Everything you need installed, configured, and verified so you arrive on Day 1 ready to build.

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Before You Start

What you need:

• A Mac, Windows, or Linux computer
• Reliable internet connection
• A password manager (1Password or Bitwarden) — stores passwords, generates OTP codes for two-factor auth, and supports passkeys for passwordless login. Worth setting up if you don't have one already.

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Your Stack at a Glance

Service	What It Does	Cost
Cursor	AI-powered code editor — your primary tool	$60/mo (Pro Plus)
Claude	AI assistant + powers Claude Code	$20/mo (Pro)
GitHub	Cloud storage for your code	Free
Handy	Voice dictation — talk to AI naturally	Free & open source

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1 Create Your Accounts

You'll need three accounts. Create each one and save the login in your password manager.

GitHub

1. Go to github.com and sign up
2. Use a professional email — this account will be on your portfolio
3. Choose a username you'd be comfortable sharing with an employer

Claude Pro

1. Go to claude.ai and create an account
2. Subscribe to Claude Pro ($20/month) — required for Claude Code, which we use throughout the course. Also gives you access to Claude’s full suite of tools at claude.ai, including some of the most capable and reliable AI models available.

Cursor

1. Go to cursor.com and create an account
2. Subscribe to Cursor Pro Plus ($60/month) — you can do this now on the website or during install in the next step. The standard Pro plan ($20) works, but you'll hit usage limits quickly during heavy building sessions. Pro Plus gives you 3x the usage.

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2 Install Cursor and Open Your First Folder

Cursor is your primary tool for the entire course — an AI-powered code editor where you'll do nearly all of your building.

Install

1. Download from cursor.com/download
2. Mac: Drag Cursor to your Applications folder (not Downloads). Windows: Run the installer. Linux: Follow the install instructions for your distro.
3. Open Cursor and sign in with the Cursor account you just created
4. Confirm your Pro Plus subscription is active — check Cursor Settings > Account

Your First Folder

When Cursor opens for the first time, you'll see an empty window. Cursor needs a folder open to do anything useful — its AI only sees files inside whatever folder you have open. This is the #1 thing to remember:

Here's how to get started:

5. Create your course folder. Open Finder (Mac), File Explorer (Windows), or your file manager (Linux). Create a new folder on your Desktop called AI-Projects. This is your home base for the course — all your projects will live inside it.
6. Open it in Cursor: Back in Cursor, go to File > Open Folder and select the AI-Projects folder you just created. You should see the folder name in the Explorer panel on the left side. It'll be empty — that's fine.

You'll use File > Open Folder every time you start working. Get used to it now — it's the first thing you do when you open Cursor.

Set Your AI Model

7. Open Cursor Settings (gear icon or Cmd+, / Ctrl+,)
8. In the AI model selector, choose Claude Sonnet 4.6 for everyday coding tasks
9. For complex architecture or debugging, switch to Claude Opus 4.6 — noticeably better on difficult problems
10. Don't leave it on "Auto" when you need precision

Troubleshooting

Problem	Fix
"App can't be opened" (Mac)	System Settings > Privacy & Security > "Open Anyway"
Cursor feels slow	Close other heavy apps — Cursor needs decent RAM
AI seems confused	Check which folder is open in the Explorer panel (left sidebar). File > Open Folder to fix it.

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3 Let Cursor Set Up Your Dev Tools

Now you're in Cursor with a folder open. This is where it starts to get fun — instead of manually downloading and installing a bunch of tools yourself, you're going to tell Cursor what you need and let it do the work. This is your first taste of the core course workflow: describe what you need, let AI do it, verify the results.

1. Open Cursor Chat: Cmd+L (Mac) or Ctrl+L (Windows/Linux). A chat panel will open on the right side.
2. Paste this prompt into the chat (don't worry about understanding every line — Cursor does):

3. Approve each step as Cursor runs the commands. It will ask before running anything — just click to approve.
4. When it asks for your name and email for git config, use the same email you used for GitHub.
5. For gh auth login, Cursor will show you a short code. Copy the code, it'll open a browser window — paste it there, click Authorize, then come back to Cursor.

Verify everything got installed

Once Cursor finishes installing, let's make sure everything actually worked. Paste this into Cursor Chat:

Cursor will check each one and tell you what's good and what (if anything) needs attention.

About passwords (Mac/Linux)

During this process, some installs may ask for your system password. When you see Password: in the terminal, type your password and press Enter. The characters won't appear as you type — no dots, no stars, nothing. That's completely normal — it's a security feature. Just type it and hit Enter.

Troubleshooting

Problem	Fix
brew: command not found (Mac)	Tell Cursor Chat: "Install Homebrew first, then continue"
winget not found (Windows)	Tell Cursor Chat: "Use an alternative install method" — it will adapt
gh auth login code expired	Run gh auth login again — codes are time-limited
command not found after install	Fully quit and reopen Cursor, then check again

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4 Install & Launch Claude Code

Claude Code is another AI assistant — but instead of living in a chat panel like Cursor's AI, it runs in something called the terminal. The terminal is that text-only window that looks a little like a computer from 1986 — dark background, blinking cursor, no buttons. That's exactly what it's supposed to look like. Don't worry, you'll get comfortable with it quickly.

Think of Claude Code as a second AI helper that's especially good at running commands and building things. You'll use it a lot in the course.

