Setting Up Your AI Dev Environment

Visual Studio, Python, Claude CLI & GitHub

Getting started with AI development requires the right tools. This guide walks you through setting up a complete development environment on Mac, perfect for beginners looking to improve their AI fluency.

1. Installing Visual Studio Code

Visual Studio Code (VSCode) is a powerful, free code editor that's essential for development.

Download and Install:

1. Visit code.visualstudio.com

2. Click "Download for Mac"

3. Open the downloaded .zip file

4. Drag the Visual Studio Code app to your Applications folder

5. Launch VSCode from Applications or Spotlight

First Launch Setup:

• VSCode may ask for permissions to access folders - click "Allow"

• Install the Python extension by Microsoft from the Extensions panel (Cmd+Shift+X)

  

2. Installing and Configuring Python

Python is the most popular language for AI development, offering extensive libraries and frameworks.

Install Python using Homebrew:

1. Open Terminal (press Cmd+Space, type "Terminal", press Enter)

2. First, install Homebrew (if not already installed):

/bin/bash -c "$(curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/Homebrew/install/HEAD/install.sh)"

3. Install Python:

brew install python

4. Verify installation:

python3 --version
pip3 --version

Configure Python Environment:

1. In Terminal, create a virtual environment for your projects:

python3 -m venv ~/ai-projects

2. Activate the environment:

source ~/ai-projects/bin/activate

3. Install essential packages:

pip install jupyter pandas numpy matplotlib requests

VSCode Python Setup:

1. Open VSCode and press Cmd+Shift+P

2. Type "Python: Select Interpreter"

3. Choose the interpreter from your virtual environment (~/ai-projects/bin/python)

Configure Shell Profile: In Terminal, add the virtual environment path to your shell profile for easy activation:

echo 'alias activate-ai="source ~/ai-projects/bin/activate"' >> ~/.zshrc
source ~/.zshrc

Now you can simply type activate-ai to activate your environment.

3. Installing and Configuring Claude CLI

Claude CLI enables direct interaction with Claude AI from your terminal, streamlining AI-assisted development.

Installation:

1. In Terminal, install Node.js (required for Claude CLI):

brew install node

2. Install Claude CLI globally:

npm install -g @anthropic-ai/claude-cli

Configuration:

1. Get your API key from console.anthropic.com

2. In Terminal, configure Claude CLI:

claude configure

3. Enter your API key when prompted

4. Test the installation:

claude --version

Basic Usage:

• Start a conversation: claude chat

• Get help with code: claude "explain this Python function" < myfile.py

• Generate code: claude "create a Python script to read CSV files"

4. Configuring VSCode with GitHub

GitHub integration enables version control and collaboration, essential skills for any developer.

Install Git: In Terminal, run:

brew install git

Configure Git: Still in Terminal:

git config --global user.name "Your Name"
git config --global user.email "your.email@example.com"

GitHub Authentication:

1. In Terminal, install GitHub CLI:

brew install gh

2. Authenticate with GitHub:

gh auth login

3. Follow the prompts to authenticate via browser

VSCode GitHub Setup:

1. Install the "GitHub Pull Requests and Issues" extension

2. Sign in to GitHub when prompted in VSCode

3. Open the Source Control panel (Cmd+Shift+G)

Creating Your First Repository:

1. Create a new folder for your project

2. Open it in VSCode: File > Open Folder

3. Initialize Git using VSCode's integrated terminal (`Ctrl+``):

git init

4. Create a proper .gitignore file in the VSCode terminal:

# Create .gitignore with common exclusionscat > .gitignore << EOF# Virtual environmentsvenv/env/.env# Python__pycache__/*.pyc*.pyo.Python# IDEs.vscode/settings.json.DS_Store# API keys and secrets.env.localconfig/secrets.json# Jupyter Notebooks.ipynb_checkpoints/EOF

5. Create a README file and make your first commit

6. Push to GitHub using the Source Control panel

Environment Variables Setup: For secure API key management, create a .env file in the VSCode terminal (already in .gitignore):

# Create .env file for secrets
echo "ANTHROPIC_API_KEY=your_api_key_here" > .env

Next Steps

This environment is optimized for AI development. The combination of VSCode's editing capabilities, Python's AI libraries, Claude CLI's assistance, and GitHub's collaboration tools provides everything needed to begin your AI fluency journey.

Remember to activate your Python virtual environment (activate-ai or source ~/ai-projects/bin/activate) each time you start a new terminal session for development work. Always keep sensitive information like API keys in .env files that are excluded from version control.