Make AI Work for You

At the back

Words you'll meet

Every technical word in the course, in plain words.

How to use this pageA to FG to PR to Z

01How to use this page

Every technical word in the course, explained in plain words. The module where it first comes up is in brackets.

02A to F

  • Agent: AI that takes actions for you, like clicking through websites, filling in forms or changing files, instead of only answering. (Module 9)
  • AI tool: an app or website you talk to, like Claude, ChatGPT, Grok or Gemini. (Introduction)
  • Auto mode: a setting in Claude Code where a safety check looks at each action instead of asking you every time. (Module 8)
  • Chat: one conversation with an AI tool. (Introduction)
  • ChatGPT Work: the part of ChatGPT that can take actions for you. You switch to it at the top of the screen. (Module 9)
  • Checkpoint: a saved point in Claude Code that you can go back to with /rewind. (Module 8)
  • Claude Code: Anthropic's tool that can read and change files on your computer. It needs a paid Claude plan. (Module 1)
  • Claude in Chrome: Anthropic's agent that works inside the Chrome browser. It needs a paid Claude plan. (Module 9)
  • CLAUDE.md: a small file that Claude Code reads at the start of every session. It points to your project files. (Module 1)
  • Context: everything the AI can see in a chat right now: your project files, the conversation so far, and any files you've added. (Module 4)
  • Context rot: the way an AI gets worse at keeping track as a chat gets very long. (Module 4)
  • Context window: everything the AI can see at once. It has a limit. (Module 4)
  • CONTEXT.md: your project file about what you're working on now. (Module 1)
  • Default model: the model a tool picks for you when you don't choose one. (Module 5)
  • Effort, or thinking level: a setting for how long the AI works through a problem before it answers. (Module 5)

03G to P

  • Gems: Gemini's older way of saving instructions. Google is replacing Gems with skills. (Module 1)
  • Task (Gemini): Google's agent, which takes actions for you. It used to be called Gemini Spark. It needs a Pro or Ultra plan, and isn't in every country. (Module 9)
  • Grok Bot: xAI's separate product for making your own bots. It comes with Grok's Premium plan and above. (Tools and prices)
  • Handover note: a short note that carries your work from one chat to a fresh one. (Module 4)
  • Hallucination: when an AI writes something that sounds right but isn't true. (Module 7)
  • Incognito, private or temporary chat: a chat that isn't saved to memory or used to train the AI. Each tool has its own name for it. (Module 8)
  • INSTRUCTIONS.md: your project file about how the AI should behave. (Module 1)
  • .md file: a plain text file. The letters stand for Markdown, a simple way of writing text. Notepad and TextEdit can open it. (Module 1)
  • Memory: notes some AI tools keep about you between chats. (Module 4)
  • Model: the engine behind a chat. Each company makes several, from fast to strong. (Module 5)
  • Plain text: text with no formatting, like a file saved in Notepad. (Module 1)
  • PRD: short for "product requirements document". Your one- or two-page plan for a project. (Module 3)
  • Project: a space in an AI tool that keeps your instructions and files together, so every chat inside it starts with them. Gemini uses a skill instead. (Module 1)
  • Prompt: the message you type to the AI. (Introduction)
  • Prompt injection: instructions hidden in a web page, document or email, aimed at the AI rather than at you. (Module 8)

04R to Z

  • REFERENCE.md: your project file with the facts the AI should use. (Module 1)
  • Scheduled task: a task the AI runs on its own at set times, like every Monday. (Module 9)
  • Second opinion: checking an answer with a different company's AI. (Module 5)
  • Session: what Claude Code calls one conversation. It's the same idea as a chat. (Module 1)
  • Setup tool: the free web page that builds your project files for you. (Module 1)
  • Skill: in Gemini, a saved set of instructions and files that you call with @ (or / on some screens) in a chat. (Module 1)
  • Source: where a fact came from, like a line in your files or a web page. (Module 7)
  • Starter lines: six lines that go in every project's Instructions, to head off the most common problems. (Module 1)
  • Test task: a task from your own project, with a right answer you already know, used to try out a new tool or model. (Module 5)
  • Usage credits: paid use beyond your plan's limit. Claude lets you set a monthly cap. (Module 8)
  • Web search: when the AI looks things up on the internet to answer you. (Module 5)