Install Claude Code

1. Open Cursor Chat: Cmd+L (Mac) or Ctrl+L (Windows/Linux)
2. Paste this prompt:

3. Approve when Cursor asks to run the command.

Launch Claude Code

Now let's make sure it works. Here's the trick you'll use constantly in this course: whenever you see a command in a dark box, just copy the text inside it and paste it into Cursor Chat. Think of it like an Oreo — the dark box is the cookie, but the text inside is the cream. That's the part you want.

4. Paste this into Cursor Chat:

5. Follow the prompts to connect it to your Claude Pro subscription
6. Once it's running, try asking it something simple. Just type: What folder am I in? and press Enter.
7. When you're done, type /exit and press Enter to close Claude Code for now

Troubleshooting

Problem	Fix
claude: command not found	Fully quit and reopen Cursor, then try again. If it still fails, ask Cursor Chat: "Install Claude Code using npm instead"
Authentication fails	Make sure you have an active Claude Pro subscription at claude.ai

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5 Verify Everything + Set Up Voice Dictation

You've got Cursor working and your dev tools installed. Now we're going to do two things: make sure everything is actually set up correctly, and install one more tool — a voice dictation app that lets you talk to AI instead of typing.

Install Handy (voice dictation)

Handy is a free, open-source voice dictation app. It runs entirely on your computer, so your voice never leaves your machine.

How it works: By default, Handy uses push-to-talk — you hold the keyboard shortcut while you speak, then release to stop (like a walkie-talkie). If you prefer toggle mode (press once to start, press again to stop), open Handy’s settings and turn off Push-to-Talk. Either way works great — pick whichever feels more natural.

1. Open Cursor Chat: Cmd+L (Mac) or Ctrl+L (Windows/Linux)
2. Paste this prompt:

3. Approve when Cursor asks to run the command.
4. Grant permissions when prompted — Handy needs Microphone access (to hear you) and Accessibility access (to paste text into other apps).
5. Open Handy, hold the keyboard shortcut, say something, and release. Your words should appear wherever your cursor is.

Tips

• Visual indicator: You’ll see a small graphic at the bottom of your screen while Handy is recording — that’s how you know it’s listening.
• Auto-clipboard: Handy copies each transcription to your clipboard automatically. If your cursor wasn’t in the right spot, just click where you meant to be and press Cmd+V / Ctrl+V to paste. Nothing lost.
• History: Handy keeps a history of your dictations with both the text and the original audio. Check Handy’s settings to browse it.
• All local: Your audio and transcriptions stay on your computer — nothing is sent to the cloud.

Troubleshooting Handy

Problem	Fix
"App can't be opened" (Mac)	System Settings > Privacy & Security > "Open Anyway"
Nothing happens when I speak	Check System Settings > Privacy & Security > Microphone — make sure Handy is listed and enabled
Text doesn't appear in other apps	Check System Settings > Privacy & Security > Accessibility — make sure Handy is listed and enabled
Windows SmartScreen warning	Click "More Info" > "Run Anyway" — it's an unsigned open-source app, which is normal

Think of this like a pilot's pre-flight checklist. Before takeoff, the pilot doesn't check every instrument from memory — they run through a checklist that confirms everything is good to go. That's what we're about to do, and Claude Code is going to run it for you.

Install the setup helper skills

First, we need to give Claude Code a few "helper skills" — small files that teach it how to guide you through setup tasks. You already know the drill from Step 3: paste a prompt into Cursor Chat and let it handle the details.

1. Open Cursor Chat: Cmd+L (Mac) or Ctrl+L (Windows/Linux)
2. Paste this prompt:

3. Approve each step as Cursor runs the commands. It will ask before doing anything.

Run the pre-flight check

Now it's time to hand things off to Claude Code. This is the fun part — you're going to tell it to run through the full setup checklist, and it'll take it from there.

4. Open a terminal in Cursor by pressing Ctrl + backtick (the backtick key is to the left of the 1 key, next to the tilde ~)
5. Type claude and press Enter to start Claude Code
6. Once it's running, type this and press Enter:

That's it. Claude Code will:

• Check every tool you installed in the previous steps and confirm they're working
• Verify Handy is installed and ready to use
• Help you fix anything that isn't right — just follow along and answer its questions

When it's done, you'll get a clear summary of what passed and what (if anything) still needs attention. If something didn't pass, fix what it suggests and run /course-preflight again — it'll re-check everything.

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Final Checklist

If /course-preflight gave you all green, you're nearly done. There are just a few things it can't check on its own — confirm these manually:

• Cursor subscription — Signed in with Pro Plus ($60/mo) active. Check at Cursor Settings > Account.
• AI model — Set to Claude Sonnet 4.6 in Cursor Settings (gear icon or Cmd+, / Ctrl+,).
• Claude Pro subscription — Active at claude.ai > Settings.

That's it. If everything above is checked off and your pre-flight passed, you're ready for Session 1.

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Check-In Before Session 1

Your instructors will check in with the class a day or two before Session 1 to make sure everyone is set up and comfortable. If you're stuck on any step — even if it feels silly — that's the time to say something. We'd much rather sort it out before class than spend session time troubleshooting.

If you hit a wall during setup, don't spiral. Just note where you got stuck and let us know. This stuff can be finicky the first time, and that's completely normal. We'll get it sorted.