nmattia/niv

[feature] `init` option to create a tiny shell.nix skeleton

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#316 opened on Apr 12, 2021

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enhancementgood first issue

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Description

Just a little suggestion here:

I (and at least one of my colleagues) often create ad-hoc nix shells for existing and new projects, and would love it if we could effectively bootstrap a little nix project environment that uses niv using niv init --shell or similar. If --shell is provided and there is no existing shell.nix, a tiny shell.nix template that gets its packages from niv's nixpkgs would be created.

I know this is probably somewhat orthogonal to the tool's goals, and of course what constitutes a "good" shell.nix is a matter of opinion, but I think this would be a real timesaver for many users.

Thanks again for niv!

Contributor guide

Research direction
Examine the existing 'init' command in niv, understand how it creates configuration files, and implement a new option to generate a minimal shell.nix template that pulls packages from niv's nixpkgs. Look at how the existing templates are structured and follow the same pattern.
Tech stack
haskellshell
Domain
developer experiencecli
Issue type
Feature
DifficultyEstimated implementation difficulty for a new contributor, from 1 for very small changes to 5 for expert-level work.
2
Estimated timeA rough time range for an experienced contributor to investigate, implement, test, and prepare a pull request.
1-3 hours
Activity statusHow available the issue appears right now: fresh, active, stale, blocked, or waiting on maintainer input.
Active
ClarityHow clearly the issue explains the expected change, acceptance criteria, and next step.
Clear
Prerequisites
NixHaskell
Newbie friendlinessA 1-100 score estimating how approachable this issue is for first-time contributors.
70