diff --git a/README.md b/README.md
index 429591f..cb6c829 100644
--- a/README.md
+++ b/README.md
@@ -18,14 +18,34 @@ Little nodejs + mongodb app that I hack together with ChatGPT and Cursor to keep
 - Version endpoint backed by latest GitHub commit (cached)
 
 ## Setup
-Config those in your .env file:
+Create a `.env` file at the project root (same folder as `package.json`).
 
-**DOG_NAMES=**`woof, WOOF, Woof` &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;(for "verification")<br>
-**GITHUB_OWNER=**`quoije` &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;(for version history)<br> 
-**GITHUB_REPO=**`oscars-pool` &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;(for version history)<br>
-**JWT_SECRET=**`RANDOM STRING` &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;(for authentication token)<br>
-**MONGO_URI=**`mongodb+srv://USER:PASS@cluster0.XXXX.mongodb.net/?retryWrites=true&w=majority&appName=Cluster69`<br>
-**OMDB_API=**`1234567` &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;(for movie info)
+Minimal steps:
+
+```bash
+npm install
+node index.js
+```
+
+Add this to your `.env` (**required**: `MONGO_URI`, `JWT_SECRET`):
+
+```bash
+# required
+MONGO_URI=mongodb://127.0.0.1:27017/oscars-pool # MongoDB connection string
+JWT_SECRET=replace-with-a-random-string         # JWT signing secret (auth)
+
+# optional
+DOG_NAMES=woof,WOOF,Woof                        # simple registration "verification"
+OMDB_API=your_omdb_key                          # OMDb API key (movie info)
+GITHUB_OWNER=quoije                             # version history
+GITHUB_REPO=oscars-pool                         # version history
+```
+
+Generate a good `JWT_SECRET`:
+
+```bash
+openssl rand -hex 32
+```
 
 ## Database (MongoDB)
 This app uses **MongoDB** via Mongoose. Provide a connection string in `MONGO_URI`.
@@ -35,5 +55,3 @@ This app uses **MongoDB** via Mongoose. Provide a connection string in `MONGO_UR
   - Atlas: `mongodb+srv://USER:PASS@cluster0.XXXX.mongodb.net/<dbName>?retryWrites=true&w=majority`
   - Local: `mongodb://127.0.0.1:27017/<dbName>`
 - Collections are created/managed automatically from the models in `models/` (e.g. `User`, `Movie`, `Setting`, `PlaybackProgress`).
-
-run with **node .\index.js**