Working With Claude — Setup, Tools, and Workflow

Accumulated tips for working with Claude across devices and interfaces. Read this at the start of each session for context.

Links: Vault Index, Camelot From YouTube, Karpathy LLM Wiki Convergence, The Context Cache Hierarchy, Obsidian Plugin Setup, Career

Interfaces

Chris works with Claude through multiple interfaces. Each has different capabilities:

Claude Chat (claude.ai / Claude App)

• Best for: Thinking, discussing ideas, drafting vault content, research conversations
• Has: Python, bash, ffmpeg, Java 21 runtime, file creation, web search
• Does NOT have: Network access from the Linux container (can’t pip install, can’t clone repos, can’t download from URLs), persistent state between sessions (container resets every time)
• File workflow: Claude creates files → user downloads via Artifacts (which allow direct download to device) → uploads to GitHub or saves locally
• Getting vault context: Upload the vault as a zip (GitHub repo page → green “Code” button → “Download ZIP”) at the start of a session. Claude should then read CLAUDE.md and INDEX.md first.

Claude Code (in Claude App → “Code” tab)

• Best for: Execution — running code, installing packages, pushing to GitHub, anything that needs network access or persistence
• Has: Network access (limited — see below), GitHub integration, can clone/commit/push, can install packages (pip, npm), can run full project pipelines
• Network restrictions: The proxy allows GitHub and PyPI but blocks YouTube, Dropbox, Google Drive, and other media/cloud storage sites. yt-dlp cannot download directly. Workaround: push audio files to a GitHub repo (100MB file size limit) and clone from here.
• No GUI: No display server — tkinter/matplotlib GUIs won’t render. CLI-only analysis works fine.
• ffmpeg: Not pre-installed but available via pip install imageio-ffmpeg (ships a static binary). Symlink to /usr/local/bin/ffmpeg for yt-dlp and librosa compatibility.
• Use for: Vault updates (create files and push directly), running projects like Camelot (needs librosa, yt-dlp), any task that needs to touch external services
• Prompt template for vault work:

  Clone https://github.com/chrisaacson69/Vault.git and read CLAUDE.md and INDEX.md.
  [then describe what you need]
  

Claude Code on PC (CLI)

• Best for: Heavy development, multi-file refactors, long coding sessions
• Has: Everything Claude Code on tablet has, plus full access to local filesystem, local tools, and local project state
• The most capable interface — use for major vault reorganizations, project development, anything requiring sustained multi-file work

Device-Specific Notes

iPad / Tablet

• GitHub’s mobile web interface is limited for multi-file uploads — prefer Claude Code for pushing to the vault
• Artifacts in Claude Chat allow direct file download to the device — use this when Claude Code isn’t appropriate
• DOSBox and Java JVM apps don’t work well on iOS (JIT restrictions, touch control issues)
• Working Copy (paid iOS app) is an option for Git access but Claude Code may make it unnecessary
• Obsidian with Git plugin is a potential future option for a nicer editing/viewing experience on the vault — the vault’s markdown structure is fully Obsidian-compatible with zero changes needed

Tips and Tricks

• Artifacts download: In Claude Chat, files created as artifacts can be downloaded directly to the device. Use this for vault files when Claude Code isn’t available.
• Zip upload for context: Fastest way to give Claude Chat full vault context is uploading the repo zip. GitHub → Code → Download ZIP → upload to chat.
• Prompt for continuity: When starting a new session, paste a summary of where the last session left off. The container has no memory between sessions.
• Division of labor: Use Chat for thinking and drafting, Code for executing and pushing. This mirrors the cyborg model — Chat is the creative/strategic side, Code is the execution side.
• Audio file transfer for Camelot: Claude Code’s proxy blocks YouTube/Dropbox/Drive. To analyze audio: push files to a GitHub repo (e.g., audio-inbox), then clone from Claude Code. 100MB limit per file — convert to MP3 first for longer tracks or lossless files.

Session History

2026-02-20 — Tablet Workflow Setup + Gaming Research

• Established the tablet workflow: Chat for drafting, Code for GitHub pushes
• Discovered Claude Code in the Claude App with GitHub integration
• Discovered Artifacts download trick for getting files to device
• Drafted research/gaming/README.md — gaming as interactive laboratories for systems thinking
• Drafted research/gaming/multiplayer-coalition-problem.md — coalition dynamics across Slay, Risk, and Monopoly; interest rate framework; phase decomposition; Stockfish architecture as template
• Updated INDEX.md, tag files (games, game-ai, economics, mathematics, simulation, _index)
• Discussed running Camelot on tablet — needs Claude Code for network access (librosa, yt-dlp)
• Tested Claude Code network: GitHub/PyPI work, YouTube/Dropbox/Google Drive blocked by proxy
• Confirmed Camelot can run in Claude Code (CLI mode only, no GUI) — all deps install, ffmpeg available via imageio-ffmpeg
• Best path for audio files: push to GitHub repo, clone from Claude Code

Tags

ai, cyborg