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Claude code amplified the trend hundred fold but there was already a significant increase of TUI since the days of go fzf, rust ratatui and python rich. My bet

Claude code amplified the trend hundred fold but there was already a significant increase of TUI since the days of go fzf, rust ratatui and python rich. My bet would be a desire to do away with heavy browser based UI and the curiosity of trying to test the limits of terminal based rendering.

orbital-decay 6mo ago
TUI is popular because a) there are no native GUI frameworks for simple tools that are easy, fast, and simple to develop in at the same time, and b) low fidelity lets you pretend being a UI/UX developer without really being one. The rest is abysmal. It's not automatable at all (the article is wrong on that point), less readable (monospace/no images), very limited (try making a DAW in it...), relies on a ton of ancient cruft in Unix-related terminals, it's not really portable etc etc.
- agumonkey 6mo ago
  I'd argue that UX these days jumped the shark and that TUI constraints brings back some desirable simplicity, although I agree that they like automation.. but I would bet a few dollars that it's far from impossible (and a fun challenge). People are creative, I wouldn't be surprised if someone made a fun miniDAW in a TUI.
- paradox460 6mo ago
  >try making a DAW in it The very early DAWs kind of had TUIs, to be fair. Things like the Fairlight CMI https://adamstrange.itch.io/qasarbeach https://adamstrange.itch.io/qasarbeach
  - agumonkey 6mo ago
    I think he probably wouldn't classify CMI UI as TUI. It was monochrome and without true type fonts like terminals, but it allowed for pixel drawing it seems. It's a hybrid.
- rahen 6mo ago
  > try making a DAW in it... It would in fact work pretty well for a tracker.
- cmacleod4 6mo ago
  "there are no native GUI frameworks for simple tools that are easy, fast, and simple to develop in at the same time" - Tcl/Tk does all that just fine for me.
- carlos_rpn 6mo ago
  What do you mean by "It's not automatable at all..."? At a former job we had automated extraction of data from a 3270 terminal (several of them actually).
- pbgcp2026 6mo ago
  [dead]

orbital-decay 6mo ago

TUI is popular because a) there are no native GUI frameworks for simple tools that are easy, fast, and simple to develop in at the same time, and b) low fidelity lets you pretend being a UI/UX developer without really being one. The rest is abysmal. It's not automatable at all (the article is wrong on that point), less readable (monospace/no images), very limited (try making a DAW in it...), relies on a ton of ancient cruft in Unix-related terminals, it's not really portable etc etc.

agumonkey 6mo ago
I'd argue that UX these days jumped the shark and that TUI constraints brings back some desirable simplicity, although I agree that they like automation.. but I would bet a few dollars that it's far from impossible (and a fun challenge). People are creative, I wouldn't be surprised if someone made a fun miniDAW in a TUI.
paradox460 6mo ago
>try making a DAW in it The very early DAWs kind of had TUIs, to be fair. Things like the Fairlight CMI https://adamstrange.itch.io/qasarbeach https://adamstrange.itch.io/qasarbeach
- agumonkey 6mo ago
  I think he probably wouldn't classify CMI UI as TUI. It was monochrome and without true type fonts like terminals, but it allowed for pixel drawing it seems. It's a hybrid.
rahen 6mo ago
> try making a DAW in it... It would in fact work pretty well for a tracker.
cmacleod4 6mo ago
"there are no native GUI frameworks for simple tools that are easy, fast, and simple to develop in at the same time" - Tcl/Tk does all that just fine for me.
carlos_rpn 6mo ago
What do you mean by "It's not automatable at all..."? At a former job we had automated extraction of data from a 3270 terminal (several of them actually).
pbgcp2026 6mo ago
[dead]