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Ways to Use Claude  ›  Lesson

Terminal, Desktop and Editor

Claude CLI 12 minClaude Code can be driven from a terminal, an editor extension, a desktop app or the web, and the best choice is the one where you can review its changes most easily.

Terminal, Desktop and Editor

Claude Code is one agent with several front doors. You can drive it from a terminal, from inside your code editor, from a desktop app or from a browser. What it can do is much the same behind each door; what changes is where you work and how you see its changes.

The rule

One agent, many doors: pick the one where you review best.

  • The CLI (terminal). Run claude in any terminal. This is the most complete and flexible door: it works over SSH on a server, it fits into shell pipes and scripts, and it shows each proposed edit as a diff right in the terminal.
  • Editor extensions. There are extensions for VS Code (and editors built on it) and for JetBrains IDEs. Claude can see which file you have open and what you have selected, and proposed edits appear in the editor's own side-by-side diff view, which many people find easier to review.
  • The desktop app. Claude's desktop app can run Claude Code sessions in a window. That suits people who are not at home in a terminal, and it makes several sessions easy to keep in view.
  • Web and phone. You can also run sessions on Anthropic's cloud from a browser and keep an eye on them from the phone app, and newer features let you reach a running session from your phone. These options change quickly, so check the current docs.
  • Community tools. People build unofficial add-ons: usage trackers, custom status lines, session browsers. Some are excellent, but each is third-party code running with your access. Check who maintains it and what it can touch before you install it.

Project files such as CLAUDE.md live in the repository, so they travel with the project whichever door you use.

The shortcut

Ask "Where will I read the diff?" Many files to inspect line by line: the editor. A remote server, a script or a quick question: the terminal. A teammate who never opens a terminal: the desktop app.

Three tiffin tasks, three doorsStep 1 of 3

  1. Rename across nine files

    Renaming calc_price to price_for touches nine files. Use the editor extension so you can step through each change in the diff view.

The trap is loyalty to a single door. Use the terminal for what it does best and the editor for what it does best; the project and its instructions come with you either way.

Drills

Answer fast — trust the rule.

quick drill

You are logged in to the kitchen's server over SSH, with no graphical desktop. How do you use Claude Code there?

quick drill

Why choose the editor extension for a rename that touches nine files?

quick drill

A community tool offers a prettier dashboard for your sessions. What is the careful move?

quick drill

Which statement about the different ways to use Claude Code is true?

Remember

  • One agent, many doors: terminal, editor, desktop app, browser and phone.
  • Shortcut: choose the door by where you will read the diff.
  • Trap: installing community add-ons without checking what they can access.

Practice — level up

0/1 solved

Write your answer, then compare it with a rubric and a model answer.

ExplainTerminal or editor?

Two developers at the tiffin kitchen argue: one wants to use Claude Code only in the terminal, the other only in the editor. Explain how you would choose per task instead, with one tiffin example for each way of using it that you mention.