bp(1)                                                             bp(1)

  bp

  NAME

    bp - boilerplate generator

  SYNOPSIS

    bp [-d dirname] boilerplate-name
    bp [-x | [-d dirname] -X]

  DESCRIPTION

    The bp(1) utility writes a boilerplate to standard output as specified by
    the boilerplate-name operand.

  OPTIONS
    -d dirname
        Search for boilerplates stored in directory dirname, rather than in
        $HOME/bpdir.

    -X
        List boilerplates found in the boilerplate directory.

    -x
        Output an explanation message.

    By default, the bp(1) utility searches for boilerplates in $HOME/bpdir. If
    the environment variable BPDIR is set to a directory name, this overrides
    the default. The -d option takes precedence if it is on the command line.
    The value for BPDIR must end with a trailing slash character (but an
    argument to -d need not).

  BOILERPLATES

    Boilerplates can be very effective for improving consistency across
    similar types of files, improving productivity when working with known
    templates, and reducing retyping errors. A set of simple macros can be
    included in the boilerplates to personalize the output (see Macros).

    Boilerplates all start with a line that describes the boilerplate, and is
    not output as part of the writing to standard output. This line begins
    with the four characters #BP\t, where \t represents a tab. (This can be
    used in a magic file to identify boilerplates.) Everything else on the
    line is a simple, one-line description of the boilerplate contents that is
    written to standard output when the -X flag is used.

    Boilerplates can be used for anything, including simple look-up files for
    information (such as postal codes, the table of elements, macro names,
    office phone extensions). A sample of the boilerplates used in the
    development environment include the following:

    DEBUG            DEBUG macro definition

    SSI              List of local feature test macros.

    api.c            Simple function in C (with a test-program framework).

    cleanup          Clean-up Checklist for development work in a directory

    codeids          Copyright and RCSid character strings.

    header.h         Basic header file with guards and copyright notice.

    makefile         Simple makefile template with standard targets.

    makefile.lib     Makefile for library with simple targets.

    makefile.pub     Makefile for a publications directory.

    modcopyr.c       Standard corporate copyright for ported source.

    modcopyr.mm      Standard corporate copyright for translated man page.

    newcopyr.c       Standard corporate copyright for new C source.

    newcopyr.sh      Standard corporate copyright for new shell or make
                     source.

    setvbuf          Unbuffer calls for stdout and stderr.

    sutil.c          Simple utility template for filter program.

    testdata         Text file to be used as test data.

    util.c           Simple utility template.

    util.man         Template man page file (troff man macros).

    util.sh          Shell script template w. options, help, and copyright

    If boilerplates are broken out into types across different directories,
    bp(1) with a specific directory name can be aliased to a more appropriate
    command name.

    $ alias lookup="bp -d /dev/fs/X/info"
    $ lookup -X
    /dev/fs/X/info
    Elements            Table of Elements
    ZipCodes            Area zip codes
    Suppliers           List of contact numbers

  Macros

    A macro is a string which bp(1) replaces with some value from the user's
    environment. Macros begin with the @ character; most macros are only two
    characters long. The macros deal with time, the user's name, environment
    variables, and shell script output:

    Meaning                  Macro          Example

    An @ symbol              @@             @

    Weekday name             @A             Tuesday

    Weekday name (abbr)      @a             Tue

    Month                    @B             December

    Month (abbr)             @b             Dec

    Century                  @C             19

    Date & time              @c             12/30/97 15:24:14

    Date (numeric)           @D             12/30/97

    Day (decimal)            @d             30

    Month (decimal)          @m             12

    Hour (24-hour)           @H             15

    Hour (12-hour)           @I             03

    AM/PM                    @p             PM

    Time (24-hour)           @R             15:24

    Full year                @Y             1997

    Abbrev. year             @y             97

    User name, no domain     @U             dana

    Ushering with domain     @u             ACCTNG+dana

    Environment variable     @(VAR)

    Command output           @{command}

    A meaningless macro (for example, one that names a non-existent
    environment variable or uses an unused letter such as Q) is output without
    change.

  DIAGNOSTICS

    The bp(1) utility exits 0 on success, and >0 if an error occurs.

  EXAMPLE

    The following simple boilerplate presents a simple shell script:

    #BP  Shell script template
    #
    # Utility name: name
    #
    # Created by: @U on @c
    # Copyright @Y Your Company Name
    #
    CMD=$(basename $0)
    USAGE="usage: $CMD [-f arg] ..."
    while getopts f: opt
    do
         case "$opt" in
         'f') echo "Option: " $OPTARG
              ;;
         '?') echo $USAGE
              exit 1;;
         esac
    done
    shift $OPTIND-1
    for arg in $@
    do
         echo $arg
    done