Setting the scene: AI inside the IDE
Lesson 1 of 12
1Setting the scene: AI inside the IDE
Before installing anything: what an editor actually is, why there is more than one way to add AI to it, and how those ways differ.
What the picture shows: From a line suggestion, to a chat you copy from, to an agent that writes to your disk. Each step gives it more power and needs more review from you.
Map of this part
The concepts in order, click any one to jump to it:
Two ways into the same idea
An editor is a programmer's desk: papers and tools in one place. AI inside the editor is like a colleague sitting next to you who sees the same papers. Sometimes it quietly finishes your sentence, sometimes you ask it a question, and sometimes you hand it a whole task. Each way has its time.
An IDE combines the editor, terminal and debugger. AI enters it three ways: inline completion, chat that sees your files, and agent mode that edits and runs commands. The tools (an add-on in VS Code or an editor like Cursor) differ in the context they see, their cost and privacy.
Required fundamentals
Nothing
This part needs no coding and no installation. All it takes is a browser with a free assistant open in it.
A willingness to ask
The real skill here is not writing code but framing the question. If an answer is vague, ask again rather than moving on.
Curiosity about more than one tool
The whole idea of the project: there is no single way. Someone who tries two tools knows why they chose one.
Core concepts
Before installing anything, step back. This part lays the ground: what an editor is, why AI gets added inside it instead of staying in a separate browser tab, and what the options are.
1The IDE in plain words
IDE stands for Integrated Development Environment. The idea is in the name: instead of a text editor here, a terminal there, and a browser for the docs, they all meet in one window. VS Code is the most popular one, and it is free.
Adding AI inside it gives you something a browser tab cannot: context. An assistant in the editor sees the open file and the rest of the project, so "why doesn't this work?" means something without you pasting a hundred lines.
2Three ways of working with the AI
The project names them explicitly, and they are not different tools but modes of the same one:
| Mode | What it looks like | When to use it | Its risk |
|---|---|---|---|
| Inline completion | Faint grey text ahead of the cursor, accepted with Tab | Tedious repetition: imports, function skeletons, familiar loops | Accepting without reading, letting in code you do not understand |
| Chat | A side panel where you type a question and read an answer | Explanation, debugging, "rewrite this so it reads more clearly" | A confident wrong answer, confidence is not evidence |
| Agent mode | You give it a task and it takes several steps: creates files, edits, explains | A clearly bounded multi-file task | Going further than you wanted when your request was vague |
3There is no single tool
This is the project's central idea. The free options it names:
| Tool | Type | Needs an API key? | Its edge |
|---|---|---|---|
VS Code | editor | , | The most popular, endless extensions, free |
Cursor | editor built on VS Code | No (free account) | AI built in from the first moment |
Continue.dev | VS Code add-on | Yes | Open source, you pick the model |
Cline | VS Code add-on | Yes | Built specifically around agent mode |
Codeium | VS Code add-on | No | Least friction: a free model bundled in |
4The questions to ask before you start
These two questions are not ceremony, each opens a door:
- "Imagine I have never coded. Explain simply what an IDE is and how a free AI assistant inside it helps a beginner read, write and fix code.", builds the vocabulary.
- "What are the main differences between VS Code with an add-on and Cursor? Which is easier for a complete beginner?", builds your selection criteria before you select.
What matters is not the answer you get, but that you formed a view before installing, so you have something to compare against afterwards.
How it works
Two pictures: the three modes, then the path for choosing between the two setups.
Diagram 1, Three modes of one tool: not alternatives to each other, but tools for different tasks within the same session.
Diagram 2, The choice tree the project follows: an add-on on an editor you know, or a new editor with it built in, and the answer is to try both.
What is actually asked of you
The warm-up task has no code and no file to hand in. What is asked is a warm-up conversation that builds your vocabulary. Walk it like this:
The warm-up task, step by step
Open a free assistant in your browser. ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini or Mistral Le Chat. This is your "browser AI helper", kept open for the whole project.
Ask the first question: "Imagine I have never coded. Can you explain in very simple words what an 'IDE' (code editor) is and how a free AI assistant inside it can help a beginner read, write, and fix code?"
Read the answer. If anything stays unclear, ask about it, do not move on confused.
Ask the second question: "What are the main differences between using VS Code with an AI add-on (like Continue.dev or Codeium) and using Cursor, the AI-first code editor? Which one would be easier for a complete beginner to try first?"
Leave the tab open. You will need this assistant at every installation step that follows. That is not a weakness, it is exactly how engineers work today.
Myth vs. reality
| The myth | The reality |
|---|---|
| “AI in the editor writes the program instead of me.” | It writes parts, suggests, and explains. The decision, the review and the responsibility stay with you, which is what part seven is entirely about. |
| “One tool is best for everyone.” | That is the idea the project explicitly fights. Try at least two, and what you choose depends on how you work, not on an advert. |
| “The browser assistant is enough, why install anything?” | A browser assistant cannot see your project. It explains a concept, but it will not tell you "the bug is on line 12 of your second file". |
| “Free add-ons are weak.” | Every tool on the project's list is entirely free, and Codeium works with no API key at all. The real limit is usage quota, not quality. |
| “I should pick one mode and stick to it.” | The three modes serve different tasks: completion for repetition, chat for understanding, agent for multi-file work. Engineers switch between them within one session. |
Try it yourself
You want the assistant to explain a long file in your project and suggest an improvement. Which mode?
Chat is the understanding mode: it sees the open file, you ask about it and discuss the answer before any edit. Completion suggests while you type and explains nothing, the agent acts before you understand, and the browser assistant cannot see your project and needs the file pasted by hand.
Quick review flashcards
Check your understanding
1. Explain in one sentence the difference between a "browser assistant" and an "editor assistant".
A browser assistant sees only what you paste; an editor assistant sees the open file and the project around it. Context is the difference, and it is what lets you ask "why doesn't this work?" without a long explanation.
2. When is inline completion misleading rather than helpful?
When it suggests code that looks right but assumes something your project does not have, a near-miss function name, or an uninstalled library. It looks plausible, so you Tab it without reading, and discover the problem half an hour later.
3. (Decision) You have VS Code, you know it and you like it. Should you try Cursor at all?
Yes. Not to abandon VS Code but to know what you are missing: when the AI is built in from the start, the interaction itself changes. After trying it, your choice becomes a decision rather than a habit.
4. Someone says an editor assistant "makes a beginner learn less". What do you think?
Part true, part false. True if you accept every suggestion unread, days pass with no skill gained. False if you use chat to ask "why?" after each suggestion, then it becomes a tutor available round the clock. The tool does not decide; your use of it does.
5. (Decision) You want to start with no card and no API keys. What is the shortest path?
VS Code + Codeium: the one add-on on the list that works without a key. Or Cursor with a free account. Once something works, try Continue.dev with a free Google AI Studio key so you have a comparison.
Resources for this part
Sorted by kind: start with the official docs when you want the precise reference, or with an article or video when you want the explanation first.