# README files ## Overview A README file is a document that introduces and explains a project, helping colleagues and your future self navigate through a past project (Briney, 2014). ## Developing README files contain information about the other files in a directory or folder. The concept comes from programming but is also very useful for research projects. It is usually a simple plain text file called README in capital letters. A good README includes information that helps the reader understand what the project is about, including helping them do basic navigation through the subfolders (Briney, 2014). ## Skilled README files can be used to record [data provenance](https://ardc.edu.au/resources/working-with-data/data-provenance/). They are important for capturing [metadata](https://ardc.edu.au/resources/working-with-data/metadata/) related to research projects and datasets. ## Helpful resources Here are some good resources and templates used for creating README files so that you know what information you should include about your project: [README editor](https://readme.so/editor) [Make a README](https://www.makeareadme.com/) These are more detailed guides on what to include in a README file for a research project, with links to templates: [Research Data Management: Guide to writing “readme” type metadata](https://www.open.ac.uk/library-research-support/research-data-management/research-data-management-guide-writing-%E2%80%9Creadme%E2%80%9D-type-metadata) [Guide to writing "readme" style metadata](https://data.research.cornell.edu/content/readme) Briney, K. (2014, February 25). README.txt. Data Ab Initio: Managing Research Data Right, from the Start.