diff --git a/README.md b/README.md
index 73023ea..ed6cd45 100644
--- a/README.md
+++ b/README.md
@@ -23,18 +23,36 @@ there is no way to disable this. Of course, Gemini's default port (1965) can be
 opened in user-mode, but not changing the user after startup would retain read
 permissions to the private key.
 
+Building
+--------
+
+Set up a Cargo build environment, then simply run
+```sh
+cargo build
+```
+to create a debug build or
+```sh
+cargo build --release
+```
+to create a release build.
+
 Starting
 --------
 
 Sheldon Director look for a config file in `/etc/sheldond.conf`. If you want to
-change this, pass an alternative path on startup like so:
-
-An example start can look like this:
-```sh
-sudo ./sheldond -c ./sheldond.conf
-```
+change this, pass an alternative path on startup using the `-c` parameter.
+Use `-h` to get a list of all supported command line arguments.
 
 An example config file can be found in this repository in `doc/sheldond.conf`.
+Use it to serve the content of the `doc/` directory on localhost:
+```
+sudo ./target/debug/sheldond -c ./doc/sheldond.conf
+```
+Try connecting to `gemini://localhost` via your favorite Gemini client!
+
+Note: This sets the user to `nobody` and the group to `nobody` as well. This
+naming scheme is not consistent for all Unix systems... Try changing the group
+name to `nogroup` if the software fails to start.
 
 Why "Sheldon Director"?
 -----------------------
diff --git a/doc/index.gmi b/doc/index.gmi
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..9bfce2a
--- /dev/null
+++ b/doc/index.gmi
@@ -0,0 +1,7 @@
+# Gemini!
+
+This file is served over Gemini by Sheldon Director!
+
+=> spec-spec.txt Read the Gemini spec
+=> key.pem The private key of this server!
+
diff --git a/doc/sheldond.conf b/doc/sheldond.conf
index 1af1389..7c39f06 100644
--- a/doc/sheldond.conf
+++ b/doc/sheldond.conf
@@ -2,16 +2,16 @@
 default_host = localhost
 
 # should be self explanatory
-gem_root = /var/gemini/
+gem_root = ./doc
 
 # you can define as many of these as you like
 listen = [::1]:1965
 listen = 127.0.0.1:1965
 
 # privilege level for the server to drop to after initializing
-user = gem-data
-group = gem-data
+user = nobody
+group = nobody
 
 # certificate data MUST be in PEM format right now
-cert_key = /etc/ssl/private/gemini-key.pem
-cert_chain = /etc/ssl/certs/gemini-chain.pem
+cert_key = ./doc/key.pem
+cert_chain = ./doc/cert.pem
diff --git a/src/main.rs b/src/main.rs
index b22b626..1a00173 100644
--- a/src/main.rs
+++ b/src/main.rs
@@ -6,12 +6,8 @@ use std::io::{BufRead, BufReader};
 use std::path::Path;
 
 fn help() {
-    let version = match option_env!("CARGO_PKG_VERSION") {
-        Some(v) => v,
-        None => "",
-    };
-
-    println!("usage: sheldond {}", version);
+    println!("usage:");
+    println!("  -h, --help\t\tdisplay this message");
     println!("  -c, --config\t\tpath to the configuration file");
 }
 
@@ -83,6 +79,11 @@ fn parse_config(fname: String) -> server::ServerConfig {
 }
 
 fn main() {
+    println!("sheldond {}", match option_env!("CARGO_PKG_VERSION") {
+        Some(v) => v,
+        None => "",
+    });
+
     let config_fname = match parse_args() {
         Some(config_fname) => config_fname,
         None => {
diff --git a/src/server/mod.rs b/src/server/mod.rs
index 3b01ce2..9909fd2 100644
--- a/src/server/mod.rs
+++ b/src/server/mod.rs
@@ -97,9 +97,12 @@ impl Server {
 
     fn build_acceptor(config: &ServerConfig) -> std::sync::Arc<SslAcceptor> {
         let mut acceptor = SslAcceptor::mozilla_intermediate_v5(SslMethod::tls()).unwrap();
+        println!("reading certificate private key: {}", config.cert_key);
+        // TODO: allow more than PEM
         acceptor
             .set_private_key_file(config.cert_key.as_str(), SslFiletype::PEM)
             .unwrap();
+        println!("reading certificate chain file: {}", config.cert_chain);
         acceptor
             .set_certificate_chain_file(config.cert_chain.as_str())
             .unwrap();
@@ -146,9 +149,12 @@ impl Server {
                     thread::spawn(move || {
                         let stream = acceptor.accept(stream).unwrap();
                         handler::handle_request(&config, stream);
+                        println!("closing connection");
                     });
                 }
-                Err(_) => { /* connection failed */ }
+                Err(_) => {
+                    println!("connection failed");
+                }
             }
         }
     }