I do everything in vim. .bashrc, hosts, postfix main.cf, dovecot, ssh_config, sshd_config, vimrc, nginx.conf, bash-completion, ufw user.rules (which is a bit of a pain)... I do all that stuff in ascii. Even desktop launchers, lightdm, and panel settings where can. -gbk
On Fri, Aug 7, 2026, 10:52 PM Keith Lofstrom <[email protected]> wrote: > When I asked, my rimuhosting hosting provider (in New Zealand) > offered to update my debian-based virtual server and websites > hosted there for a few $K. Excellent; in Portland a good > sysadmin costs $K per day. > > Then they started talking about the "virtualmin" GUI interface > to control those apps (apache, moinmoin, sendmail, openvpn, > etc.), as opposed to commented /etc/ config files updated with > vi (and old versions of files saved with rev numbers), which > I've used since SVR4 roamed the Earth. > > How many here control their servers with "invisible" config > files generated by GUI interfaces? Without commented text > files, how do you *verify* WYSIWYG? > > How many prefer editing configuration files (mostly in /etc), > paying attention to file permissions, adding explanatory > comments, and backing up their prior config files since > forever, as I've done for decades? > > Keith L. > > PS: I have been a sloppy touch typist for more than 60 > years, when an insolvent client of my father taught me > typewriter typing in her classes to pay down part of her > debt. Weak small kid, mechanical typewriters, the phrase > "touch typing" wasn't accurate. These days, I'm OK with > a mouse, but not a touch screen. My most frequently used > key is backspace, used about 60 times while writing this > paragraph. GUIs are difficult, screen phones impossible. > > Are text-heads like me doomed? > > -- > Keith Lofstrom [email protected] >
