Generate Files from Templates

Guide to the golo new command for generating Golo source files from templates.

Introduction

The golo new command generates .golo files from embedded templates. Templates are bundled into the binary, so they are always available without external files.

Usage

golo new <template> [--module name] [--name filename] [--function name] [--args a,b,c]

Options

Option	Description	Default
<template>	Template name (required)	-
--module	Module name	demo
--name	Output filename	<template>.golo
--function	Function name	main
--args	Function arguments (comma-separated)	args

Quick reference

Command	Result
golo new main	Creates main.golo with module demo, function main
golo new main --module yolo.Hello --name hello.golo	Creates hello.golo with module yolo.Hello
golo new main (file exists)	Creates main_1.golo (no overwrite)
golo new main --function greet --args name,age	Function greet = |name,age|
golo new (no template)	Error message + exit 1
golo new doesnotexist	Error message + exit 1

Examples

Basic usage

golo new main

Generates main.golo:

module demo

function main = |args| {
  println("Hello from demo")
}

Custom module name

golo new main --module yolo.Hello --name hello.golo

Generates hello.golo:

module yolo.Hello

function main = |args| {
  println("Hello from yolo.Hello")
}

Custom function and arguments

golo new main --module app.Core --name greet.golo --function greet --args name,age

Generates greet.golo:

module app.Core

function greet = |name,age| {
  println("Hello from app.Core")
}

File collision handling

If the output file already exists, golo new will not overwrite it. Instead, it appends an incrementing suffix:

golo new main          # Creates main.golo
golo new main          # Creates main_1.golo
golo new main          # Creates main_2.golo

Error handling

If no template name is provided:

golo new
# Error: template name is required
# Usage: golo new <template> [--module name] [--name filename] [--function name] [--args a,b,c]

If the template does not exist:

golo new unknown
# Error: template 'unknown' not found

Available templates

Template	Description
main	Basic Golo program with a function and a module declaration
chat.agent	Chat agent using OpenAI-compatible API with streaming completion

How templates work

Templates are .golo files stored in the templates/ directory at the root of the project. They are embedded into the binary at build time using Go’s embed package.

Templates use Go template syntax for substitutions:

• {{.ModuleName}} - replaced by the module name (--module or demo)
• {{.FunctionName}} - replaced by the function name (--function or main)
• {{.Args}} - replaced by the function arguments (--args or args)