In the Beginning was the Command Line, by Neal Stephenson | Hacker News Reader

In the Beginning was the Command Line, by Neal Stephenson

cryptonomicon.com

24 pointsandreyf12 comments

I have this essay as a book in hard copy. Now that Neal has released it, if you don't already have it you should definitely read it.

It strangely continues to be true. Maybe because the concept he talks about pervade the makeup of the operating systems he discusses so much.

I looked at the new Mac Pro the other day, and it seems to me that things are coming full circle. The advantage Mac gets by controlling the hardware as well as the software is really putting them ahead of Microsoft in terms of what they can do and I would expect it to continue.

To be more clear, if you build for a maximum of 3 possible configurations you can make a much better experience than someone who has to deal with a virtually infinite amount. So, takes less resources to do and makes a better experience in the end. Sounds like a win-win to me.

In the beginning, there were switches and lights....

And, "Bill Gates and Paul Allen came up with an idea even stranger and more fantastical: selling computer operating systems." is false. IBM had been selling operating systems for years, thanks to one of the consent decree. (This let Amdahl and the first clone makers concentrate on building hardware and ignore software.) Moreover, Gates almost certainly knew that IBM sold operating systems.

I doubt that IBM was the first to sell operating systems, and if it was, I seriously doubt that Microsoft was the second.

Ok, ok, it's a classic essay.

However, it's a classic. Not news.

Next thing you know there'll be a front-page article recommending "Godel, Escher, Bach", a trip through the Jargon file, a link to the Scary Devil Monastery group and, hey, did you read that thread where Linus gets into a flame-war with Tanenbaum?

Also, ED is the standard editor! Yeah!

I know, it's even been posted, nearly a year ago: http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=95912

Apologies to showing it to you twice. However, I think the benefit of showing it to those who haven't seen it outweighs the cost of seeing it twice (feel free to down-vote this to negate the karma).

Not to worry, I was just feeling cranky. Posting at 3 AM and all that :)

Reposts after around a year are definitely fair game

Interestingly since writing that Stephenson has stated in interviews that he exclusively uses OSX these days.

From where you do have access to a decent command line...

Indeed, he said in 2004:

  I embraced OS X as soon as it was available and have never
  looked back. So a lot of "In the beginning was the command
  line" is now obsolete. I keep meaning to update it, but if
  I'm honest with myself, I have to say this is unlikely.

http://interviews.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=04/10/20/15182...

In the beginning was the punch card.

great classic read. It should be posted once a year, holiday time seems about right :)

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