Set up your computer

No prior knowledge assumed. We'll explain the terminal, show you a few shortcuts worth knowing, and give copy-paste commands for the handful of free tools our guides use. Take it one step at a time — nothing here can harm your computer.

Only here to add a form? You don't need to install anything. The step-by-step form guide uses curl, which already ships with macOS and Windows. This page is for the optional developer tools and the upcoming Academy.

The terminal A few things to know Keyboard shortcuts Check what you have Install Node.js Install git All at once (cheat sheet)

1The terminal

The "terminal" (or "command line") is a plain window where you type one line, press Enter, and the computer does it. It looks bare and a bit retro — that's normal. You can't break anything by opening it.

Opening it

Mac — press ⌘ + Space, type Terminal, press Enter. (This opens the built-in app called Terminal.)
Windows — press the ⊞ Start key, type PowerShell, press Enter.
Linux — press Ctrl + Alt + T.

2A few things to know

You paste with ⌘+V on Mac (Ctrl+V, or right-click, on Windows), then press Enter to run the line.
Spelling and capitals matter. Easiest is to copy our commands with the Copy button rather than typing them.
Seeing command not found isn't a failure — it just means that tool isn't installed yet. Install it (below) and try again.
Some installs ask for your Mac/Windows password. The password won't show as you type — that's normal; type it and press Enter.
Lost? Close the window and open a fresh one. Nothing is left running.

3Keyboard shortcuts worth knowing

These make the terminal far more pleasant — especially the second one, which lets you scoop up a long result and paste it back to an AI assistant to ask "what does this mean?".

Shortcut	What it does
`Ctrl` + `L`	Clears the screen and starts fresh — like wiping a whiteboard. Your work isn't lost, the window just becomes clean for the next step. Works on Mac, Linux and Windows.
Mac Terminal: `⌘` + `K`	Clears even further, including everything you've scrolled past.
Mac Terminal: `⌘` + `⇧` + `A`, then `⌘` + `C`	Selects the whole last result (everything the last command printed), then copies it. Outputs are often long — this grabs the lot in one go, ready to paste into a chat with an AI to debug or explain.
Copy / paste	Mac: `⌘`+`C` / `⌘`+`V`. Windows Terminal: `Ctrl`+`C` / `Ctrl`+`V`. Most Linux terminals: `Ctrl`+`⇧`+`C` / `Ctrl`+`⇧`+`V`.

The trick of selecting the last output (⌘+⇧+A → ⌘+C) is the single most useful habit when something goes wrong: copy it, paste it to the AI, and ask. We'll come back to this in the Academy.

4Check what you already have

Paste each line and press Enter. A version number means you're set. command not found means install it (next).

curl --version

node --version

git --version

5Install Node.js

Node.js runs the developer tools and is the foundation for building flows. Pick the LTS ("long-term support") version.

macOS — the simple way (recommended)

Go to nodejs.org.
Click the big LTS download button — it gives you a .pkg file.
Open the downloaded file and click Continue / Agree / Install through the steps (it may ask for your password).
Done — no terminal needed for this.

Heard of Homebrew? It's an optional power-user tool for installing software from the terminal. If you don't know what it is, skip it and use the installer above — you don't need it. If you do have it: brew install node.

Windows

Either download the installer from nodejs.org and run it, or paste this into PowerShell:

winget install OpenJS.NodeJS.LTS

Linux (Debian / Ubuntu)

sudo apt-get update && sudo apt-get install -y nodejs npm

After installing, close the terminal and open a new one, then run node --version to confirm. (On Linux the built-in version can be old; for the newest, use nvm.)

6Install git

Only needed if you'll work with our code repositories.

macOS

Paste this — a system window pops up; click Install:

xcode-select --install

Windows

winget install Git.Git

Linux (Debian / Ubuntu)

sudo apt-get install -y git

curl is built into macOS and Windows 10+. On a minimal Linux box only: sudo apt-get install -y curl.

7All at once — your cheat sheet for next time

Now that you know what the terminal is, what each tool does, and how to check for it — here's the shortcut. This single block checks for everything and installs only what's missing, in one run (macOS):

# Homebrew — the installer for the rest
command -v brew >/dev/null 2>&1 || /bin/bash -c "$(curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/Homebrew/install/HEAD/install.sh)"

# the tools — installs only what's missing
for t in git gh node; do
  command -v "$t" >/dev/null 2>&1 && echo "OK  $t" || { echo ".. installing $t"; brew install "$t"; }
done

# GitHub Desktop — the click-friendly git app
brew list --cask github >/dev/null 2>&1 || brew install --cask github

echo "Done — everything is ready."

Wait — we could've done it in one click the whole time? Yep. But if we'd started here, you'd have a working machine and no idea what just happened. We went line by line on purpose, so the terminal stops being a black box. Now that you actually get it — this is your shortcut for the next machine. 🙂

Not on a Mac? The one-shot above is macOS (Homebrew). On Windows use the winget install … lines above; on Linux the apt-get ones.

Stuck on any step? That's exactly what our training and consulting is for — we'll get you running, and you'll never need to ask twice.