Setup & Day 0 Checklist

Complete this checklist before Monday, July 20, 2026. Getting set up ahead of time means Day 1 starts with hitting the ground running. If anything below doesn't work, come to the optional setup session or ask on the course Slack channels.

Optional setup session — Friday, July 17

We'll hold an optional office-hours setup session on Friday, July 17, 2026, 1:00–3:00 PM ET on Zoom (link coming soon). Drop in for any part of it — instructors will help you work through this checklist live.

What you need

Just three primary things — everything else is provided:

A laptop you can bring (in person) or use at home (remote).
The ability to install software on it.
An internet connection.

There is no cost to NOAA and NCICS participants: compute, cloud resources, and AI usage costs are covered through a partnership with AWS.

Accounts

Details and invitations are sent after you register — links will be posted here as they become available.

Claude account — access to Claude, Claude Cowork, and Claude Code is provided through the course. Watch for an invitation email after registration.
NCICS GitLab account — if you don't have one, please reach out to the instructional staff.
Course AWS access — model access and cloud compute for all weeks is provisioned for you. Access instructions arrive before the course starts.
Course Slack — the invitation to the course workspace is sent after registration. This is where questions, links, and announcements live.

Installs

Claude Code — follow the install instructions at code.claude.com/docs.
Claude Desktop — follow the install instructions here: [Claude Desktop]](https://support.claude.com/en/articles/10065433-install-claude-desktop).
Terminal App — For the end of Week 1, and all subsequent weeks, you'll need a terminal app. If you have questions about this, please reach out to the instructional staff.

Verify your setup

Don't just install these — make sure they work! All of these should be working before Day 1. If you have questions, please attend the setup session and/or reach out to instructional staff.

Stuck?

Ask on the course Slack channels, or bring it to the July 17 setup session — please don't wait until the morning of Day 1.

What you need

Just three primary things — everything else is provided:

A laptop you can bring (in person) or use at home (remote).

The ability to install software on it.

An internet connection.

There is no cost to NOAA and NCICS participants: compute, cloud resources, and AI usage costs are covered through a partnership with AWS.

Accounts

Details and invitations are sent after you register — links will be posted here as they become available.

Claude account — access to Claude, Claude Cowork, and Claude Code is provided through the course. Watch for an invitation email after registration.

NCICS GitLab account — if you don't have one, please reach out to the instructional staff.

Course AWS access — model access and cloud compute for all weeks is provisioned for you. Access instructions arrive before the course starts.

Course Slack — the invitation to the course workspace is sent after registration. This is where questions, links, and announcements live.

Installs

Claude Code — follow the install instructions at code.claude.com/docs.

Claude Desktop — follow the install instructions here: [Claude Desktop]](https://support.claude.com/en/articles/10065433-install-claude-desktop).

Terminal App — For the end of Week 1, and all subsequent weeks, you'll need a terminal app. If you have questions about this, please reach out to the instructional staff.