Readme Generator

readme-generator — Production-Quality README Generator

Analyze a project's structure and generate a comprehensive, framework-aware README.md.

Steps

1. Analyze Project Structure

Read these files (if they exist):

# Get file tree (depth 3, ignore common dirs)
find . -maxdepth 3 -not -path '*/node_modules/*' -not -path '*/.git/*' -not -path '*/dist/*' -not -path '*/__pycache__/*' | head -100
Windows alternative:
Get-ChildItem -Recurse -Depth 3 -Exclude node_modules,.git,dist,__pycache__ | Select-Object -First 100 FullName

2. Detect Framework & Ecosystem

| Signal | Framework | |--------|-----------| | next.config.* or "next" in deps | Next.js | | "express" in deps | Express.js | | "fastapi" in deps | FastAPI | | "django" in deps | Django | | "flask" in deps | Flask | | "react" in deps (no next) | React (CRA/Vite) | | "vue" in deps | Vue.js | | "svelte" in deps | SvelteKit | | Cargo.toml with [[bin]] | Rust CLI | | Cargo.toml with actix-web/axum | Rust Web | | go.mod | Go |

3. Determine Install & Run Commands

Based on detected ecosystem:

Node.js: Check for lockfiles to determine package manager.

Python: Check for pip, poetry, pipenv.

Rust: cargo build / cargo run

Go: go build / go run .

4. Generate Badges

Build badge URLs from detected tools:

!License
!Node
!TypeScript

Only include badges for things actually detected. Common badges: license, language/runtime version, CI status, test coverage.

5. Assemble README

Use this structure:

# Project Name
Brief description from package.json/pyproject.toml or inferred from code.
Table of Contents
Features
Prerequisites
Installation
Usage
API Reference  ← only if applicable
Configuration  ← only if env vars detected
Testing
Deployment  ← only if Docker/CI detected
Contributing
License
Features
Bullet list of key capabilities (infer from code structure, routes, exports)
Prerequisites
Runtime version (node >= 18, python >= 3.10, etc.)
Required system tools (Docker, database, etc.)
Installation
[Package-manager-specific install commands from Step 3]
Usage
[Dev/start commands, example API calls if it's a server]
API Reference
[Only for libraries/APIs — list exported functions or endpoints]
Configuration
[Environment variables — reference env-setup skill if complex]
Testing
[Test runner command: npm test, pytest, cargo test, etc.]
Contributing
1. Fork the repository
2. Create your feature branch (git checkout -b feat/amazing-feature)
3. Commit your changes (git commit -m 'feat: add amazing feature')
4. Push to the branch (git push origin feat/amazing-feature)
5. Open a Pull Request
License
[Detected license or "See LICENSE file"]

6. Tailor to Framework

7. Output

Write to README.md in the project root. If one exists, ask user before overwriting — offer to write to README.generated.md instead.

Edge Cases

Error Handling

| Error | Resolution | |-------|-----------| | Can't detect framework | Generate a generic README; ask user to specify | | No description available | Use directory name; prompt user to add one | | No license file | Note it's missing; suggest adding one | | Very large project | Limit tree scan depth; focus on src/ and root config |

[Dev/start commands, example API calls if it's a server]

[Environment variables — reference env-setup skill if complex]