PostHog Project Template

A standardized project template for consistent development workflows across all of PostHog's repositories. This template provides a solid foundation with common scripts, configuration files, license, and project structure that can be customized for your specific needs.

Using This Template

Creating a New Project

1. Clone from Template: Use GitHub's "Use this template" button or clone directly:

git clone https://github.com/PostHog/template.git your-project-name
cd your-project-name

2. Initialize as New Repository: Remove the template's git history and start fresh:

rm -rf .git
git init
git add .
git commit -m "Initial commit from template"

3. Replace README: Replace this template README with the project-specific one from README.demo.md:

mv README.demo.md README.md

4. Customize for Your Project:
   • Customize your README including language-specific requirements
   • Update configuration files
   • Add your source code and dependencies
   • Update documentation

What's Included

This template provides:

• Standardized Scripts: Common development tasks in bin/ directory
• Project Structure: Consistent organization across projects
• Configuration Files: Common .gitignore, .gitattributes, etc.
• Documentation: Templates and guides for customization
• Github Configuration: Basic issues/PR templates inside the .github folder

Scripts to Rule Them All

The bin/ directory contains standardized scripts following the "Scripts to Rule Them All" pattern, providing a consistent interface for common development tasks across different projects and languages.

Script Structure

bin/
├── helpers/
│   └── _utils.sh     # Common utility functions
├── setup             # Initial project setup
├── bootstrap         # Resolve dependencies
├── start             # Start the application
├── test              # Run tests
├── fmt               # Format code
├── lint              # Run linters
├── build             # Build the project
├── clean             # Clean build artifacts
└── update            # Update dependencies

Usage

1. Customize scripts for your specific language/framework
2. Run scripts from project root: bin/test

Script Guidelines

• All scripts should be idempotent
• Include help text with #/ comments
• Source bin/helpers/_utils.sh for common functions
• Set working directory to project root
• Exit with appropriate status codes

Best Practices

1. Keep scripts simple: Each script should do one thing well
2. Use helpers: Don't repeat code, add it to _utils.sh
3. Provide feedback: Use print_color to show progress
4. Handle errors: Check return codes and fail gracefully
5. Document options: Use #/ comments for help text
6. Be idempotent: Scripts should be safe to run multiple times