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Indeed, git commit is not pioneering. But git ls-tree ... | xargs git show ... | sed ... | xargs git add may be. To innovate, to push the envelope you need to

by dexen 15y ago

Indeed, git commit is not pioneering. But git ls-tree ... | xargs git show ... | sed ... | xargs git add may be. To innovate, to push the envelope you need to put pieces together. Until somebody invents and popularizes a way to compose [1] GUI widgets as easily as CLI programs via something like a pipe operator, CLI remains the only composable toolkit. We have, as of yet, no interconnectable GUI replacement for find, grep, xargs, sed etc. Today's GUI widgets are individual nodes. Connected with sneakernet at best -- that's Copy+Paste for ya. No matter how great each node is, there is very little cooperation, little synergy effect. What we need is like the Internet -- live, vibrant network with rich interconnects, and ease to create new ones with few clicks. Only CLI is there today. Rest assured the day of GUI will come, people are working on it all the time. But we arent' there yet, at least not when it comes to pushing the envelope. ---- [1] from user's perspective, not just programmer's

crazygringo 15y ago
In my ideal world, there would be a method for "exposing" command-line arguments that a window manager could use to automatically generate an initial window, preferences pane, buttons, etc. As a programmer, I'd love to simply create a nested array of options that the OS would automatically turn into a tabbed preferences panel, depending on data types and their groups. I suppose it's too much to ask for...
- DTrejo 15y ago
  build it!
Confusion 15y ago
There are plenty of programs that make 'GUI widgets' available for composition. They are all variations on the well known 'Microsoft Visio'-style interface that allows the drag'n drop creation of streams and networks of components, for various specific purposes. For instance, anyone graduating in physics doing an experiment that requires some electrical devices wired to up to each-other will be familiar with one such program (whose name escapes me at the moment). As soon as you become a power user, using the underlying language or something similar to a CLI beats using the GUI. Distinguishing 'GUI widgets' and the ways in which you can wire them together and then actually wiring them together takes more time than doing the same thing in a CLI, for experienced users. I don't see this ever being solved.

by dexen 15y ago

crazygringo 15y ago

In my ideal world, there would be a method for "exposing" command-line arguments that a window manager could use to automatically generate an initial window, preferences pane, buttons, etc. As a programmer, I'd love to simply create a nested array of options that the OS would automatically turn into a tabbed preferences panel, depending on data types and their groups. I suppose it's too much to ask for...

DTrejo 15y ago
build it!

Confusion 15y ago

There are plenty of programs that make 'GUI widgets' available for composition. They are all variations on the well known 'Microsoft Visio'-style interface that allows the drag'n drop creation of streams and networks of components, for various specific purposes. For instance, anyone graduating in physics doing an experiment that requires some electrical devices wired to up to each-other will be familiar with one such program (whose name escapes me at the moment). As soon as you become a power user, using the underlying language or something similar to a CLI beats using the GUI. Distinguishing 'GUI widgets' and the ways in which you can wire them together and then actually wiring them together takes more time than doing the same thing in a CLI, for experienced users. I don't see this ever being solved.