ADR-0002: Use Bash for the project initialisation script (superseded by ADR-0006)#

Date: 2024-01-15
Status: Superseded by ADR-0006 (Phase 2)
Deciders: Core maintainers

Context#

The init command needs to parse a config file, render templates with variable substitution, and write a file tree. The initial implementation had to ship quickly and the author was most fluent in shell scripting.

Decision (original)#

Implement new_spec_project.sh in POSIX-compatible Bash with sed for variable substitution.

Rationale (original)#

• No Node.js module installation required at bootstrap time.
• Shell is universally available on Linux and macOS.
• Template substitution via sed -e 's/{{VAR}}/value/g' is simple and transparent.

Consequences (original)#

• Positive: Zero runtime dependencies; easy to read and modify for shell-fluent contributors.
• Negative: Breaks on Windows without WSL; sed patterns are fragile with special characters; untestable with node:test; forces use of Bats for shell tests.

Why superseded#

The cross-platform requirement (REQ-004) and the adoption of Bats/ShellCheck made the shell approach a maintenance liability. ADR-0006 documents the migration to a deterministic Node.js engine.