@kindkitchen/plopper

A bidirectional template generator. Copy a directory and rewrite placeholder tokens in file names, directory names, and file contents — in either direction:

• generate — template → real code (substitute placeholders with values).
• templatize — real code → template (replace concrete values with ready-to-replace placeholder spots).

Config layers: built-in defaults → TOML file → CLI flags (CLI wins).

Use directly (CLI)

# template -> code
deno run -A jsr:@kindkitchen/plopper generate \
  --input=<template-dir> --output=<dst-dir> \
  --start-replacement=_place_ --end-replacement=_holder_ \
  --dictionary some-feature=auth --dictionary SomeFeature=Auth

# code -> template (dictionary direction is inverted)
deno run -A jsr:@kindkitchen/plopper templatize \
  --input=<real-code-dir> --output=<template-dir> \
  --start-replacement=_place_ --end-replacement=_holder_ \
  --dictionary auth=some-feature --dictionary Auth=SomeFeature

# write a starter TOML config
deno run -A jsr:@kindkitchen/plopper init

When overwriting an existing config from an agent or script, use init --force; add --reuse-existing to load the current file as the base before applying CLI overrides.

Run deno run -A jsr:@kindkitchen/plopper --help for the full flag list.

Use as an LLM skill

plopper ships a self-contained Agent Skill so an agent (Claude Code, the Agent SDK, etc.) can discover and drive it. Install it into a project in one command — --dest is required so you choose where it lands:

# project-local (committable, discovered by agents working in the repo)
deno run -A jsr:@kindkitchen/plopper install-skill --dest=./.claude/skills/plopper

# or per-machine, for every project
deno run -A jsr:@kindkitchen/plopper install-skill --dest=~/.claude/skills/plopper

This copies SKILL.md, the reference docs, and a ready-to-use starter template into the destination. Add --force to overwrite an existing install.

The typical agent flow it enables: point templatize at real codebase fragments to turn them into a template with common, ready-to-replace spots, then generate new code from that template.

Use as a library

import { process_template } from "jsr:@kindkitchen/plopper/process-template";
import { load_config_file } from "jsr:@kindkitchen/plopper/load-config";
import { install_skill } from "jsr:@kindkitchen/plopper/install-skill";

Replacement modes

• Marker mode — pass both --start-replacement and --end-replacement (required together). generate replaces <start><key><end> with the dictionary value.
• Literal mode — omit both markers. Each dictionary key is replaced wherever it appears as a substring (single pass, longest key first, no cascade).

Docs

• skill/SKILL.md — the shippable skill.
• skill/reference/config-schema.md — every option, type, default, and exit code.
• skill/reference/template-authoring.md — the _place_X_holder_ convention, ignore blocks, and the round-trip.

License

MIT