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Anthropic

Claude

31 parts

This path is for you if Claude is the tool on your screen and the product names do not line up. Early parts are the plain guide, plans, a first half hour, projects and files, writing, and what never to paste. Later parts split into the product map, Claude Code, and Cowork, including when each one is the wrong tool. Start with the first part on this page.

Start with part 1 →

Getting started

  1. 1 What is Claude? A plain-English guide Claude is Anthropic’s AI assistant family, not one single app. This Part 1 map separates company, models, and products so you can start on web or mobile without hype, ranking wars, or treating chat answers as a source of record.
  2. 2 Claude Free vs Pro vs Max: what each plan actually gets you Free, Pro, and Max differ mainly in usage capacity and paid tools, not in magic truth. This Part 2 explains limits, Pro extras, why the API Console is separate, and how to choose a plan without FOMO. Check claude.ai for current prices.
  3. 3 How to get started with Claude on the web and your phone Part 3 of Learn Claude from scratch. A guided first half hour on claude.ai and mobile so you leave with one real output and a clear map of web, desktop, and phone.
  4. 4 When to use a Claude chat, a Project, or Research Part 4 of Learn Claude from scratch. When bare chat is enough, when a Project earns its keep, how files and Research fit, and a starter Project kit you can copy.
  5. 5 How to use Claude for writing, summaries, studying, and planning Claude is strong at four everyday jobs: writing, summarizing, studying, and planning. Part 5 of Learn Claude from scratch shows a simple prompt pattern and worked examples you can reuse Monday morning.
  6. 6 Claude privacy: what never to paste into Claude at work Chat history, memory, and project files are three different things. Part 6 of Learn Claude from scratch covers privacy settings, a paste ladder for what never goes into a model, and review habits that keep work data safer.
  7. 7 How to use Claude safely with your work email and Microsoft 365 files A light tour of Claude for work and Microsoft 365: personal Pro versus Team or Enterprise, connectors and write-tool consent, and a safe policy-redact-draft-verify-human-send loop. Not an admin manual.
  8. 8 When not to use Claude: jobs where it is the wrong tool Closes Learn Claude from scratch with judgment: four wrong-tool zones, a good-enough checklist, walk-away signals, and what comes next in the product map, Code, and Cowork series.

Product map

  1. 9 How Claude’s chat app differs from Claude Code, Cowork, and the API Part 1 of Claude product map. A plain-English tour of Claude chat versus Code, Cowork, Design, Science, and the API Console so you know which door to open before you pay, paste, or set policy.
  2. 10 What is Claude Code, and when should you use it? Part 2 of Claude product map. What Claude Code is for when you will touch a project: explore a repo, edit many files, run tests, and open PRs, without a full install walkthrough yet.
  3. 11 What is Claude Cowork, and when should you use it? Claude Cowork is the agent surface for non-coding knowledge work: folders and tools you choose, multi-step tasks, deliverables you still review. Part 3 of the Claude product map separates Cowork from chat and Code, covers plans and usage burn, and teases the deep Cowork tutorial series.
  4. 12 What are Claude Design and Claude Science, and who should use them? Claude Design handles visual work (decks, mockups, prototypes, brand systems, exports). Claude Science is a research workbench with tools, compute, and auditable artifacts, not peer review. Part 4 of the Claude product map places both next to chat, Code, and Cowork.
  5. 13 Which Claude model to use: Haiku, Sonnet, Opus, or Fable Part 5 of the Claude product map: pick Haiku, Sonnet, Opus, or Fable without FOMO. Start on the default, upgrade only when a clear prompt still fails, and treat Mythos as limited. Model names change; the decision rule does not.
  6. 14 Do you need the Claude API and Console? Only if you build apps Part 6 closes the Claude product map: chat subscriptions and the API Console are separate bills and separate jobs. Open platform.claude.com only if you build software that calls models. Most AMS readers stay in chat until that day.

