Getting up and running with the Claude desktop app

Introduction

I use Claude for 99% of my research and general questions these days and it's become incredibly useful to me. This is a guide that covers:

• how to install the Claude desktop app on an Apple computer
• how to create a Claude account using your existing Google account
• how to enter a prompt
• tips on how to write prompts
• tips on how to use the Claude desktop app

Prerequisites

This guide requires you to have:

• an Apple computer running macOS (ideally the latest version)
• a Google account (ideally you are logged in to said Google account in your browser)
• a web browser (ideally Google Chrome)
• 10-20 minutes of available time (depending on how tech savvy you are)

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Instructions

Step 1: Download the Desktop app from claude.ai

Go to claude.ai/login. You can either download the Desktop app or continue on web. I recommend downloading the Desktop app.

Click the "Download desktop app" button

Step 2: Open the installer

You're then going to install the Desktop app like you would any other app. The Claude.dmg install program will likely be saved in your Downloads folder or on your Desktop. It might even appear in the upper right of Chrome where you can double click it to open it.

Find where the downloaded Claude.dmg file was saved and double-click it to open it

Step 3: Drag Claude to Applications

Once you find the Claude.dmg installer program, double click on it and you should see a Finder window pop up that looks like this:

Click and drag the Claude program into your Applications folder. It will take 30-60 seconds to add it to your Applications. You can then close that window.

Step 4: Eject Claude installer (optional but recommended)

Eject the installer application from your Desktop by right clicking on it with your mouse (or two finger tap/click with trackpad or "control" + click) and selecting "Eject Claude" or by dragging it to the Trash in the Dock.

Step 5: Open Claude from Applications

You now have Claude installed as an application on your computer. Go into Applications using a Finder window, scroll to Claude and double click on it to open it.

Step 6: Allow Claude to open

You will likely see a popup like the one below. This is safe. This program will not have control of your computer. The only thing Claude will have access to is the information you put into it unless you manually give it access to other applications.

Click "Open"

Step 7: Get Started

You're then going to see the Get Started window.

Click "Get Started"

Step 8: Sign in with Google

From there you're going to be prompted to sign in. I recommend using Google. Google sign-in is one of the most secure authentication methods and prevents having to create new passwords.

Click "Continue with Google"

Step 9: Continue with Google in Chrome

A new Chrome window will open that looks like the one below.

Click "Continue with Google"

Step 10: Select your Google account

Another Google Authentication window will appear that looks like the one below.

Select the account you want to sign in with

Step 11: Authorize Claude

You'll then see a "Sign in to Claude" window appear. Again, this is safe. You're only giving Claude access to your basic Google profile information, not your emails, contacts, or any of your private data. This is simply using your Google account to authenticate for login and it is safe.

Click "Continue"

Step 12: Accept the terms

You'll then be returned to the Claude desktop app interface where you'll see the following screen.

Check the "I agree..." checkbox and click "Continue"

Step 13: Choose a plan

You'll then see the "Choose a plan" screen appear. I recommend starting with a Free plan and if you end up wanting more features you can always upgrade.

Click "Use Claude for free"

Step 14: Welcome screen

You'll then see a welcome screen explaining a few things.

Toggle "Help Improve Claude" off at the bottom Click "I understand"

Step 15: Enter your name

Enter your name in the following screen.

Step 16: Select your interests

On the "What are you into?" screen select which options that you think fit your needs most. For you, I would recommend: Life stuff and Design & creativity.

Once you have the options selected, click "Let's go"

Step 17: Start your first conversation

You'll then see a "Where should we start?" screen.

Click "I have my own topic" on the bottom right

Step 18: Select Quick Chat options

I would keep the two default options in this screen selected. I use the menu bar shortcut often and am working on getting used to the double-option shortcut.

Select the options you want to use and click "Continue"

Step 19: Start your first chat with Claude!

We've reached the finish line for getting up and running with Claude as a desktop app. Ask Claude about whatever is on your mind. I use Claude for all of my questions, research, guidance, advice and even just processing my thoughts.

If you're not sure the best ways to use Claude, ask Claude. AI agents like Claude are the most powerful tools that humans have created for the purpose of acquiring general knowledge. It has access to almost all of documented human knowledge and it can explain things for any level of understanding. Ask it anything!

Here's an example use case that might be helpful. A family member of mine recently messaged me with the following question:

I have a bunch of family photos that I want to digitize. They're all in different print sizes up to 11x14. I'm thinking about ordering a scanner but not sure which one to get. I also don't know what the best way to digitally store the scanned photos would be. Would you be able to recommend a good scanner that can do batch scanning for lots of photos and what the best storage option would be? I have an iCloud account that I backup my iPhone photos to and have also used Google Photos. Batch upload would be helpful. I also want to be able to create photo books with the digitized images.

Here's exactly what I would do to answer that question:

1. Open Claude
2. Copy the text of that message and paste it into the Claude prompt
3. Add a couple notes to the end of the prompt that I think would be helpful:
   • "Give me a high level overview of how I should think about configuring this process. There has to be a lot of documentation available online explaining how people have done this. What are the major things that I want to pay attention to? What are the scanner specifications that I should be concerned with? What are the image storage options that I should be concerned with? Explain everything thoroughly so that someone without much technological know-how can understand."
   • "The scanner and storage option should both be relatively easy to use for someone who is not necessarily technologically savvy. Both processes should not be overly complex."
   • "I want the scans of the images to be high quality but I also want to be able to do batch scanning and not have to place every image into a scanner individually."
   • "I don't want to spend more than $1000 on the scanner and more than $20/month for image storage. Give me a range of options within these price points and the pros and cons of each."
   • "Again, make sure to explain things thoroughly and do in-depth research to find the best options and systems that make the most sense."
   • "I will be using a MacBook Pro laptop with an external monitor as my main machine for this process."

When I'm writing prompts into AI agents I try to write as clearly as possible and identify key areas that I want the agent to research and think about. I ask the agent to explain things to me in plain terms. If I don't know anything about something that I'm researching I start from that point of view and ask the agent to explain things to me from a high level, break down the main concepts so that I can understand them and use that foundation to guide my thinking and the path of the conversation. If you don't understand something that Claude told you, ask Claude to explain it in simpler terms ("Explain this to me like I'm 10 years old"). Curiosity is your friend here. Claude will not judge you for not knowing something. Claude's purpose is to help you figure anything out. Use it!

Once you've finished entering the prompt into the text area, hit the return key or press the arrow button on the right side of the text area. Claude will begin researching.

Step 20: Utilizing Claude's output

After entering that prompt regarding photo print digitizing, Claude spent about 3 minutes researching options for scanners and photo storage and then created a .docx document for me with all of the information.

I can now download that file or add it to my Google Drive to share it using the buttons in the upper right corner of the window.

Here's the document that Claude created for me: Family Photo Digitization Guide

Let's say that I review the document and want Claude to explain something more or I want to clarify a feature that I want the scanner to have or I realized a constraint with the scanning process that I forgot to mention in the original prompt. I would simply type into the prompt:

I realized I forgot to mention X, does that change your recommendation at all?

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Conclusion

You now have all recorded human knowledge just a prompt away. For more information on how to use Claude, I recommend checking out this course created by Anthropic, the creators of Claude: Claude 101. Claude is an incredibly powerful tool and is an excellent introduction to using AI for everyday problems.

Use it!

Questions, comments, concerns?

Reach out to me here: [email protected]

Thanks for reading and hopefully this is helpful!