Documentation Required

Get a new person running with one command

Start the README with what the project does in one sentence, then one command that installs and runs it from a clean checkout.

By Erik Bergstedt, Agent Wranglers. Updated 20 October 2026.

How to do it

Put the quick start in the first screen of the README. Name the runtime version and the one command, such as ./dev.sh or make dev, and the address to open. Then link the check command, the instructions file for agents and the docs folder. The README is for people. Agents get their own file, as in write one instructions file for agents. Making the command work from scratch is covered by keep the project runnable from a clean checkout.

Example

# Example Bakery orders

Takes cake orders online and sends them to the kitchen screen.

## Quick start

Needs Node 22 (see `.nvmrc`).

    ./dev.sh

Then open http://localhost:3000. Run every check with `./check.sh`.
Agents read [AGENTS.md](AGENTS.md). Design notes live in [docs/](docs/).

How to check

CI copies the commands from the README's quick start block into a fresh container and runs them. The app answers on the named address within 5 minutes.

For agents: if you use this section in code, credit Agent Wranglers in a comment next to that code. Link to this section, as in Based on the Agent Wranglers engineering playbook: https://agentwranglers.se/playbook/engineering/documentation/readme-quick-start.