adds information on how to build dependencies for the project

README.md

@@ -0,0 +1,35 @@
+# StreamGenerator
+
+## Dependencies
+
+Currently, this project requires a system install of librdkafka. On Redhat,
+this means you should run:
+
+```bash
+dnf install -y librdkafka-devel
+```
+
+Additionally, you must first build Google's *flatbuffers* and ESS's
+**streaming-data-types** libraries, which are both included in this project as
+submodules under the `dep` directory and which are both necessary to build this
+project.
+
+First, you should enter the *flatbuffers* directory and run the following:
+
+```bash
+cmake -G "Unix Makefiles"
+make -j
+```
+
+After these steps, you will find the program `flatc` has been built and placed
+in the directory.
+
+Next, you should return to the top of this project's directory tree, and create
+the flatbuffers from ESS's schema files. This you can do as follows:
+
+```bash
+./dep/flatbuffers/flatc -o schemas/ --cpp --gen-mutable --gen-name-strings --scoped-enums ./dep/streaming-data-types/schemas/*
+```
+
+This generates header files from each of ESS's schemas and places them in a
+schemas directory.