completely different coding setups individuals use for programming. On this article, I’ll take you thru my private coding setup and the instruments and functions that I exploit to attain most effectivity when programming.
It is a setup that I’ve created by in depth testing and experimenting myself by trial and error. Whereas testing, I’ve tried to make use of a number of completely different functions for programming, and every of them has benefits in numerous settings.
I’ll take you thru the present coding setup I’ve, although it’s, after all, topic to alter quickly sooner or later with the speedy development of LLM know-how.
I’m not sponsored by any of the tooling talked about on this video, and it’s merely the tooling I exploit on a day-to-day foundation as a programmer.
Why optimize your coding setup
As a programmer, your coding setup is likely one of the most essential components you possibly can optimize. That is the place you spend most of your time fixing completely different issues. Due to on a regular basis you spend together with your coding setup, you need to spend time ensuring it’s optimized on your private workflows.
Personally, I at all times search for alternatives to make my setup extra environment friendly. For a protracted time period, I used Cursor every day because the platform from which I did all my coding. Just a few weeks in the past, I out of the blue shifted to utilizing purely Claude Code by Warp, which primarily makes up the vast majority of my coding setup.
The change from utilizing Cursor to utilizing Claude Code by Warp was one of the vital important productiveness will increase I’ve skilled since I first seen how environment friendly brokers may program for me. Warp + Claude Code has helped me massively in my every day work as an information scientist in a startup engaged on doc AI.
Strolling by my coding setup
On this part, I’ll stroll you thru the completely different tooling, methods, and approaches I exploit to optimize my coding setup. I’ll cowl the functions I exploit on a day-to-day foundation, but additionally how I make the most of and get essentially the most out of those functions and different essential methods I exploit to make my coding as efficient as doable.
The entire suggestions I’ll cowl on this part have a major affect on my productiveness as an engineer.
Tooling
Initially, I wish to cowl the tooling I exploit. I exploit Claude Code and Warp for nearly all of my coding. If I wish to verify some manufacturing logs or if I wish to repair a bug or implement a brand new characteristic, I’ll primarily at all times use Claude Code in Warp.
Inside Warp, I’ve the next setup. I’ve every tab in Warp as a separate folder I’m working in. So if I’m working in folder A, that’s my first tab in Warp. And if I’m working in folder B, that’s my second tab. Now, I sometimes discover myself having a number of brokers working inside the identical folder. On this case, I make a break up pane utilizing CMD + D in Warp, so my tab is break up into a number of panes. Relying on the duty I’m engaged on, I may have as much as 5 brokers working inside the identical repository. After which I’ve completely different repositories in numerous Warp tabs.
I wish to be aware one exception the place I exploit Cursor as an alternative of Claude Code: After I want full management of the code. For instance, if the characteristic is of essential significance or part of essential infrastructure. Additionally, sometimes after I run essential migration scripts or backfilling scripts, I’ll additionally do it in Cursor as a result of this provides me extra management of the code. I also can run the code myself by interactive home windows with Python.
Git worktrees
As I discussed in my earlier part, I typically discover myself working a number of brokers inside the identical repository. When you’ve got a number of brokers updating recordsdata on the identical time in the identical repository, you’ll run into issues with brokers colliding with one another. To resolve this drawback, you should utilize Git Worktrees.
Git worktrees are primarily copies of Git repositories that you would be able to make to have brokers run fully separate from one another. So each time I spin up a brand new agent, I inform it to begin a brand new git worktree for what it’s engaged on. and that agent can now work fully individually from all different brokers working in the identical repository.
That is an important characteristic if you wish to work with parallel brokers in Claude Code (which is likely one of the main advantages of working with Claude Code). Thus, you need to positively be using Git Worktrees in your day-to-day programming with parallel brokers.
Slash instructions
Slash instructions are one other very highly effective characteristic. Slah instructions are primarily saved prompts, so you possibly can rapidly entry a immediate that you’ve got saved on a earlier event. For instance, when you have a really repetitive immediate, you need to retailer it as a slash command. Some examples of this are:
Slash instructions are extremely highly effective, and I’ve coated them in one in every of my earlier articles. The advantage of slash instructions is twofold. Initially, you save time by not having to write down out the immediate each time. So as an alternative of getting to write down out a protracted immediate, telling the mannequin that it must:
- Pull the most recent dev department and rebase on high of it
- Run precommit checks
- PR description
- Make a pull request from a characteristic department to dev
As a substitute of getting to write down out all of this, you possibly can merely retailer this immediate in a slash command and entry the immediate immediately.
The second benefit is that you simply get to be extra constant when writing your prompts. For instance, when creating pull requests to dev, as I discussed, you would need to run a collection of checks (pull newest dev department, rebase, run precommit checks, …). When you write this out each time, you danger forgetting elements of the immediate. This isn’t an issue for those who use slash instructions, nonetheless, since you’ll at all times be using the identical immediate, and also you’ll be extra constant.
Slash instructions make you each sooner and extra constant
Low threshold to fireplace off brokers
One other matter I wish to cowl is that you need to have an excellent low threshold to fireplace off brokers to carry out duties for you. Each time you possibly can consider a brand new job or get a brand new drawback it’s important to remedy, you need to simply fireplace off an agent. For instance, if I discover a button that’s misaligned, some textual content in my utility that needs to be up to date, or translations that must be up to date. I merely fireplace off a brand new agent, let it run totally autonomously, and create a pull request for me.
The principle level is that you need to have a low threshold to fireplace off brokers as a result of it’s so low-cost to run and prices you so little time. The price of firing a brand new agent is actually spending time writing out a great immediate and, in lots of instances, answering a number of questions the brokers have so that you can correctly perceive the duty you gave them.
There are actually many instruments on the market that supply a whole lot of token utilization for a comparatively low value. For instance, I’m utilizing the $200 Claude Code subscription, which is a set quantity per thirty days, and I’ve by no means run into fee limits. This implies I can fireplace off as many brokers as I can with out extra price.
Make the most of the very best fashions
One other tip I’ve would possibly sound very apparent, however I at all times suggest utilizing the very best fashions everytime you work with programming. The rationale for that is that in the long run, this protects you each money and time.
Sure, the very best fashions are sometimes the most costly fashions per token and are additionally the slowest fashions. Nevertheless, it seems that for those who use cheaper fashions, they’ll extra typically make errors, which takes extra time so that you can repair and iterate on, which once more makes the mannequin make the most of much more tokens. Thus, ultimately, it typically seems that utilizing a less expensive, smaller mannequin really seems to be dearer and time-consuming.
You must due to this fact be using the frontier fashions reminiscent of Gemini 3 Professional, Claude 4.5 Opus, and GPT 5.2 Codex. There are additionally some up-and-coming open supply fashions performing properly on the coding benchmarks, although I haven’t achieved the identical success with open supply fashions as I’ve achieved with frontier closed supply fashions.
Conclusion
On this article, I’ve coated how you can have a most effectivity coding setup. I’ve mentioned the coding setup I exploit on a day-to-day foundation, the place I exploit the Warp terminal with Claude Code. Moreover, I exploit particular methods reminiscent of organizing Warp with break up panes and tabs by the folder I’m engaged on. I’m additionally ensuring to at all times use the most recent and greatest coding fashions. I consider spending time optimizing your coding setup is an excellent use of time. As a programmer, your coding setup is likely one of the belongings you spend essentially the most time with, and if you can also make that a number of proportion factors extra environment friendly, it’ll doubtless repay in the long term.
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