README Updater Skill

Keep your README current with project changes.

When I Activate

•New features added
•Project structure changes
•Dependencies added/removed
•Setup instructions change
•User mentions README or documentation
•Configuration files modified

What I Update

README Sections

Installation:

•New dependencies
•Setup steps
•Prerequisites
•Environment variables

Features:

•New capabilities
•Functionality changes
•Feature deprecation

Usage:

•API changes
•New examples
•Updated screenshots

Configuration:

•New options
•Environment variables
•Config file changes

Examples

New Feature Addition

bash

# You add authentication:
git diff
# + auth.service.ts
# + login.component.tsx
# + JWT middleware

# I suggest README update:
## Features
- ✨ User authentication with JWT  # NEW
- 🔐 Role-based access control    # NEW
- User management
- Dashboard

New Dependency

bash

# You add: npm install stripe

# I suggest:
## Installation

```bash
npm install
npm install stripe  # Added for payment processing

Environment Variables

bash

STRIPE_SECRET_KEY=your_stripe_key  # Required for payments

code


### Setup Instructions

```bash
# You modify docker-compose.yml

# I update README:
## Development Setup

```bash
# 1. Clone repository
git clone [url]

# 2. Install dependencies
npm install

# 3. Start services (UPDATED)
docker-compose up -d  # Now includes Redis cache

# 4. Run migrations
npm run migrate

code


## Detection Logic

### Change Analysis

I detect these changes automatically:
- **package.json** → Update dependencies section
- **New routes** → Update API documentation
- **.env.example** → Update environment variables
- **docker-compose.yml** → Update setup instructions
- **New features** → Update features list

### Section Mapping

```yaml
Code Change → README Section:
  - New API endpoint → Usage / API Reference
  - New dependency → Installation
  - New env var → Configuration
  - New feature → Features list
  - Architecture change → Architecture section

Intelligent Updates

Keep Structure

I maintain your README structure:

•Preserve emoji style
•Keep formatting consistent
•Maintain tone and voice
•Respect existing organization

Add Missing Sections

markdown

# Suggested additions:

## Prerequisites

- Node.js 18+
- Docker (for development)
- PostgreSQL 14+

## Environment Variables

```bash
DATABASE_URL=postgresql://localhost/mydb
API_KEY=your_api_key
```

Testing

bash

npm test

code


### Update Examples

```markdown
# Before:
```javascript
const result = api.getUsers();

After (API changed):

javascript

const result = await api.getUsers({ page: 1, limit: 10 });

code


## Version Compatibility

I track version-specific documentation:

```markdown
## Requirements

- Node.js 18+ (updated from 16+)
- TypeScript 5.0+ (new requirement)
- React 18+ (unchanged)

Changelog Integration

I can sync with CHANGELOG.md:

markdown

## Recent Changes

See [CHANGELOG.md](CHANGELOG.md) for detailed version history.

### Latest (v2.1.0)

- ✨ Added user authentication
- 🔧 Fixed memory leak in data processing
- 📝 Updated API documentation

Screenshot Management

markdown

# I suggest when UI changes:

## Screenshots

![Dashboard](screenshots/dashboard.png)
_Updated: 2025-10-24 - New authentication panel_

![User Profile](screenshots/profile.png)
_New feature - user profile management_

Relationship with @docs-writer

Me (Skill): Keep README current with code changes @doc-writer (Sub-Agent): Comprehensive documentation strategy

Workflow

•I detect changes
•I suggest README updates
•For full docs → Invoke @docs-writer sub-agent
•Sub-agent creates complete documentation

Sandboxing Compatibility

Works without sandboxing: ✅ Yes Works with sandboxing: ✅ Yes

•Filesystem: Writes to README.md
•Network: None required
•Configuration: None required

Best Practices

•Keep it current - Update README with every feature
•Be specific - Include version numbers, prerequisites
•Add examples - Show actual usage, not just API
•Include troubleshooting - Common issues and solutions
•Badge status - Keep build/coverage badges current

README Templates

Basic Structure

markdown

# Project Name

Brief description

## Features

- Feature 1
- Feature 2

## Installation

```bash
npm install
```

Usage

javascript

// Example

Configuration

Environment variables needed

Contributing

How to contribute

License

MIT

code


### Comprehensive Structure

```markdown
# Project Name
> Tagline

[Badges]

## Table of Contents
- Features
- Installation
- Usage
- API Reference
- Configuration
- Development
- Testing
- Deployment
- Contributing
- License

[Sections with detailed content]

Integration

With /doc-gen Command

bash

/doc-gen --format markdown

# Generates:
# 1. README.md (via me)
# 2. Full documentation site (via @docs-writer)
# 3. API reference (via api-documenter)

With CI/CD

yaml

# .github/workflows/docs.yml
- name: Update README
  run: |
    # Skill suggests updates based on changes
    # Review and commit

Related Tools

•api-documenter skill: API documentation
•@docs-writer sub-agent: Comprehensive docs
•git-commit-helper skill: Commit messages for updates
•/docs-gen command: Full documentation generation