boilerplate Package Architecture

Overview

The boilerplate package is designed to manage and generate standardised text for scientific reports. It uses a unified database architecture with a hierarchical path system and template variable substitution.

Core Architecture Components

1. Unified Database System

The package uses a unified database structure where all content types share a common interface:

boilerplate_db (unified)
├── methods/
│   ├── statistical/
│   │   ├── regression/
│   │   └── longitudinal/
│   └── sampling/
├── measures/
│   ├── psychological/
│   └── demographic/
├── results/
├── discussion/
├── appendix/
└── template/

Key Design Principles

  • Single Source of Truth: All content managed through one unified database
  • Consistent Interface: Same functions work across all content types
  • Hierarchical Organisation: Dot notation paths for nested content
  • Format Agnostic: Supports both RDS (legacy) and JSON formats

2. Path System

Content is organised using dot notation paths:

# Access nested content
"methods.statistical.regression.linear"
"measures.psychological.anxiety.gad7"
"results.descriptive.demographics"

Path Operations

  • Navigation: get_nested_folder() traverses the hierarchy
  • Modification: modify_nested_entry() adds/updates/removes entries
  • Wildcards: methods.statistical.* matches all statistical methods
  • Validation: boilerplate_path_exists() checks path validity

3. Template Variable System

Dynamic content substitution using {{variable}} syntax:

# Template text
"We analysed {{n}} participants using {{method}} regression."

# Variables
list(n = 100, method = "linear")

# Result
"We analysed 100 participants using linear regression."

Variable Scoping

  1. Global Variables: Available to all sections
  2. Section Variables: Override globals for specific sections
  3. Text Overrides: Direct text replacement

4. File Organisation

R/
├── Core Functions
│   ├── init-functions.R          # Database initialisation
│   ├── import-export-functions.R # I/O operations
│   └── utilities.R               # Core utilities
│
├── User Interface
│   ├── manage-measures.R         # Measure management
│   ├── generate-text.R           # Text generation
│   └── generate-measures.R       # Measure generation
│
├── Data Operations
│   ├── merge-databases.R         # Database merging
│   ├── path-operations.R         # Path manipulation
│   └── category-helpers.R        # Category extraction
│
├── Format Support
│   ├── json-support.R            # JSON operations
│   ├── migration-utilities.R     # Format migration
│   └── bibliography-support.R    # Citation handling
│
└── Batch Operations
    ├── boilerplate_batch_edit_functions.R
    └── boilerplate_standardise_measures.R

Data Flow Architecture

1. Initialisation Flow

boilerplate_init()
    ├── Creates directory structure
    ├── Initialises empty databases
    └── Saves as unified.json/rds

2. Import Flow

External Data → boilerplate_import()
    ├── Detects format (JSON/RDS/CSV)
    ├── Validates structure
    ├── Merges with existing
    └── Updates unified database

3. Text Generation Flow

boilerplate_generate_text()
    ├── Load unified database
    ├── Extract category paths
    ├── Apply template variables
    ├── Handle text overrides
    └── Return formatted text

Key Design Patterns

1. Function Naming Convention

# Public API
boilerplate_<action>()         # Main functions
boilerplate_<category>_<action>() # Category-specific

# Internal functions
<action>_<object>()            # No prefix for internals

2. Error Handling Strategy

3. Extensibility Points

Adding New Categories

  1. Define default content in default-databases.R
  2. Add accessor function following pattern
  3. Update unified structure
  4. Add tests

Adding New Formats

  1. Implement read/write functions in format-specific file
  2. Add format detection in detect_database_type()
  3. Update import/export functions
  4. Ensure round-trip compatibility

4. Performance Considerations

Database Schema

Unified Database Structure

list(
  methods = list(
    category1 = list(
      entry1 = list(
        text = "Method description with {{variables}}",
        reference = "@citation2023",
        keywords = c("keyword1", "keyword2")
      )
    )
  ),
  measures = list(
    category1 = list(
      measure1 = list(
        name = "measure_name",
        description = "Description",
        type = "continuous|categorical|ordinal|binary",
        ...
      )
    )
  ),
  template = list(
    global = list(var1 = "value1"),
    methods = list(var2 = "value2")
  )
)

Entry Types

Text Entries (methods, results, discussion)

list(
  text = "Content with {{variables}}",     # Required
  reference = "@citation",                 # Optional
  keywords = c("keyword1", "keyword2"),    # Optional
  large = "Extended version",              # Optional variant
  brief = "Short version"                  # Optional variant
)

Measure Entries

list(
  name = "measure_id",              # Required
  description = "Description",      # Required
  type = "continuous",              # Required
  values = c(1, 2, 3),              # For categorical
  value_labels = c("Low", "Med", "High"),
  range = c(0, 100),                # For continuous
  unit = "points",
  reference = "@citation"
)

Testing Architecture

Test Organisation

tests/testthat/
├── test-init-functions.R      # Initialisation tests
├── test-import-export.R       # I/O operations
├── test-generate-text.R       # Text generation
├── test-path-operations.R     # Path system
├── test-json-support.R        # JSON functionality
└── test-utilities.R           # Core utilities

Testing Strategy

  1. Unit Tests: Each function tested in isolation
  2. Integration Tests: Full workflows tested
  3. Format Tests: Round-trip compatibility
  4. Edge Cases: Invalid inputs, empty databases

Security Considerations

  1. File Operations: Validated paths, no arbitrary file access
  2. User Input: Sanitised for path traversal attacks
  3. Confirmations: Required for destructive operations
  4. Backups: Automatic for critical operations

Future Architecture Considerations

Planned Enhancements

  1. Plugin System: Allow custom content types
  2. Version Control: Built-in change tracking
  3. Validation Rules: Custom validation per category
  4. Performance: Caching for large databases

Backwards Compatibility