# The terminal, without fear

> The terminal is a text window for running direct instructions on your computer, and while your coding agent runs almost every command for you, it explains each one in a single plain sentence before asking your approval.

## Analogy

Using a normal app with menus and buttons is like pointing at photos on a restaurant menu. Using the terminal is like passing a short written order straight through the kitchen hatch—and your coding agent is the bilingual server who writes the slip and shows it to you before handing it in.

## How it works

A terminal (built into the Claude desktop app with `` Ctrl + ` ``, or called **Terminal** on Mac and **PowerShell** on Windows) is simply a text conversation with your computer. Instead of clicking folders and buttons, you type a command—a one-line instruction—and press Enter.

You don't need to memorize commands. Your coding-agent types and runs them for you, following a strict rule: before running any command, it explains what the command does in one plain sentence and waits for your permission in **Manual** mode.

Harmless check commands just ask a tool to introduce itself: `git --version`, `node --version`, and `gh --version` print the installed version numbers of git, Node.js, and the GitHub tool without changing anything on your computer. Other commands start your app locally (`npm run dev` on localhost) or save checkpoints.

When the terminal is running a live process—such as your local test server at `http://localhost:3000`—it stays busy watching for changes. Whenever you want to stop a running command in the terminal and get the prompt back, press **`Ctrl + C`** (even on a Mac, it's `Ctrl`, not `Cmd`).

## In your project

During **① Setup**, your agent runs `git --version`, `node --version`, and `gh --version` to see which tools are already on your computer and which ones need to be installed. If you just installed a tool and the terminal says “command not found”, simply close and reopen the Claude app so it refreshes its tool list.

## Copy for your agent

```text
Check whether git, node (22.20+), and gh are installed on my computer. Explain each command in one plain sentence before running it.
```

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Source: [Agentic Makers](https://agenticmakers.app/en/learn/the-terminal) · License: CC BY 4.0