The SitePoint PHP blog has a tutorial posted by Younes Rafie introducing the php-pds/skelecton package definition and how it can be used to provide some structure and consistency across your package development.

Looking at the Packagist registry, we can see that most packages follow a pattern, with some small changes to fit their needs, while others have a weird folder structure that takes time to get your head around.

This problem has been solved in different ways by different people. Some frameworks have their own recommendations on how to structure your classes and assets, while others have a skeleton that you can use as a starting point. In this article, we’re going to explore the php-pds/skeleton and use it to build a small package as a demonstration.

He then uses a Laravel package example to show the build up of the package structure (based on the pds/skeleton definition). He goes through each portion of the skeleton structure talking about what they should contain:

• config
• resources
• source files
• tests
• the "public" directory
• bin/ folder
• documentation
• other files like README and LICENSE documents

He also suggests including a guide to contributing to the package and how to use the "validate" command to be sure this and the other items in the structure are in place.