> Would an email interface to Claude code work better?

No.

> What is the downside to using email?

Email is clunky and feedback is not immediate.

> seems easier then getting a vpn working.

Tailscale is easy for a dev to get going and very reliable. The author uses the Termius SSH app with Mosh, so it keeps the same SSH session going across device sleeps and disconnects. Tmux is helpful, too.

I do exactly what the author is doing, except I use a $5 Linode VPS, instead of a Mac at home.

He doesn't seem to be credited on this page, but I believe Pieter Levels (@levelsio) actually popularized this scheme. The author documents a nearly identical scheme.

I'm fairly sure that levelsio didn't popularize SSHing into a computer from your phone to run a program. We were all doing it before LLMs.

>Email is clunky and feedback is not immediate.

You're vibe coding on a smartphone into an external computer. You already abandoned "Immediate feedback" and "cohesion".

While I don't use the AI part I have a very similar scheme and it is one of the reasons I encourage people to live in the terminal.

The idea is to create a modern "terminal"[0]

My main computer is a Macbook Air, which I carry around with me. It's purpose is for: internet, using Microsoft products when I'm forced to, Zoom/meetings, and SSH (or Mosh).

Most of my work is not done on this Macbook, instead I use it mostly as a terminal. I have a desktop that's sitting behind my TV so that it can be my TV and gaming system (yeah I know Monitor > TV. I'm a filthy casual and I don't care). I have a mouse connected to that computer and instead of using a keyboard I use ydotool (Wayland xdotool) with a shortcut on my iPhone or a script on my android phone or from my Macbook. I don't have to get up from the couch and I don't need a clunky wireless keyboard to clutter my livingroom.

Additionally I have a few pis and an old android phone with Tailscale installed on them. That's come in handy before as a machine's been disconnected and so I couldn't ssh from outside. Also makes it really easy to do a jump if you want to keep a machine off Tailscale or you don't have full control (like my 3D printer).

This setup is very natural feeling if you live in the terminal. I actually started doing this when I started doing HPC work. In a setting like that you're never sitting in front of the computer you're doing most of your work on so it kinda clicked "why was I restricting myself outside work?" Plus there's the side benefits of I always have access to my media, tools, and other stuff. You can do exactly the same thing with a phone but I like having a keyboard and the air is very lightweight and has a long battery life. Any netbook would have done the job tbh.

[0] There's a reason they're called "terminal emulators" rather than just "terminals".

> Tmux is helpful, too.

Yes. tmux is essential. It's great to be able to monitor a session from desktop, or to pick up an existing conversation i'm having on the computer on my phone. In my shell, I have gemini flash wrapper that I use to manage my sessions so I can quickly connect to an existing one, or create a new one with natural language.

> He doesn't seem to be credited on this page, but I believe Pieter Levels (@levelsio) actually popularized this scheme. The author documents a nearly identical scheme.

I've been doing this (tailscale + termius + tmux + ssh) for at least a year and a half. First with Aider in this exact setup, and now with Claude Code and Codex.

So what about setting up a discord server for you and your LLM? Gets the notification benefit of E-mail but retains the immediate-resposne, no? That's how all my UptimeKuma notifs are setup atleast...

I can no longer edit this comment but it wasn’t meant to criticize the author. This is a great post. They are sharing their experiences and more importantly, teaching others.

Sorry if anyone, especially the author, took it this way.

It wouldn't shock me if multiple people came up with this idea independently. I've certainly experimented with it over the last couple years.