> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.quadrillion.io/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Getting Started

> Download Qualia and start your first research session in minutes.

## Download and install

Download the desktop app from the [setup page](https://quadrillion.io/dashboard/setup).

<Tabs>
  <Tab title="macOS">
    Download the DMG or ZIP for your chip:

    * **Apple Silicon** (M1/M2/M3/M4): `qualia-*-macos-apple-silicon.dmg`
    * **Intel**: `qualia-*-macos-intel.dmg`

    Open the DMG and drag **Qualia** to your Applications folder. On first launch, macOS may ask you to confirm since the app was downloaded from the internet.

    Alternatively, download the `.zip` version, unzip, and drag to Applications.
  </Tab>

  <Tab title="Windows">
    Download the portable executable:

    * **64-bit**: `qualia-*-windows-x64.exe`

    Run the executable directly — no installation required. You can move it to any folder or pin it to your taskbar.

    On first launch, Windows Defender SmartScreen may show a warning. Click **More info** then **Run anyway** to proceed.
  </Tab>

  <Tab title="Linux">
    Download and extract the `.tar.gz`:

    ```bash theme={null}
    tar -xzf qualia-*-linux-x64.tar.gz
    ./qualia
    ```
  </Tab>
</Tabs>

Qualia checks for updates automatically on launch and prompts you when a new version is available.

## Set up a Python kernel

During onboarding, Qualia installs a lightweight managed Jupyter environment so your notebooks can run Python locally. The installer runs the `uv` tool that ships inside the Qualia app — signed as part of the app itself, so endpoint-security tools that allow Qualia also allow it — and downloads Python packages from the internet, so it can fail on corporate networks that intercept or block outbound traffic.

If the installation fails:

* **Skip for now** lets you finish onboarding without a local kernel. You can install it later, or connect to remote compute instead.
* The error shown under **Installation failed** is the installer's real output — share it with your IT team to identify what was blocked.
* On networks that intercept TLS with a corporate certificate, launch Qualia with `UV_NATIVE_TLS=1` set (to trust your OS certificate store) or point `SSL_CERT_FILE` at your corporate root CA bundle. Set `HTTPS_PROXY` if your network requires an explicit proxy.
* On machines where security policy blocks downloaded programs from running, install a Python 3.12 or newer approved by your IT team: the installer finds and uses it instead of downloading its own Python.
* If Python package downloads are blocked entirely, a Jupyter environment already installed on your `PATH` (with `jupyter` and `ipykernel`) is used instead, skipping the managed install.

## Open a workspace

In the desktop app, the welcome screen lets you pick a recent workspace, choose **New folder…** to create a fresh workspace folder (you pick its name and location), or choose **Open folder…** to use an existing one. You can also use the workspace selector in the title bar to open a local folder or connect to a remote backend. When you are connected to a remote backend, **Open remote folder** lets you browse directories on that remote machine and choose the workspace root without restarting Qualia.

In Qualia Cloud, the workspace selector lists your cloud workspaces. Select one to switch to its files, projects, agents, terminals, and compute environments, or choose **New workspace** to create another. Workspaces are isolated, and separate browser tabs can stay connected to different workspaces at the same time.

<Note>
  Remote folder browsing uses the filesystem on the connected backend host, not your local computer.
</Note>

## Your first session

<Steps>
  <Step title="Create a notebook">
    Click **New Notebook** in the Files sidebar, or open an existing `.ipynb` file.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Start chatting">
    Type a message in the chat panel on the right. Try something like:

    * *"Load the iris dataset and show me a summary"*
    * *"Train some CNNs on the MNIST dataset"*
  </Step>

  <Step title="See results">
    Qualia writes code cells, runs them, and shows the output — plots, tables, text — directly in the notebook. You can see and edit every cell it creates.
  </Step>
</Steps>

<Tip>
  Toggle the chat panel with **Cmd+Escape** (Mac) or **Ctrl+Escape** (Windows/Linux).
</Tip>