Project Scaffolding

Project Scaffolding Skill

Overview

Standardized project initialization workflow with templates, boilerplate generation, and structure patterns. Ensures new projects start with consistent, well-organized foundations.

Type

workflow

When to Invoke

Trigger keywords: scaffold, new project, boilerplate, template, initialize, project structure, bootstrap, starter, setup

Trigger phrases:

• "create a new project"
• "set up a new app"
• "initialize the project"
• "bootstrap a new..."
• "scaffold a..."

Project Type Selection

Essential Files Checklist

Every project MUST have:

Root Files

• .gitignore - Appropriate for language/framework
• README.md - Project overview, setup, usage
• LICENSE - If open source

Configuration

• Language config (pyproject.toml, package.json, cargo.toml)
• Editor config (.editorconfig or IDE settings)
• Linter/formatter config (eslint, prettier, ruff, black)

Development

• ./tmp/ - For temporary/test files
• ./docs/ - Documentation folder (invoke documentation-standards skill)
• Test directory (tests/, __tests__/, spec/)

Optional but Recommended

• Dockerfile - Container definition
• docker-compose.yml - Local development
• .env.example - Environment variable template
• Makefile or justfile - Common commands

Directory Structures

Python Project

project/
├── src/
│   └── project/
│       ├── __init__.py
│       ├── main.py
│       └── modules/
├── tests/
│   ├── __init__.py
│   ├── test_main.py
│   └── fixtures/
├── docs/
├── tmp/
├── pyproject.toml
├── README.md
└── .gitignore

TypeScript/Node Project

project/
├── src/
│   ├── index.ts
│   ├── types/
│   └── modules/
├── tests/
│   └── *.test.ts
├── docs/
├── tmp/
├── package.json
├── tsconfig.json
├── README.md
└── .gitignore

API Project

project/
├── src/
│   ├── app.ts (or main.py)
│   ├── routes/
│   ├── controllers/
│   ├── models/
│   ├── services/
│   ├── middleware/
│   └── utils/
├── tests/
├── docs/
│   ├── API_REFERENCE.md
│   └── SCHEMAS.md
├── tmp/
├── Dockerfile
├── docker-compose.yml
└── README.md

Technology Selection Framework

When choosing tech stack, consider:

Language Selection

Framework Selection

Database Selection

Initialization Workflow

Step 1: Define Project Type

• What problem does this solve?
• Who is the user?
• What's the deployment target?

Step 2: Select Technology

• Language based on requirements
• Framework based on use case
• Database based on data model

Step 3: Create Structure

• Use appropriate directory template
• Create all essential files
• Initialize version control

Step 4: Configure Development

• Set up linting/formatting
• Configure testing framework
• Create development environment

Step 5: Document

• Write README with setup instructions
• Invoke documentation-standards skill
• Create initial architecture docs

Anti-Patterns to Avoid

Integration

Works with:

• documentation-standards - For project documentation
• tdd-workflow - For test setup
• architecture-patterns - For design decisions
• /newapp command - Invokes this skill automatically

Ensures consistent, well-structured project initialization