IDE Integration

The terminal session is strongest for autonomous work. The IDE is strongest for inspection, local navigation, and human review. Use both deliberately.

Effective Split

• Let Claude Code inspect, edit, run commands, and report verification.
• Use the IDE for reading dense diffs, checking UI copy, and resolving subtle merge conflicts.
• Keep terminal prompts focused on behavior, not on editor mechanics.

Editor Context

When using an editor integration, make the selected context intentional. Passing too many open files can distract the agent from the actual task.

Useful context:

• The component being edited.
• The test that describes expected behavior.
• The route or API boundary affected by the change.

Noisy context:

• Large generated files.
• Unrelated tabs.
• Old scratch buffers.

Review Loop

After implementation, ask for a narrow review:

Review only the route and locale changes in this diff.
Prioritize bugs, unsupported fallbacks, and missing tests.
Return findings with file references.

Then use the IDE to inspect the exact lines before accepting changes.

Practical Tips

• Keep one terminal session per repository or worktree.
• Name branches by intent.
• Use editor search for local symbol navigation and Claude Code search for cross-repo discovery.
• Let browser verification capture UI regressions rather than relying on visual guesses.