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Comment by zakk | Hacker News Reader

100 MB for a terminal emulator? Debian's package for xterm is 200 times smaller, but OK, let's try...

Google Analytics? Thanks, I'll pass on this one!

> 100 MB for a terminal emulator?

Silly on any Linux or on OS X. The available alternatives are too good, and not such a daft size. But it's a real contender on Windows where terminal apps are dire (if improving fast).

> Google Analytics?

There's a setting for it. On or off - user's choice.

If it's on by default, it can't reasonably be called a user's choice.

A user who can't flick a switch on a settings screen has bigger problems than google analytics.

A user has to:

(a) be aware of the existence of said switch for every app they use

(b) be aware of the ramifications of that setting/feature (something I fear even many devs don't fully grok).

(c) Most importantly, can only opt-out after the fact: Google analytics runs before you have any opportunity to access the settings panel.

On reflection I do agree on the ethics of it - if the authors have a defensible reason for using it, they should make full disclosure on first run. I've submitted a github issue to that effect.

The pragmatics are still in favour of it for me - I haven't found another Windows terminal that does everything I want as effectively. Of course I switched off the analytics (scanning settings is always the first thing I do on installing anything). I do tend to try new terminals I come across because electron does seem daft for a terminal, but for now Terminus really does a fine job.

The author has added a welcome screen that it seems (haven't tried the build myself yet) won't enable google analytics until specifically authorised by the user (https://github.com/Eugeny/terminus/issues/845#issuecomment-4...)

Putting Google Analytics into a desktop application is ridiculous and immediately disqualifies the project for me. Event it it were opt-in rather than opt-out.

a user who has to flick a thousand switch a day in multiple apps and sites to have things the way he wants probably as given up and doesn't have the things the way he wants.

You won't need any third party ones on Windows soon enough.

https://github.com/microsoft/terminal

Possibly true - I compiled it and it's a bit rough for daily use as yet. It will be a long time (if ever) before it will compare with iTerm2 or Terminator.

On windows cmder is already damn good. And ms prepares an official better terminal too.

Sure, as I say it's improving. I had a bunch of problems I never fixed with cmder. Windows Terminal has definite promise. We'll see.

If the author wanted to respect the user's choice, they would simply ask instead of using dark patterns.

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