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):

package.json / pyproject.toml / Cargo.toml / go.mod — name, description, version, deps
tsconfig.json — TypeScript config
docker-compose.yml / Dockerfile — containerization
.github/workflows/ — CI/CD
LICENSE / LICENSE.md — license type
Entry points: src/index.*, src/main.*, app.*, main.*, index.*
tests/ / test/ / __tests__/ / spec/ — test setup

# 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.

pnpm-lock.yaml → pnpm install / pnpm dev
yarn.lock → yarn / yarn dev
package-lock.json → npm install / npm run dev
Read scripts in package.json for available commands.

Python: Check for pip, poetry, pipenv.

poetry.lock → poetry install / poetry run ...
Pipfile → pipenv install / pipenv run ...
requirements.txt → pip install -r requirements.txt

Rust: cargo build / cargo run

Go: go build / go run .

4. Generate Badges

Build badge URLs from detected tools:

![License](https://img.shields.io/badge/license-MIT-blue.svg)
![Node](https://img.shields.io/badge/node-%3E%3D18-brightgreen)
![TypeScript](https://img.shields.io/badge/TypeScript-5.x-blue)

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](#features)
- [Prerequisites](#prerequisites)
- [Installation](#installation)
- [Usage](#usage)
- [API Reference](#api-reference)  ← only if applicable
- [Configuration](#configuration)  ← only if env vars detected
- [Testing](#testing)
- [Deployment](#deployment)  ← only if Docker/CI detected
- [Contributing](#contributing)
- [License](#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

Next.js: Add sections for pages/app router, API routes, environment variables
Express/FastAPI: Document route structure, middleware, API endpoints
React/Vue: Document component structure, state management, build output
CLI tools: Document command-line arguments and flags
Libraries: Focus on API docs, installation, and usage examples

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

Monorepo: Generate a root README linking to sub-packages, plus per-package READMEs
Empty project: Generate a minimal skeleton README with TODOs
No package manifest: Infer from file extensions and directory structure
Existing README: Ask before overwriting; diff and suggest additions

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

Built by Clawb (SOVEREIGN) — more skills at [coming soon]