marketing-shibata50/claude-code-ultimate-guide

Florian BRUNIAUX c2de35caba docs: complete Cowork documentation v1.0 (Phase 2)

- Create comprehensive Cowork docs (23 files in cowork/)
  - 6 guides: overview, getting started, capabilities, security, troubleshooting
  - 60+ ready-to-use prompts across 4 categories
  - 5 step-by-step workflows
  - Reference materials: cheatsheet, FAQ, comparison, glossary

- Integrate Perplexity research (P0/P1/P2)
  - Exact error messages with solutions (VPN, Chrome host, context limits)
  - Competitive analysis (vs Copilot/Gemini/ChatGPT/Apple Intelligence)
  - Enterprise validation (TELUS, Rakuten, Zapier stats)
  - OCR accuracy benchmarks (97% field, 63% line-item)
  - Token budget planning per task type

- Document critical limitations
  - VPN incompatibility (#1 community issue)
  - Context limit reality (165K vs 200K theoretical)
  - Platform constraints (macOS only)
  - Usage limits and pricing (Pro $20, Max $100-200)

- Update central files
  - README.md: detailed Cowork section with tables
  - VERSION: 3.9.6 → 3.9.7
  - machine-readable/reference.yaml: add cowork_reference entry
  - machine-readable/cowork-reference.yaml: new LLM-optimized index (~1.5K tokens)

Co-Authored-By: Claude Sonnet 4.5 <noreply@anthropic.com>

2026-01-20 11:23:43 +01:00

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Cowork Glossary

Terminology specific to Claude Cowork and related concepts

A

Agentic

Describes AI systems that can autonomously plan and execute multi-step tasks with minimal human intervention. Cowork is "agentic" because it analyzes your request, creates a plan, and executes it (with your approval).

Approval Gate

The checkpoint where Cowork shows its planned actions and waits for your confirmation before executing. Critical security measure—always review before approving.

C

Claude Code

Anthropic's CLI tool for developers. Shares architecture with Cowork but provides full shell access and code execution. Terminal-based interface.

Claude Desktop

The macOS application that hosts Cowork. Different from the web interface (claude.ai).

Context Limit

The maximum amount of text/data Claude can process in a single session (~200K tokens). When exceeded, tasks may fail or produce incomplete results.

Context Window

The "memory" space where Claude holds your conversation and file contents during a session. Measured in tokens.

Cowork

Claude's agentic desktop feature for knowledge workers. Manipulates files without code execution.

E

Execution Plan

The detailed list of actions Cowork proposes before starting work. Shows what files will be affected and how. Review this carefully.

Extended Thinking

Claude's ability to reason through complex problems step-by-step. Shared capability between Claude Code and Cowork.

F

Folder Sandbox

The restricted area where Cowork can operate. You grant access to specific folders; Cowork cannot access anything outside this boundary.

K

Knowledge Worker

Non-technical professionals who work primarily with information and documents (project managers, analysts, writers, consultants). Cowork's target audience.

L

Local-First

Design principle where data and processing stay on your computer rather than in the cloud. Cowork accesses local files only.

M

Max Tier

The highest Claude subscription level ($100-200/month, with 5x or 20x usage multipliers). Recommended for heavy Cowork usage.

Pro Tier

The standard Claude subscription level ($20/month). Now includes Cowork access, but with tighter usage limits (~1-1.5 hours intensive use before quota resets).

Multi-Step Task

An operation requiring multiple sequential actions. Example: "read files → analyze → create report → organize output." Cowork excels at these.

O

OCR (Optical Character Recognition)

Technology that extracts text from images. Cowork uses OCR to read receipts, screenshots, and scanned documents.

Orchestrator

The main Cowork agent that receives your request, creates the plan, coordinates sub-agents, and assembles results.

P

Prompt Injection

A security attack where malicious instructions are hidden in files, attempting to manipulate AI behavior. Mitigation: only process trusted files.

Projects

Claude's conversation interface on claude.ai. Allows document uploads but no local file access or creation.

R

Research Preview

Anthropic's term for early-access features that aren't production-ready. Cowork is in research preview (January 2026). Expect bugs.

S

Sub-Agent

Specialized workers spawned by the orchestrator to handle specific parts of a task. Each sub-agent has fresh context and can work in parallel with others.

Sandbox

See Folder Sandbox.

T

Token

The unit Claude uses to measure text. Roughly 4 characters or 0.75 words. Used to calculate context limits.

W

Workspace

The dedicated folder structure for Cowork operations. Best practice: ~/Cowork-Workspace/ with input/ and output/ subfolders.

Common Acronyms

Acronym	Meaning
CLI	Command Line Interface
OCR	Optical Character Recognition
PDF	Portable Document Format
API	Application Programming Interface
SSO	Single Sign-On

Term	In Code Context	In Cowork Context
CLAUDE.md	Project context file	Can use for shared team context
Sub-agents	Task-specific workers	Same concept, file-focused
Hooks	Event handlers	Not available in Cowork
MCP	Model Context Protocol	Not exposed in Cowork

Back to Cowork Documentation

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