README Standards (v2025.1) This skill provides README.md templates and standards for projects. Overview A well-structured README is the front door to your project. It should: Immediately communicate what the project does Look professional with proper branding Provide clear getting started instructions Be scannable with good visual hierarchy Template Styles Minimal Style Best for: Libraries, small utilities, internal tools

project-name Brief description of what this project does.

Installation ```bash npm install package-name Usage import { feature } from 'package-name' ; feature ( ) ; License MIT

Standard Style (Recommended)

Best for: Most projects, applications, services ```markdown

# Project Name **A compelling tagline that explains the project's purpose** [](LICENSE) [](https://github.com/OWNER/REPO/stargazers) [](https://github.com/OWNER/REPO/actions) []()

Features

• Feature One - Description of the first key capability
• Feature Two - Description of the second key capability
• Feature Three - Description of the third key capability
• Feature Four - Description of the fourth key capability

Tech Stack

CI/CD Status Badges

Package Registry Badges

Technology Badges

[

![React

](

https://img.shields.io/badge/React-18-61DAFB?logo=react&logoColor=black

)

]()

[

![Vue

](

https://img.shields.io/badge/Vue-3-4FC08D?logo=vue.js&logoColor=white

)

]()

[

![Fastify

](

https://img.shields.io/badge/Fastify-4-000000?logo=fastify&logoColor=white

)

]()

[

![FastAPI

](

https://img.shields.io/badge/FastAPI-0.100+-009688?logo=fastapi&logoColor=white

)

]()

Logo Guidelines

Recommended Specifications

Format

PNG (with transparency) or SVG

Size

128x128px to 512x512px Location : assets/logo.png or assets/icon.svg Centering Logo < div align = " center "

< img src = " assets/logo.png " alt = " Project Name " width = " 128 "

</ div

Using Emoji as Placeholder If no logo exists: < div align = " center "

🚀 Project Name </ div

Common project type emojis: 🚀 - General/deployment tools 🛠️ - Developer tools 📊 - Data/analytics 🔒 - Security 🌐 - Web applications 📱 - Mobile apps 🤖 - AI/ML projects 📦 - Package/library Section Guidelines Features Section Write features as benefits, not just capabilities: Good: - ** Automatic Scanner Detection ** - Discovers eSCL-compatible scanners via mDNS without manual configuration - ** Smart Photo Separation ** - Intelligently detects and crops multiple photos from a single scan using edge analysis Compare — implementation-focused (less effective): - Uses mDNS for scanner discovery - Has edge detection algorithm Tech Stack Section Use a table for clarity: | Category | Technology | |

|

| | Runtime | Bun 1.x | | Server | Fastify 4 | | Frontend | React 18, Tailwind CSS | | Database | SQLite (Drizzle ORM) | Getting Started Section Always include: Prerequisites with version requirements Clone instructions Install dependencies command Run command (Optional) Environment setup Project Structure Section Keep it to 2-3 levels deep Only show meaningful directories Add brief comments for non-obvious folders project/ ├── src/ # Source code ├── tests/ # Test files ├── docs/ # Documentation └── scripts/ # Build/dev scripts Project Type Specific Templates CLI Tool

Installation ```bash

With npm npm install -g tool-name

With Bun bun install -g tool-name

Or run directly npx tool-name Usage tool-name < command

[ options ] Commands: init Initialize a new project build Build the project deploy Deploy to production Options: -h, --help Show help -v, --version Show version

Library/Package

```markdown

Installation

```bash npm install package-name

or

bun add package-name Usage import { feature } from 'package-name' ; const result = feature ( { option : 'value' } ) ; API feature(options) Description of the function. Parameters: options.key (string) - Description Returns: ReturnType - Description

Web Application

```markdown

Demo

🌐 Live Demo

Screenshots

Environment Variables

Create a .env file: ```env DATABASE_URL=postgresql://... API_KEY=your-api-key

Compliance Checklist

Minimal Style

• [ ] Title (h1)
• [ ] Description (1-2 sentences)
• [ ] License badge
• [ ] Installation instructions
• [ ] Basic usage example
• [ ] License section

Standard Style (all of minimal plus)

• [ ] Logo or emoji header
• [ ] 3+ badges (license, stars, CI)
• [ ] Features section (4+ items)
• [ ] Tech stack table
• [ ] Prerequisites
• [ ] Development commands
• [ ] Project structure
• [ ] Contributing mention

Detailed Style (all of standard plus)

• [ ] Architecture diagram
• [ ] API reference or link
• [ ] Configuration options
• [ ] Changelog link
• [ ] Security policy mention
• [ ] Code of conduct mention

Cookiecutter Integration

For creating entire new projects from templates, consider using cookiecutter: ```bash

Install cookiecutter

pip install cookiecutter

or

uv tool install cookiecutter

Create project from template

cookiecutter https://github.com/your-org/project-template Cookiecutter is ideal for: Creating multiple projects with consistent structure Organization-wide project templates Including not just README but entire project scaffolding The /configure:readme command is better for: Updating existing projects Generating README for projects that already have code Compliance checking of existing READMEs