IDE Desktop

A standalone AI-powered IDE for local development.

Overview

IDE Desktop brings Calliope’s AI coding assistance to your local machine. Built on VS Code technology, it provides a familiar development environment enhanced with AI capabilities.

Features

Full IDE Experience

• VS Code-based interface
• Syntax highlighting for 100+ languages
• IntelliSense and code completion
• Integrated terminal
• Git integration
• Extension support

AI Coding Assistance

• AI Chat: Discuss code in a sidebar panel
• Inline suggestions: AI-powered completions
• Code explanations: Understand complex code
• Refactoring help: Improve code quality
• Documentation generation: Auto-generate docs

Agent Capabilities

• Multi-file editing
• Project-wide refactoring
• Test generation
• Bug fixing assistance

Installation

Download

1. Go to calliope.ai/download
2. Select IDE Desktop
3. Choose your platform:
   • macOS (Apple Silicon)
   • macOS (Intel)
   • Windows
   • Linux

macOS Installation

1. Download the .dmg file
2. Open the downloaded file
3. Drag IDE to Applications
4. First launch: Right-click → Open

Windows Installation

1. Download the .exe installer
2. Run the installer
3. Follow the setup wizard
4. Launch from Start menu

Linux Installation

AppImage:

chmod +x IDE-*.AppImage
./IDE-*.AppImage

Debian/Ubuntu:

sudo dpkg -i ide-*.deb

First Launch

Initial Setup

1. Launch IDE Desktop
2. Setup wizard appears
3. Configure AI provider:
   • Select provider
   • Enter API key
4. Complete setup

Opening a Project

1. File → Open Folder
2. Select your project directory
3. Project opens in IDE

Your First AI Interaction

1. Open any code file
2. Press Cmd/Ctrl + Shift + A to open AI chat
3. Type: “Explain this file”
4. See AI explanation

AI Features

AI Chat Panel

Open with Cmd/Ctrl + Shift + A or click AI icon.

Example conversations:

You: How do I add authentication to this Express app?

AI: Here's how to add JWT authentication:
1. Install dependencies...
2. Create middleware...
[provides code examples]

Inline AI

Trigger inline AI with Cmd/Ctrl + I:

1. Select code
2. Press Cmd/Ctrl + I
3. Type instruction: “Add error handling”
4. AI suggests changes

Code Actions

Right-click code to see AI actions:

• Explain selected code
• Improve this code
• Add documentation
• Generate tests
• Find bugs

Agent Mode

For larger tasks:

1. Open Agent panel
2. Describe the task: “Add user authentication with JWT to this Express app”
3. Agent plans and executes across files

Working with Projects

Language Support

IDE supports all major languages:

Project Types

Works with any project structure:

• Web applications
• APIs and backends
• CLI tools
• Libraries
• Monorepos

Git Integration

Built-in Git support:

• Source control panel
• Diff viewer
• Commit interface
• Branch management
• Push/pull operations

AI Provider Configuration

OpenAI

1. Settings → AI Provider
2. Select OpenAI
3. Enter API key
4. Choose model:
   • gpt-4o (recommended)
   • gpt-4o-mini (faster/cheaper)

Anthropic

1. Settings → AI Provider
2. Select Anthropic
3. Enter API key
4. Choose model:
   • claude-3-5-sonnet (recommended)
   • claude-3-haiku (faster)

Ollama (Local)

For offline coding:

1. Install Ollama
2. Pull coding model: ollama pull codellama
3. Settings → AI Provider → Ollama

Extensions

Pre-installed

• AI coding extensions
• Language support packs
• Git tools
• Debugging tools

Installing Extensions

1. Click Extensions icon (sidebar)
2. Search for extension
3. Click Install

Or via command line:

ide --install-extension publisher.extension-name

Recommended Extensions

• GitLens: Enhanced Git features
• Prettier: Code formatting
• ESLint: JavaScript linting
• Python: Python support
• Docker: Container support

Keyboard Shortcuts

AI Shortcuts

General Shortcuts

Debugging

Built-in Debugger

1. Set breakpoints (click gutter)
2. Press F5 to start debugging
3. Use debug controls to step through

Debug Configurations

Create .vscode/launch.json:

{
  "version": "0.2.0",
  "configurations": [
    {
      "type": "node",
      "request": "launch",
      "name": "Run App",
      "program": "${workspaceFolder}/index.js"
    }
  ]
}

AI-Assisted Debugging

Ask AI to help debug:

You: This function returns undefined instead of the result.
[paste code]

AI: The issue is on line 15. You're not returning the value...

Settings

User Settings

Access via Cmd/Ctrl + ,:

• Editor preferences
• Theme selection
• AI behavior
• Extension settings

Workspace Settings

Project-specific settings in .vscode/settings.json:

{
  "editor.formatOnSave": true,
  "python.linting.enabled": true,
  "ai.model": "gpt-4o"
}

Syncing with Cloud

Connect to Calliope Workspace

1. Settings → Cloud Sync
2. Sign in with Calliope account
3. Choose what to sync:
   • Settings
   • Extensions
   • Keybindings

Project Sync

Sync projects between desktop and cloud IDE:

1. Enable project sync
2. Select folders to sync
3. Changes sync automatically

Troubleshooting

AI Not Working

• Verify API key in settings
• Check internet connection
• Ensure provider is available
• Try different model

Extension Issues

# Reset extensions
ide --disable-extensions
# Then re-enable selectively

Performance Issues

• Close unused tabs
• Disable heavy extensions
• Increase memory limit in settings
• Check available disk space

Can’t Open Project

• Check folder permissions
• Ensure path exists
• Try opening parent folder