Table of contents
Definition
The command-line interface is a program that allows you to interact with other programs by typing out textual commands into a prompt.
Use cases and Examples
The command-line interface used to be the primary way of interacting with a computer, and all instructions had to either be passed in as text or written in a file and run altogether.
These days, everyday computer users hardly use the command line interface. It, however, remains popular among developers. It provides a more effective and concise way to interact with computers.
Creating command line tools are less time consuming to develop compared to graphic user interface (gui) [→]. Developers prefer to create their tools as command-line-based tools hence why its use is widespread among developers.
There is also the element of scripting [→] which allows a developer to create a script to execute a series of instructions all at once, as opposed to typing them out one after the other.
For the everyday users most of their software [→] come with the graphic user interface (GUI) [→] which uses visual elements to take in input and display results to the end-user. This is a lot more intuitive and pleasant to use.
Summary
The command line has been around for ages and remains useful today. Most tools you will have to work with as a developer are only accessible through the command line.
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