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.
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"As a poster before me said: why not combine them?
Let's analyze that CLI means command line interface, GUI means graphical user interface, what about a command driven graphical user interface (AFAIK THE is somethimg like that)?
At least the biggest disadvantages of both GUIs (flexibility, reusability) and CLIs(memorization, data representation) is by design, not per se."
You have just described the Bloomberg terminal interface. For those who don't know, Bloomberg is a service that gives you all sorts of data in the world of finance. It was founded by the current mayor of NYC, Michael Bloomberg. At the top of your terminal (spread over 2 - 4 LCD screens), there is a command line. Just below the command line is the GUI, which is mostly used for output, but can be clicked on if you prefer. You navigate the system through different menues and commands. Depending upon your specialty, you only have to know a few key commands. If you're good with the commands, you can navigate the system very quickly and get a lot done. If you're a novice, you can drill through the menues on the GUI portion, but it will take you longer.