Ask HN: Interesting TUIs (text user interfaces), maybe forgotten ones?

Hacker News Discussion ↗

Historical and “Forgotten” TUIs

  • Many reminisce about classic DOS and mainframe TUIs: Lotus 1‑2‑3, WordPerfect, WordStar, Turbo Pascal/C/C++, QuickBASIC/QBasic, Visual Basic for DOS, FoxPro, sidekick‑style tools, and database/ERP systems.
  • Orthodox file managers (Norton/Volkov/XTree, later Midnight Commander, FAR, ZTree) are praised for fast dual‑pane workflows.
  • Mainframe and minicomputer environments (CICS, ISPF, 3270/5250, AS/400‑style UIs) and retail/banking systems are cited as examples of extremely efficient, keyboard‑driven data entry.
  • Other notable systems: AutoCAD’s command line, Oberon’s text‑as‑commands workspace, Acme, teletext/Minitel, DESQview, IBM Topview, and various Borland TurboVision‑based apps.

Modern TUIs in Daily Use

  • Popular tools: ranger/lf/nnn (file managers), ncdu (disk usage), htop/btop/btm/glances (system monitors), k9s/ctop/lazydocker (container/Kubernetes), tig/lazygit/gitui/fnc/debase (git/Fossil frontends), goaccess/lnav/logmerger/toolong (log viewing), ncspot/moc/ncmpcpp (music), aerc/mutt/neomutt (mail), newsboat (RSS), k9s, csvlens/VisiData (data/CSV), fx/kalc/asak (data & calc).
  • Several mention TUIs for Terraform, OpenAPI, Jupyter notebooks, Confluence, email (via mblaze+fzf), ERP/inventory, and games/roguelikes.

Frameworks and Libraries

  • Common stacks: ncurses, TurboVision ports, Ratatui (Rust), Bubble Tea and tview/tcell (Go), Textual/Rich (Python), Ink (Node), Terminal.Gui (.NET), Charm ecosystem, and custom fzf‑based shells.
  • Some frameworks can stream TUIs to browsers or wrap them in GUI shells; one question about “converting TUI to GUI” gets partial answers via such approaches.

UX Themes: Why TUIs Matter

  • TUIs are praised for:
    • High information density on small screens.
    • Predictable, fast keyboard workflows and reliable type‑ahead.
    • Composability, remote use over SSH, and minimal dependencies.
  • Critiques:
    • Unix tools often have poor discoverability and hidden keybindings; DOS/Borland‑style menu bars and on‑screen hints are seen as more approachable.
    • Some modern TUIs overuse custom fonts or graphics, hurting portability.
  • Keyboard vs mouse:
    • Many argue productivity UIs should be keyboard‑first, mouse‑optional.
    • Others note GUIs can match TUI efficiency if designed with the same priorities, but rarely are.