I think it is all too easy to be dismissive. Powershell could just be another VBScript, but it is clear that it is Microsoft's response to the proven usefulness

I think it is all too easy to be dismissive. Powershell could just be another VBScript, but it is clear that it is Microsoft's response to the proven usefulness of a decent command-line on OS X. Being Unix is not a prerequisite for the command-line being decent either. What makes a good command-line is consistency and power. For example the command-line on some cira 1980's lisp machines the command-line was the operating system. Then there is the command-line on OpenVMS. I think Microsoft intends to get round some of the limitations you list by building commands into the shell and making the shell itself extensible. Parts of it look very unix/perl like: http://blogs.msdn.com/arulk/archive/2005/02/24/379732.aspx http://blogs.msdn.com/arulk/archive/2005/02/24/379732.aspx Although I am skeptical, I'd welcome any move to make windows more usable and Microsoft has changed the game before in the past. Market share is not always given to the best technology.