Question 1

How to use Mo with Bash arrays?

Accepted Answer

You must source the mo script in your Bash script to load the function, then use it with arrays; see the demo/using-arrays example for a step-by-step guide.

Question 2

Mo vs Jinja2 for shell scripting?

Accepted Answer

Mo is better for pure Bash environments with no dependencies, while Jinja2 offers more features like inheritance but requires Python. Choose Mo for portability and Jinja2 for complexity.

Question 3

Can Mo handle JSON data directly?

Accepted Answer

No, Mo requires data in Bash environment variables; you'll need to parse JSON separately using tools like jq before templating, as Bash doesn't support native JSON structures.

Question 4

How to install Mo on a Mac?

Accepted Answer

Use curl to download the script, make it executable with chmod, and move it to /usr/local/bin/; it's compatible with Bash 3.x, which is default on macOS.

Question 5

Does Mo support partial templates?

Accepted Answer

Yes, Mo supports partials by including other template files, but it doesn't support parent templates for overriding chunks, as mentioned in the concessions.

Question 6

How to debug errors in Mo templates?

Accepted Answer

Set the MO_DEBUG environment variable to a non-empty value to get detailed output on stderr, which helps identify parsing issues, as described in the environment variables section.

Question 7

Is Mo fast for processing large templates?

Accepted Answer

Performance can degrade with large templates due to Bash's nature; for heavy use, consider compiled templating engines, though Mo is fine for typical shell script tasks.

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