Ghost is a free, open, simple blogging platform that's available to anyone who wants to use it. Lovingly created and maintained by [John O'Nolan](http://twitter.com/JohnONolan) + [Hannah Wolfe](http://twitter.com/ErisDS) + an amazing group of [contributors](https://github.com/TryGhost/Ghost/contributors).
Want to report a bug, request a feature, or help us build or translate Ghost? Check out our in depth guide to [Contributing to Ghost](https://github.com/TryGhost/Ghost/blob/master/CONTRIBUTING.md). We need all the help we can get! You can also join in with our [community](https://github.com/TryGhost/Ghost#community) to keep up-to-date and meet other Ghosters.
There are **two** main ways to get started with Ghost, take care to use the method which best suits your needs.
**Please note** - the downloadable zip files we provide on [Ghost.org](http://ghost.org/download) are pre-built packages designed for getting started quickly. Cloning from the git repository requires you to install several dependencies and build the assets yourself.
### Getting Started Guide for Bloggers
If you just want to get a Ghost blog running in the fastest time possible, this method is for you.
For detailed instructions for various platforms visit the [Ghost Installation Guide](http://docs.ghost.org/installation/). If you get stuck, help is available on [our forum](http://ghost.org/forum/).
1. Download the latest Ghost package from [Ghost.org](http://ghost.org/download).
**If you cloned the GitHub repository you should follow the instructions [for developers](https://github.com/TryGhost/Ghost#getting-started-guide-for-developers).**
1. Create a new directory where you would like to run the code, and unzip the package to that location.
1. Fire up a terminal (or node command prompt in Windows) and change directory to the root of the Ghost application (where config.example.js and index.js are)
1. run `npm install --production` to install the node dependencies. If you see `error Error: ENOENT` on this step, make sure you are in the project directory and try again.
1. To start ghost, run `npm start`
1. Visit `http://localhost:2368/` in your web browser or go to `http://localhost:2368/ghost` to log in
Check out the [Documentation](http://docs.ghost.org/) for more detailed instructions, or get in touch via the [forum](http://ghost.org/forum) if you get stuck.
If you clone the GitHub repository, you will need to build a number of assets, such as SASS and JavaScript templates. This requires you to have Ruby and a number of other pre-requisites.
Full instructions can be found in the [Contributing Guide](https://github.com/TryGhost/Ghost/blob/master/CONTRIBUTING.md) under the heading "[Working on Ghost Core](https://github.com/TryGhost/Ghost/blob/master/CONTRIBUTING.md#working-on-ghost-core)".
Check out the [Documentation](http://docs.ghost.org/) for more detailed instructions, or get in touch via the [forum](http://ghost.org/forum) if you get stuck.
If you want to use [Ghost as a NPM module there is a Wiki entry](https://github.com/TryGhost/Ghost/wiki/Using-Ghost-as-a-NPM-module) where you can find instructions on how to get set up.
Once you have the Ghost server up and running, you should be able to navigate to `http://localhost:2368/ghost/` from a web browser, where you will be prompted to register a new user. Once you have entered your desired credentials you will be automatically logged in to the admin area.
Keep track of Ghost development and Ghost community activity.
* Follow Ghost on [Twitter](http://twitter.com/TryGhost), [Facebook](http://facebook.com/tryghostapp) and [Google+](https://plus.google.com/114465948129362706086).
* Read and subscribe to the [The Official Ghost Blog](http://blog.ghost.org).
* Join in discussions on the [Ghost Forum](http://ghost.org/forum/)
* Chat with Ghost developers on IRC. We're on `irc.freenode.net`, in the `#Ghost` channel. We have a public meeting every Tuesday at 5:30pm London time.
For transparency and insight into our release cycle, and for striving to maintain backward compatibility, Ghost will be maintained according to the [Semantic Versioning](http://semver.org/) guidelines as much as possible.
Permission is hereby granted, free of charge, to any person obtaining a copy of this software and associated documentation files (the "Software"), to deal in the Software without restriction, including without limitation the rights to use, copy, modify, merge, publish, distribute, sublicense, and/or sell copies of the Software, and to permit persons to whom the Software is furnished to do so, subject to the following conditions:
The above copyright notice and this permission notice shall be included in all copies or substantial portions of the Software.
THE SOFTWARE IS PROVIDED "AS IS", WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO THE WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE AND
NONINFRINGEMENT. IN NO EVENT SHALL THE AUTHORS OR COPYRIGHT HOLDERS BE LIABLE FOR ANY CLAIM, DAMAGES OR OTHER LIABILITY, WHETHER IN AN ACTION OF CONTRACT, TORT OR OTHERWISE, ARISING FROM, OUT OF OR IN CONNECTION WITH THE SOFTWARE OR THE USE OR OTHER DEALINGS IN THE SOFTWARE.
