Article:		Unix Gems for Mac OS X
Subject:		Little to do with Mac OS X
Date:		2004-07-08 01:09:04
From:		sanchonevesgraca
I think most Mac OS X users, including developers, will find the programs you outlined rather outdated, and certainly having little to do with Mac OS X. Users and developers of Mac OS X use the BSD core, but expect a modern interface and modern connectivity options. There are quite a few layers on top of the Darwin kernel, for a myriad of concerns. There are indeed GNU programs that are gems. But I would not rate as gems screen (the window management of Apple Terminal is very good), remind (compare with Apple iCal), bc and GNUPlot (compare with Matlab, Mathematica or lighter alternatives). While these programs have their value, they are not really Mac OS X applications from a user point of view. For that, they would have to be wrapped with one or more of Carbon, Cocoa, WebKit, Dashboard, etc, with particular attention to user interaction.

Showing messages 1 through 2 of 2.

• Maybe not for everyone, but...
  2004-07-10 14:17:20  tomsax [View]
  
  
  I've been a rabid Mac user and developer since 1984. I had been exposed to the Unix command line a few times, first using the Manx C compiler on a "fat Mac" in 1985. While I wouldn't trade the Mac GUI for anything else, I find the command line to be a nice addition to the graphical UI. I for one am always interested in learning how to be more productive by using the CLI for things it does well.
  
  I enjoyed reading about each of these programs, please show us more.
  
  That said, I'm zero for two so far.
  
  Screen doesn't work quite as described: Ctrl-a does not bring up the list of windows. Also, Cmd-K (clear scrollback) doesn't work in a screen session. I use bask, maybe it works better with tcsh.
  
  I downloaded remind and was able to configure and build it, but the install failed (even using sudo or su) until I manually created /usr/local/bin and /usr/local/man.
• Maybe not for everyone, but...
  2004-07-10 15:46:16  kom_14 [View]
  
  
  In screen, you get the window list by typing Ctrl-a " (double-quote). There was a misprint in the article. Cmd-K does not work under tcsh either. Try C-a C to clear the screen.