Day 10 — Bootstrap Walkthrough (Read-Through)

Time: ~60 min · Date: Mon May 4

Why this matters

Two days from now you'll do this for real. Today you read through the actual setup guides — the same ones you'll follow May 6 — so nothing on launch day is a surprise.

You don't run anything. You just read and take notes. Anything that doesn't make sense becomes a question.

What to read

Open each file in this order. They live in the parent education-materials/ folder of the same repo.

1. 01 — Getting Started — what you're about to install.
2. 02 — Run Bootstrap — the actual install commands.
3. 03 — Obsidian Setup — pointing Obsidian at your vault.
4. 04 — First Claude Session — confirming everything works.
5. 05 — Staying Updated — how future updates get applied.

Read straight through. Aim for 30–40 minutes total reading.

Read like this

Don't try to memorize. Watch for:

• Things you've already learned ("oh that's the terminal thing from day 5").
• Things that look unfamiliar. Note them.
• Decisions you'll need to make. ("Do I want my password manager set up before this?")
• Steps that feel risky. Anything where you'd want to ask Chris first.

After reading: write down

In your notes:

Three things that look easy

You'll feel confident on these. Examples: "open Terminal," "run a single command," "click Open vault."

Three things that look hard

You'll want backup on these. Examples: "the API key step in lesson 03," "running curl to test the connection," "logging into claude with claude login."

Three questions

Anything that, after reading, you still don't get. Send to Chris before May 6.

Example questions other people have asked:

• "Why does it install Homebrew before Node? Why not the other way around?"
• "What happens if I close Terminal in the middle of bootstrap.sh?"
• "If I make a mistake on the API key, can I just re-run it?"

(Answers, for the curious: Homebrew installs Node, so Homebrew first. Closing Terminal mid-install: re-run bootstrap.sh — it's idempotent. Wrong API key: yes, re-run obsidian-set-apikey.)

What to expect on day one (May 6)

A realistic timeline:

What	Time
Unbox, sign in to Apple ID, basic macOS first-run	20–30 min
Open Terminal, run xcode-select --install	5 min (then 5–10 min waiting)
Clone the repo + run bootstrap.sh	15–30 min (mostly waiting for installs)
Open Obsidian, install Local REST API plugin	10 min
Run obsidian-set-apikey and claude login	5 min
First Claude session, verify everything works	10 min
Total	~75–100 min

It's not an all-day thing. Plan for ~2 hours and you'll have buffer.

Things that might go wrong (and that's ok)

• Homebrew install asks for your password. Normal. Type it.
• A brew step takes a long time. Normal — it's downloading and compiling.
• Claude Code can't see your vault. Make sure Obsidian is open. The plugin only works while Obsidian is running.
• A command says "permission denied." Ask Chris. Don't just sudo it.
• The Terminal looks weird. It's fine. Just keep typing.

The script is idempotent — re-running it is safe. If something fails partway, fix what failed and run it again.

A quick optional: vault layout preview

While you're reading, glance at education-materials/06-real-estate-recipes.md. You don't need to do the recipes — just see what's possible. You'll come back to that file repeatedly.

Exercise (~15 min)

Block time on your calendar for May 6:

• ⏰ Suggested: 9–11am or 1–3pm. Two hours, uninterrupted.
• ☕ Coffee.
• 📵 Phone on silent.
• 🆔 Apple ID, GitHub login, Anthropic login written down somewhere accessible (we'll double-check tomorrow).

Don't skip this step. Trying to set up a new dev environment between client calls is a recipe for stress.

Recap

You should now:

• Have read all five setup walkthroughs
• Have a list of "easy" / "hard" / "questions" in your notes
• Have a 2-hour block on your calendar for May 6
• Have a rough mental movie of what setup day looks like

Done?

• Day 10 complete

Next: Day 11 — Final prep