🎬 startfrom

A little tool to download a snapshot of a Github repo and use it as a starting point for a new project.

Intended for people who use a lot of boilerplates and starter kits.

Install

> npm install -g startfrom
 
# or, if you prefer yarn: 
> yarn global add startfrom

How to use

Go into an empty directory, then run startfrom with a GitHub repo identifier. For example:

> startfrom google/web-starter-kit
 
# ...or just paste the whole GitHub URL, if it's easier: 
> startfrom https://github.com/google/web-starter-kit

What it does

1. Downloads a snapshot of the specified repo to your current working directory. (Just a snapshot – no git history.)
2. Does git init, git add . and git commit. (Your original startfrom command is used as the commit message.)
3. If there's a package.json, runs npm install.

It will also ask for confirmation of which files you want to include. By default, things like README.md, CHANGELOG and docs are deselected, but you can change the selection if you want.

More options

Start from a specific branch/tag/commit reference

Use a # symbol, for example:

> startfrom mxstbr/react-boilerplate#v2.5.0

Start from a subdirectory of a repo

Sometimes you just want a subdirectory. For example, with HTML5 Boilerplate you probably just want its dist folder.

Specify your desired subdirectory as a second argument:

> startfrom h5bp/html5-boilerplate dist

Skipping the interactive prompt

If you don't want startfrom to prompt you to confirm which files you want, use the --confirm flag to auto-confirm it. Useful for automation.

Licence

MIT © Callum Locke