Published on: Wed Nov 18 2015
The internet is a massive force in the world. It is a place we all travel to and speak about that seems to exist in another dimension. On the internet nearly anyone could in theory travel anywhere. "I wish there was time travel!" Memes, websites and small businesses are all things which exist on the web. So many companies exist solely due to our internet communications. Whoever envisioned the tools that lie on our keyboard today. So easily within reach. The command line is where this world came from and still, it is where the infrastructure of our modern world rests. The simple command line requires masterful skill by the author. Who knows what commands the underlying CPU might recognize? Random sequences of strings mean things to it. The modern web is a marvel to behold, bright colors and images, animations and interactivity, but at the same time the core is still a simple line of text which answers a fundamental question. The URL tells where you are and it is your internet command line. It is the only place to write down where you want to go and amazingly enough it is one of the most mysterious places for a traveller. Where will it take you? How often does that URL change? Why do we love walled gardens? What happens when there is randomness? As the internet grows and changes the list of dominant url's, at least for my own personal travels begins to become fixed. The same websites and the same paths. My internet command line is still mysterious. I wish for more knowledge about the places to be accessed and the wonders to see but the internet will never become a real city. Wandering it's hidden architectures will remain a pleasure for only the programs who build the search indices and humans will continue to access the mysteries of that command line through search queries.