README razzle-dazzle

Badges

Badges are a visual way to communicate important information about your project at a glance:

Zenodo provides a DOI badge for your release — simply copy the markdown snippet and paste it into the README.md.

Other badges can be generated from services like shields.io — e.g. to show your license, build status, or even the latest release version.

CITATION.cff

A CITATION.cff file tells GitHub — and anyone who finds your repo — exactly how to cite your work.

This information is provided as a yaml file — GitHub renders it as a Cite this repository button automatically.

cff-version: 1.2.0
message: "If you use this software, please cite it as below."
authors:
  - family-names: Cox
    given-names: Dezerae
    orcid: https://orcid.org/0000-0000-0000-0000
title: "Spacewalk Analysis"
version: 1.0.0
doi: 10.5072/zenodo.xxxxxx
date-released: 2026-04-22

cffinit generates a valid CITATION.cff in your browser — no syntax knowledge needed.

In Practice

Exercises

4.8 Go to your Zenodo record and copy the DOI badge markdown snippet

4.9 Add the badge to the top of your README.md — check it renders on GitHub

4.10 Go to cffinit, fill in the details and download the generated CITATION.cff

4.11 Add CITATION.cff to your repository, commit, and push — check the Cite this repository button appears on GitHub