete Smalltalk project structure with BaselineOf, Core package, and Tests package.

## When to Use This Skill

- User asks to "create a new project", "start a Smalltalk project", or "set up project structure"
- No `src/` directory or `.project` file exists in the current directory
- User provides a project name and wants to begin development

## Project Name Rules

- **PascalCase required**: Must start with uppercase, alphanumeric only
- Valid: `MyProject`, `RedisClient`, `JSONParser`
- Invalid: `my-project`, `my_project`, `myProject`

**If no name provided**: Ask with `AskUserQuestion`: "What is your project name? (Use PascalCase like MyProject)"

## Pre-flight Checks

**1. Validate PascalCase:**
```bash
if [[ ! "$PROJECT_NAME" =~ ^[A-Z][a-zA-Z0-9]*$ ]]; then
  echo "Error: Project name must be in PascalCase (e.g., MyProject, RedisClient)"
  exit 1
fi
```

**2. Check for existing project:**
```bash
if [ -d "src" ] && [ "$(find src -mindepth 1 -maxdepth 1 -type d 2>/dev/null | wc -l)" -gt 0 ]; then
  echo "Error: Project already exists (src/ directory contains packages)"
  exit 1
fi
```

## Created Structure

```
MyProject/
├── .project                          # srcDirectory: 'src'
└── src/
    ├── .properties                   # format: tonel
    ├── BaselineOfMyProject/
    │   ├── package.st
    │   └── BaselineOfMyProject.class.st
    ├── MyProject-Core/
    │   └── package.st
    └── MyProject-Tests/
        └── package.st
```

## Implementation

Run the setup script with the validated project name. See [Complete Setup Script](references/setup-script.md) for the full bash implementation.

**Key files created:**

**.project** (STON format with single quotes):
```
{
	'srcDirectory' : 'src'
}
```

**src/.properties** (Tonel format declaration):
```
{
	#format : #tonel
}
```

**BaselineOf class** defines package dependencies and groups:
- `Core` group: `ProjectName-Core`
- `Tests` group: `ProjectName-Tests` (requires Core)
- `all` group: Core + Tests
- `default` group: Core only

## After Setup

Show the user what was created and next steps:

```
✓ Smalltalk project 'ProjectName' created successfully!

Next steps:
  1. Use /st-init to verify the Smalltalk image connection and start development
  2. Start adding classes to ProjectName-Core
  3. Write tests in ProjectName-Tests
```

Then suggest using the `smalltalk-dev:st-init` skill to start the development session.

## Error Handling

| Situation | Action |
|-----------|--------|
| Invalid project name | Show error with PascalCase example, stop |
| Project already exists | Stop immediately, suggest this is for new projects |
| File system errors | Let bash errors propagate naturally (`set -e`) |

## Related Skills

- `smalltalk-dev:st-init` — Start development session after project is created
- `smalltalk-dev:smalltalk-developer` — Development workflow (Edit → Import → Test)