readme

A set of writing guidelines for creating a GitHub README, the main guide to an open-source software project.

In plain words
What is it for?
Use it to plan and write README sections, explanations, code examples, and contributor information.
Why use it?
It helps readers find the project’s purpose, installation steps, usage instructions, contribution guidance, and license information in one place.

Cursor rule

Install

Getting it into your agent

One page per mod, every tool's command on it. A separate URL per tool would split the same page into five that compete with each other.

agentmods
npx agentmods add rules/chand1012/cursorrules/readme
Clone the repo
git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/chand1012/cursorrules
Per session 0 Nothing until a file matches its globs; then the whole rule loads.
When invoked 1,656 The whole file, excluding the scripts and references it only reads on demand.
Security scan A 0 findings. Scan, not verified.
Origin original No closer match found in the catalogue.
Token cost

What it costs to keep this loaded

Counted locally with the o200k_base tokenizer, which is exact for GPT models; Claude uses its own tokenizer and its counts differ. Treat this as one consistent yardstick across the catalogue rather than a bill. Prices are per million input tokens.

ModelPer sessionOnce invoked
Fable 5 $0.00000 $0.01656
Opus 5 $0.00000 $0.00828
Sonnet 5 $0.00000 $0.00331
Haiku 4.5 $0.00000 $0.00166

Measured 2d ago against content hash 00099b143b59, method: parsed. Prices are Anthropic first-party input rates as of 2026-08-30, from the pricing page.

Security

Grade A, and why

readme scanned grade A with 0 findings against 26 rules in 11 categories — prompt injection, anti-refusal, data exfiltration, privilege escalation, supply chain, agent snooping, system-prompt leakage, SSRF and excessive agency — measured 2d ago.

A static scan of the body, not an audit. Every finding is printed with the line that produced it so you can judge whether it matters here. A mod is markdown that instructs an agent; that is exactly why what it instructs is worth reading.

Nothing flagged

None of the 26 patterns this scan looks for appear in this file: no shell pipes, no recursive deletes, no credential paths, no hidden text, no instruction-override or anti-refusal phrasing, no agent-config snooping. That is not a guarantee, it is the absence of the things that are checkable.

practice/readme.mdc · 117 lines

How it starts

The opening of the file, as written. The whole thing — 117 lines — stays where its author put it; the contents beside it link to each section on GitHub.

GitHub README Best Practices for Open-Source Projects

Introduction

A GitHub README is the gateway to an open-source project, serving as the primary resource for users and contributors. It should clearly explain what the project does, how to use it, and how to get involved, all while being well-organized and engaging. This guide provides best practices for an LLM to write a README, leveraging its ability to generate clear text and code snippets, while noting where visuals could be added by others.

General Writing Principles

  • Use clear and concise language to ensure accessibility for all readers, including beginners and non-native speakers.
  • Adopt an inclusive and welcoming tone to encourage participation from diverse contributors.
  • Maintain a professional yet friendly style to reflect the project's quality and foster community.
  • Ensure proper grammar and spelling using tools like spell checkers to polish the text.
  • Format code snippets with Markdown's triple backticks and specify the language (e.g., ```bash) for readability.

README Structure

  • Include standard sections: Project Overview, Installation, Usage, Contributing, License, etc.
  • Use Markdown headers (# for main sections, ## for subsections) to create a logical flow.
  • Order sections intuitively, starting with an introduction and progressing to detailed instructions.

Project Overview

  • Describe the project: Start with a brief, compelling summary of what the project does. Example: "A lightweight Rust web framework for building fast, scalable APIs."
  • Highlight purpose and value: Explain why the project exists and its unique features (e.g., "Designed for simplicity and performance, unlike heavier alternatives").
  • Target the audience: Specify who the project is for if not obvious (e.g., "Ideal for Rust developers new to web programming").
  • Keep it short: Limit this to 2-3 paragraphs to retain reader interest.

Installation Instructions

  • List prerequisites: Detail required software or libraries (e.g., "Requires Rust 1.50+ and Cargo").
  • Provide step-by-step commands: Use code blocks for clarity. Example:
    git clone https://github.com/user/project.git
    cd project
    cargo build --release
    
  • Address multiple platforms: Include variations for different OSes if applicable (e.g., "On Windows, use cargo build without sudo").
  • Test instructions: Ensure commands are accurate and reproducible.

Read the full file on GitHub · 117 lines

Changes

What this file has done since we first saw it

Hashed on every crawl. A supply-chain change to an agent config is a question of when, not whether, so the history is kept rather than the latest state alone.

  1. 2d ago First seen · 117 lines · 1,656 tokens per session scan A 00099b143b59

Subscribe to this mod's changes

readme is a cursor rule published in the GitHub repository chand1012/cursorrules (13 stars, last pushed 9mo ago), licensed MIT. It costs nothing until one of its globs matches a file; then it loads 1,656 tokens. A static security scan graded it A with 0 findings. No closer match exists in the catalogue, so it is treated as the original; first seen 2026-08-30.