Linked by Greg Afinogenov on Wed 3rd Sep 2003 07:19 UTC
It is not fashionable nowadays to speak of the merits of the command line, in an age where things like streaming video and Aqua are an integral part of our daily life. However, I do not think that typed-in commands must necessarily be consigned to the dustbin of computer history. Of course, I am not suggesting that we all drop X and Windows and pretend like we are living in the early eighties. The command line interface still has much to offer us, and many of its benefits simply cannot physically be emulated or even replaced by graphical ones.
Permalink for comment
To read all comments associated with this story, please click here.
To read all comments associated with this story, please click here.
Recent Original Stories
Recent Comments
Headlines
Random Comments
Random Stories
Random OS Link
The essential point of modern operating systems is not that GUIs are everything. In older systems, it is not true that the CLI is everything.
Some things, such as fast directory navigation are easier with a GUI and others, such as greps are better with a CLI. These are admittedly simple and poor examples, but I'm having my lunch. And yes, I'm using web browser keyboard navigation, because then I can just use one hand while I eat, and not have to move back and forth to the mouse.
Ultimately, however, the two interface methods are complementary. The CLI, fundamentally is very basic. When creating the most simple of applications, it is ideal. You don't have to deal with widgets or event handling or anything complex. At the same time, GUIs can grow from these applications. It should also be mentioned that building GUI applications requires being able to spew out messages to helpfully debug, often. The command line is ideal for that. Otherwise you have to use a heavyweight debugger (which does the same thing, or write lots of extra widgets, objects and code to be able to report your messages.
Neither the GUI nor the CLI is perfect and they exist in harmony to each other.
To be honest, my effectiveness at work would halve if I didn't have Konqi with the embedded terminal emulator at the bottom of the window. I get all of the GUI benefits and things that can only be done easily with the CLI can be done instantly too.