A README file contains information about other files in a directory or archive of computer software.

[1] [2][1]
A form of documentation, it is usually a simple plain text file called READ.ME, README.TXT,
[1] [1] [1]
README.md (for a text file using markdown markup), README.1ST – or simply README.
The file's name is generally written in uppercase letters. On Unix-like systems in particular this
makes it easily noticed – both because lowercase filenames are more usual, and because
traditionally the ls command sorts and displays files in ASCIIbetical ordering, so that uppercase
[nb 1]
filenames appear first.