I stopped opening IDE's The setup Two windows: 1. Claude Desktop App (for research, planning, long conversations) 2. Mac terminal running Claude Code (for all execution) Why this works better than running Claude Code inside an IDE When Claude Code runs inside an IDE terminal, every file operation passes through the editor's plugin layer: file watchers, extensions, lock conflicts. In a standalone terminal, Claude Code talks directly to your filesystem. No interception, no translation. The practical difference: - File writes are instant. No "file changed externally, reload?" dialogs. - Git operations run clean. No source control extension competing for the same lock. - Shell access is unfiltered. Package installs, curl, deployment scripts, SSH tunnels. All native. - No extension memory overhead. My terminal session uses a fraction of what VSCode was consuming. - MCP servers (GitHub, databases, APIs) wire in directly without fighting IDE plugin architecture. What a real session looks like Last week I built a Cloudflare Worker with KV bindings. One terminal window: - Claude Code scaffolded the project structure - Wrote the Worker handler, wrangler config, and KV namespace bindings - Ran wrangler deploy - Tested the endpoint with curl - Fixed a routing issue based on the error response - Committed and pushed Total time: under 20 minutes. I never typed a line of code. I described what I needed, reviewed the output, approved the operations. You're not coding in a terminal. You're directing an agent that codes for you. How to set this up (10 minutes) If you have a Mac and Claude Pro or Max: (On a PC? Your setup instructions are in the attached file.) 1. Install Claude Code: open terminal, run the install command from Anthropic's docs. 2. Run "claude" in any project directory. You're in an agentic session. 3. Open Claude Desktop App alongside for planning, research, and longer thinking conversations. Optional but useful: - Set up a .claude directory in your project with a CLAUDE.md file. Same idea as onboarding docs, but for your coding agent. Persistent instructions about your project, coding standards, and preferences.

Edit NotebookLM infographics in Canva! One of the nice things about NotebookLM is how quickly it can turn source material into a useful infographic. The challenge is that the finished infographic is a static image, so if you want to make small visual changes, adjust wording, or move elements around, you cannot really edit it directly. A simple - yet powerful trick - is to take that infographic into Canva and break it into editable pieces. ▶️ I put together a short video showing exactly how this works, or you can follow the process below. Here’s the basic flow: 1. Import your source document into NotebookLM Start by bringing your source document into NotebookLM and shaping the content until it says what you want it to say. 2. Create the infographic Once the content is where you want it, generate the infographic inside NotebookLM. 3. Copy and paste the infographic into Canva When the infographic looks close to right, move it into Canva by copying and pasting it. 4. Select Edit, then Magic Layers 🪄 Inside Canva, choose Edit and then Magic Layers. 5. Break the infographic into editable elements Canva will separate the infographic into individual parts so you can edit text, move sections around, adjust spacing, and refine the design. 6. Polish the final version Instead of starting from scratch, you are starting with structure already in place and then improving it into something more usable and presentable. This is one of those practical little moves that makes AI output easier to turn into something polished and usable.

Having seen a bunch of other people I'm following in this community I've joined to check it out too. Look forward to chatting.

The slash commands that actually matter, in the order you'll need them. 1. /init First thing in any new project. Creates a CLAUDE.md file where you define how your project works, what conventions to follow, what to avoid. Without this, you're re-explaining your codebase every session. With it, Claude opens the session already oriented to your codebase. 2. /compact (full disclosure, I never use this one.) Your context window is finite. When a session runs long and context quality degrades, /compact compresses everything down to the essential points and frees up space. Run this proactively before starting a new chunk of work in the same session. 3. /clear Full reset. Wipes the conversation entirely. Use it when you're switching to a completely different task and don't want bleed from the previous conversation affecting results. 4. /cost Shows your token usage and spend for the session. I check this after long sessions to understand what's actually expensive. Helps you spot when a conversation has ballooned and you should /compact or start fresh. 5. /doctor Diagnoses your Claude Code setup. Checks your config, API keys, MCP servers, permissions. When something isn't working and you can't figure out why, run this first. Saves you from chasing config problems that aren't actually code problems. 6. /memory Between sessions, Claude Code retains what you've told it. /memory lets you view, add, or remove that stored context. Build it up over time so you're not starting from scratch every conversation. 7. /config Opens your settings. Permission modes, model preferences, allowed tools. The controls that determine how Claude Code behaves at a system level. 8. /review Runs a code review on your current changes. Point it at a PR or your working diff and Claude walks through it like a reviewer. Catches things fast. 9. /resume Pick up where you left off. Shows your recent sessions and lets you jump back into any of them with full context. I use this constantly when I close a terminal and come back the next day.

/plan (local plan mode) -- runs in your terminal, Claude reads your local codebase, drafts a plan before touching files. Terminal is occupied. */ultraplan -- hands the planning task to a Claude Code on the web session running in the cloud. Opus drafts the plan remotely, your terminal stays free, you review in browser with inline comments, then choose to execute on the web (PR) or teleport the plan back to your terminal. The meaningful differences for your workflow: - Requires GitHub repo + Claude Code on the web account - Snapshot at launch -- local changes after trigger aren't reflected - Three execution paths on approval: implement in cloud session, teleport to terminal, or save to file - Remote Control disconnects when ultraplan starts (both use the same claude.ai/code interface) *Currently in research preview, so treat it as unstable.