Chapter 2Be Easy to Use
After installing your app, the first experience a user has with it will be the actual command-line interface. If the interface is difficult, counterintuitive, or, well, ugly, it’s not going to inspire a lot of confidence, and your users will have a hard time using it to achieve its clear and concise purpose. Conversely, if it’s easy to use, your interface will give your application an edge with its audience.
Fortunately, it’s easy to get the command-line interface right, once you know the proper tools and techniques. The UNIX command line has a long and storied history, and there are now many conventions and idioms for how to invoke a command-line app. If your app follows these conventions, your users will have an ...
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