Build in Public Day 8: Development Environment — Setting Up for Real Code

Today marks a significant transition. We've been working in design tools — Claude for research and strategy, Lovable for landing page and UI/UX. Now we move into a real development environment to start building actual functionality.

What We Have So Far

At this point, we're well-armed for the next phase. We have a live landing page on a custom domain that we can use to sell and collect leads. We have a polished UI/UX prototype that we can use to demo. Both of those give us everything we need to continue getting validation while we start the technical build.

If feedback continues to come back positive (and so far it has), we need to prepare an environment where we can wire up real functionality and bring the SaaS product to life.

The Handoff: Lovable to GitHub to Cursor

Step 1: Push to GitHub. Lovable has a native GitHub integration with two-way sync. I pushed the entire project to a new GitHub repository. This gives us version control from day one — every change tracked, every decision reversible.

Step 2: Clone locally. I cloned the repo to my local machine. Now I have the full codebase on my system, ready to work with.

Step 3: Open in Cursor. Cursor is my primary development environment. It combines traditional code editing capabilities with AI agent features in one integrated interface. I can see the full folder structure, edit files, run terminal commands, and interact with AI — all in one place.

Why Cursor Over Just Claude Code

I still use Claude Code via the terminal for certain tasks and go back and forth between the two depending on the situation. But I prefer Cursor as my main IDE because the integration is tighter — I can visualize the project structure, see file previews, manage multiple terminal windows, and use the AI agent within the same environment.

That said, this is personal preference. The important thing is having a development environment where you can write code, run it, test it, and use AI assistance efficiently.

GitHub from Day One

Version control isn't optional. I set up GitHub integration immediately because every change from this point forward needs to be tracked. When you're using AI to generate code, you need the ability to roll back changes, compare versions, and maintain a clean commit history. GitHub provides all of that.

Your Takeaway

Push your Lovable project to GitHub using the native integration. Clone it locally. Open it in Cursor (or your preferred AI-powered IDE). Set up your terminal windows for server and agent. The transition from Lovable to Cursor is the transition from prototyping to real engineering — and GitHub version control is non-negotiable from this point forward.

Next in the series: Day 9 — Getting the local server running and matching Lovable functionality.

Start the free 5-day email course

Watch the Build in Public Series on YouTube