A repository's README.md is the best gift you can give to a new developer. It gives them a brisk start to understanding what the repo is all about, what its purpose is, how to start coding and contributing, and most importantly how to successfully maintain the codebase and the app/software that is built from the code.
This repository consists of two template files that serve slightly different purposes:
blank/README.md contains only the topics that a README.md could contain.
guided/README.md contains the topics and some guidelines and hints for the content of the topics.
All software is different. No one ultimate README.md template can exist that would be a good fit for any software. This template can serve as a starting point for a good README.md, but it's up to the developer(you!) to use your own experience and consider what a new developer would want to see in the README. For example:
- What are the things you would like to know when you start with a new repository and your job is to code, contribute and maintain it?
- How you can save everybody's time by documenting things that would otherwise require digging in the code, hunting down an expert or just banging your head on the wall?
This template can give you ideas about what a good README.md could contain, but it's not a "form" to fill.
A README.md is written by a developer, to a developer. Be a good developer and write a README.md that you'd want to read.