# The Go Programming Language
Go is an open source programming language that makes it easy to build simple,
reliable, and efficient software.
![Gopher image](doc/gopher/fiveyears.jpg)
*Gopher image by [Renee French][rf], licensed under [Creative Commons 3.0 Attributions license][cc3-by].*
Our canonical Git repository is located at https://go.googlesource.com/go.
There is a mirror of the repository at https://github.com/golang/go.
Unless otherwise noted, the Go source files are distributed under the
BSD-style license found in the LICENSE file.
### Download and Install
#### Binary Distributions
Official binary distributions are available at https://golang.org/dl/.
After downloading a binary release, visit https://golang.org/doc/install
or load doc/install.html in your web browser for installation
instructions.
#### Install From Source
If a binary distribution is not available for your combination of
operating system and architecture, visit
https://golang.org/doc/install/source or load doc/install-source.html
in your web browser for source installation instructions.
### Contributing
Go is the work of hundreds of contributors. We appreciate your help!
To contribute, please read the contribution guidelines:
https://golang.org/doc/contribute.html
Note that the Go project uses the issue tracker for bug reports and
proposals only. See https://golang.org/wiki/Questions for a list of
places to ask questions about the Go language.
[rf]: https://reneefrench.blogspot.com/
[cc3-by]: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/