Introduction to Claude Code
Welcome to the first lesson of Claude Code Mastery. In this lesson, you'll discover what makes Claude Code revolutionary and why it's changing how developers work.
What is Claude Code?
Claude Code is Anthropic's official CLI tool that brings Claude directly into your development workflow. Unlike web-based assistants, Claude Code:
- Lives in your terminal alongside your other tools
- Has full access to your codebase
- Can read, write, and modify files
- Executes commands and sees results
- Maintains context across your entire project
Why Claude Code Changes Everything
Traditional AI coding assistants work like this:
- You copy code from your editor
- Paste it into a chat window
- Get suggestions back
- Manually apply changes
With Claude Code, the workflow becomes:
- You describe what you want
- Claude Code implements it directly
This isn't just faster—it fundamentally changes what's possible.
The New Development Paradigm
Claude Code enables a new way of working where you:
- Think at a higher level - Focus on architecture and design, not syntax
- Iterate faster - Make changes across your entire codebase in seconds
- Learn continuously - Claude explains what it's doing as it works
- Reduce cognitive load - Let Claude handle the tedious parts
What You'll Build
Throughout this course, you'll learn to:
- Set up Claude Code for maximum productivity
- Use each of the 3 working modes effectively
- Create memory systems for persistent context
- Leverage advanced features like sub-agents and hooks
- Deploy with confidence using CI/CD integration
Next Steps
In the next lesson, you'll install Claude Code and configure it for your development environment.