Claude Code

  1. 15 How to install Claude Code and run it for the first time Part 1 of the Claude Code tutorial. Install with native scripts, Homebrew, or WinGet, verify with claude --version, log in, pick a surface, and survive first run with default permissions and a tiny reviewed change.
  2. 16 How to ask Claude Code about your codebase before you let it change anything Part 2 of the Claude Code tutorial. Talk to a repo in three beats: ask for a map with real paths, explore until you know what might break, then make a small change and review the diff before you commit.
  3. 17 How to use slash commands in Claude Code Part 3 of the Claude Code tutorial. Type slash to find commands, Tab to complete them, and use shell patterns like claude -c and claude -p so you stop reinventing the same session from scratch every morning.
  4. 18 What are Claude Code skills, and how do you add and use them? Part 4 of the Claude Code tutorial. Skills are on-demand playbooks in SKILL.md files. Add them under .claude/skills or ~/.claude/skills, invoke with /name, or let Claude load them when the description matches.
  5. 19 What Claude Code remembers between sessions, and what it forgets Part 5 of the Claude Code tutorial. Chat resets with /clear or a new session, CLAUDE.md reloads every time, auto memory can carry learnings if you verify it is on, and git plus files stay the real source of truth when the context window fills.
  6. 20 How to write a CLAUDE.md or AGENTS.md file so Claude Code follows your rules Part 6 of the Claude Code tutorial. How CLAUDE.md, AGENTS.md, README, and related instruction files split work between humans and agents, with a sample CLAUDE.md skeleton and the rule that short true notes beat long aspirational essays.
  7. 21 How to decide which plugins and connectors to add to Claude Code Part 7 of Claude Code tutorial. Map built-in tools, MCP connectors, and plugins that bundle skills, subagents, hooks, and settings. Climb the ladder from a plain task to a plugin only when you are stuck.
  8. 22 How Claude Code works through multi-step tasks on its own Part 8 of Claude Code tutorial. Run multi-step agentic work with a goal-plan-act-observe loop, checkpoints, and clear autonomy: watch, steer, or walk away only when rails are real.
  9. 23 How to review Claude Code’s changes before you ship them Part 9 of the Claude Code tutorial. Review every agent change set: read the diff, run tests, check secrets and scope, then own the commit. Undo with restore and careful reset; treat force-push as dangerous on shared history.
  10. 24 Team habits that keep AI coding tools like Claude Code safe Part 10 closes the Claude Code tutorial with team rails: shared CLAUDE.md and skills, required PRs and green CI, secrets policy, no silent prod deploys from agents, and teaching review before high autonomy. Next up: Claude Cowork tutorial, plus Learn Claude and the product map for orientation.

Claude Cowork

  1. 25 Should you use Claude chat, Claude Cowork, or Claude Code for your job? Chat, Claude Code, and Claude Cowork share a model family but not a job. Part 1 of the Claude Cowork tutorial separates conversation from software work from office file tasks so you pick the right surface before you burn half a day pasting between apps.
  2. 26 How to set up Claude Cowork and run your first file task Part 2 of the Claude Cowork tutorial walks paid-plan setup, a dedicated working folder, and one real file task you can finish and review. You leave with a first-task recipe, not another feature tour.
  3. 27 How to use Claude Cowork on folders, documents, and spreadsheets Part 3 of Claude Cowork tutorial. Work folders, docs, and sheets with a clear recipe: goal, inputs, constraints, format, and done check. Turn receipts into expense workbooks, notes into reports, and rough inputs into real PPTX files you still review.
  4. 28 Plugins and connectors for office work Part 4 of Claude Cowork tutorial. Plugins bundle skills, connectors, and sub-agents for office work. Start with folders only, then climb a ladder through instructions, connectors, plugins, and higher-risk browser or computer use.
  5. 29 How much to supervise Claude Cowork: when to watch and when to walk away Choose Manual, Auto, or Skip with eyes open. Deletion always needs Allow. Watch high-stakes folders; do not equate Auto with unattended Skip.
  6. 30 How to quality-check work that Claude Cowork produces before you share it Catch workslop before you share: verify numbers, sources, and claims even when the deck looks polished. Use a quality loop by artifact type and a paste-ready review card.
  7. 31 What Claude Team and Enterprise plans add for your company Team and Enterprise give owners flags, spend limits, roles, and OpenTelemetry. Personal Pro is not a policy waiver. Talk to IT before connectors and write tools go wide.