Introduce a GETTING_STARTED.md file with full walk through

[DevinVinson]

Summary

Adds a comprehensive Getting Started guide (GETTING_STARTED.md) for new users of Agent Canvas. This guide walks users through installation, configuration, and first use of the application.

What's Included

Installation

• Mac-focused Docker installation (recommended)
• Dockerless installation option with security warnings
• Clear instructions for setting PROJECT_PATH with copy-paste commands
• Troubleshooting section (placeholder for user feedback)

Onboarding Walkthrough

• Step-by-step guide through the 4-step onboarding wizard
• Explicit instructions for LLM provider/model selection
• Clear distinction between OpenHands Cloud API keys vs direct provider keys

Core Features

• Conversations: Starting, managing, and understanding the conversation interface
• Multiple Backends: Connecting OpenHands Cloud as a remote backend, switching between local/cloud
• Automations: Creating scheduled automations through conversation, with important note that automations only run when Agent Canvas is active
• Local vs Cloud Workspaces: Comparison of how workspaces work on each backend type

Reference Material

• Appendix A: Supported LLM providers
• Appendix B: NPM scripts & environment variables with examples
• Appendix C: Glossary including critical clarification of OpenHands LLM API Key vs REST API Key
• Troubleshooting: Placeholder sections to be expanded based on user feedback

Notes

1. Automations section may not be 100% accurate. I'm not fully clear if the automations will run against folders not part of docker but they might.
2. I know this is quite long but it should be easy to follow and provide a good starting point.

[vercel]

@DevinVinson is attempting to deploy a commit to the openhands Team on Vercel.

A member of the Team first needs to authorize it.

[enyst]

I’m with you on the goal here, but this does not seem the easiest:

• step 3 will fail for new users, because of the current requirement to add a credit card and use it.

Maybe we can remove easiest… Idk though, WDYT?

[DevinVinson]

Good point. I'd forgotten about the purchase requirement when I went through that workflow. I think I should rewrite the steps here.

[DevinVinson]

I realized the steps still confused LLM key for rest key here too. Updated with new commit.

[enyst]

Just to note, IMHO we will not need so many docs; maybe more like, a README for humans and the AGENTS.md for agents 😅. We were basically doing that in the SDK and CLI repos.

But it’s OK with me either way, we’ll see where we get as we move forward.

[DevinVinson]

Just to note, IMHO we will not need so many docs; maybe more like, a README for humans and the AGENTS.md for agents 😅. We were basically doing that in the SDK and CLI repos.

But it’s OK with me either way, we’ll see where we get as we move forward.

Agreed. I wanted something to get in here that would then easily port over to documentation updates later. Agents will also likely help keep this up to date if major parts of the process change.

[DevinVinson]

Closing this out for now to reduce some of the PR noise. It'll be too stale without constant updates 😄