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Introducing Prompt. Nice SSH for iOS.

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Re: Introducing Prompt. Nice SSH for iOS.

#121

Post by tvon »

ezy wrote: post #53
swombat wrote: post #36

Earlier quoted context omitted.

As a happy user of Terminal, what's wrong with it? It's fast, it's simple, it supports multiple colour profiles, it can be customised like any other shell... What more do you want out of your terminals?

To choose a few obvious gaffes: - no xterm mouse support (no, option-click is not the same) - the utterly stupid default for PageUp/PageDown/Home/End, which is correct for OSX UI, but utterly wrong for terminals. Less obvious (relavent to UI): - No notification support - No window splitting (yes, screen works, but, re: changing panes, see xterm mouse, above) - inability to launch a particular named window group from…

Out of curiosity, what do you do in a terminal? I ask because I used Linux as my primary desktop for about 7 years before moving to OSX in '06, and since then I've been using Terminal somewhat exclusively (except for the occasional peek at iTerm). Granted, I use gnu screen, and aside from the occasional mutt or irssi these days, I don't use many "full screen" terminal apps other than vim.

Still, I'm genuinely curious because I know you're not the only one that finds Terminal lacking.

Re: Introducing Prompt. Nice SSH for iOS.

#123

Post by silencio »

rhizome wrote: post #118
danilocampos wrote: post #109

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's not clear to me what you're objecting to. This isn't a conversation about the simplicity (or not) of the SSH protocol, but rather a conversation on why it's exciting when good, simple tools like Prompt are created.

You're making a category error against SSH with examples like knives, which have a lot of variation. Let's see you write as much about having used a "really nice chopstick" or typing an especially round period at the end of a sentence. There's a paradox here where ssh is already a good, simple tool, so how do you improve on that? Make it easier to type on an iPad? I don't think that's going to happen, so let's take a…

> Let's see you write as much about having used a "really nice chopstick"..

Even though I think you're splitting hairs (I think the omelette and knife examples work well) I can write about a really nice pair of chopsticks: the ones I'm using right now to eat my pasta for dinner. They're not fancy, I think I bought the 5 (pair) pack for less than $10. But the weight of the metal is just perfect. Not too heavy, not too light... just slightly heavier than a wooden disposable pair of chopsticks. It's a very rounded square shape with small grooves on the tapered end to give you enough purchase to grab pretty much anything while not getting in your way and being difficult to manipulate because of edges or overall slipperiness. There's nothing ornate about this pair, which makes it easy to clean and to pair with random sets of my modernist spoons and forks. Unlike the stereotypical huge plastic pair of chopsticks at Chinese restaurants, the heavy flat metal ones that fatigue my hand at Korean restaurants, and the wooden pair that splinters that comes with my takeout, this is perfect.

Okay, so I went there. But I'm not kidding, I really do mean it about these chopsticks.

> Make it easier to type on an iPad? I don't think that's going to happen

Really, that is the only thing I compare when I'm shopping for an iOS ssh client. Ease of typing all the keys I need in an ssh client makes all the world of difference on a screen as small as an iPhone, while it may not be as big of a deal on iPad. Plus, Prompt works out-of-the-box just fine with my bluetooth keyboard that I've seen, unlike iSSH and some other alternatives, so that's already made the $5 well worth it to me.

Re: Introducing Prompt. Nice SSH for iOS.

#124

Post by dcope »

gregory80 wrote: post #73
cschmidt wrote: post #69

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I think your comment highlights a difference between the Android and iOS communities. Android users just want free software, while iOS users don't mind paying for quality. Guess which platform ends up with the slickest software, with the most spit and polish. Developers find paying customers on iOS, so that's where the develop.

> Android users just want free software, while iOS users don't mind paying for quality. that seems like a gross generalization. Having had and used both android and iOS I never saw that behavior in myself or others. I have to agree with OP, i don't understand the excitement over this SSH client, interface included. A shell prompt is one of the oldest interfaces. iOS can support 3D graphics rendering and gaming and pa…

The excitement is not just over "an SSH client". Knowing that Panic engineered and designed it is a huge selling point. They've been known for years to make some of the best software for OS X. This is their first venture into iOS and they don't disappoint.

I will (and actually did) gladly pay $5 for software that is designed well and works very well.

Re: Introducing Prompt. Nice SSH for iOS.

#125

Post by yurifury »

matthijs wrote: post #101
jcsalterego wrote: post #42

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I still use Terminal.app on a daily basis but here are some missing features: - 256 color support (for your pretty emacs or vim) - advanced bookmarks, with tagging - send to multiple tabs

For 265 color support you can use this: https://github.com/timmfin/terminalcolours

Doesn't that just let you customize 16 colours to whatever you want? That's not real 256 colour support, is it?

Re: Introducing Prompt. Nice SSH for iOS.

#126

Post by jcfrancisco »

gatlin wrote: post #112
mhw wrote: post #102

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Free ssh client for iOS? Do you have an example? I'm genuinely interested, but haven't found one.

ZaTelnet. The terrible name seems to keep it from ever being popular.

I used zatelnet before buying Panic's app. It was absolutely horrendous.

Re: Introducing Prompt. Nice SSH for iOS.

#127

Post by leejoramo »

sigil wrote: post #119
mryall wrote: post #104

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Even in your preferred case, you're typing your passwords into a closed source browser on a closed source OS. You have to trust someone at some point. Panic also seems to be a quite reputable company. They've been in the Mac software business for a long time.

> Even in your preferred case, you're typing your passwords into a closed source browser on a closed source OS. One could argue that iOS / Mobile Safari are both under incomparably more pressure to remain secure compared to any individual app, but you're totally right on a fundamental level. The truly paranoid should demand openness at all layers. > You have to trust someone at some point. Whole 'nother debate. ;) >…

Panic has had SFTP built into Transmit since 1998, and a full SSH terminal in Coda since 2007. So Prompt did not come out of nowhere, they have quite a bit of experience in this problem space.

Still if you are in an industry that demands careful vetting of security, I certainly agree one should not jump on a new SSH client right away.

Re: Introducing Prompt. Nice SSH for iOS.

#128

Post by haberman »

swombat wrote: post #36
ezy wrote: post #30

iSSH is still better. Especially on an iPad, and most definitely if you use a bluetooth keyboard once in a while [1] Furthermore, I don't understand how someone could even make the remark that an ssh client reminds them of linux, and mean it negatively. :-) I certainly don't want an the equivalent IOS SSH client to the one Apple makes for OSX -- Terminal is rather shitty. [1] BT keyboards on ipads don't support CTRL…

As a happy user of Terminal, what's wrong with it? It's fast, it's simple, it supports multiple colour profiles, it can be customised like any other shell... What more do you want out of your terminals?

I love Terminal too. It's extremely fast at scrolling, and it is the only terminal emulator I know of that does the right thing when you resize the terminal (it reflows everything to the new width).

It's also knows if any programs are running inside the shell and changes the red "X" button in the top left corner accordingly. If the button is "X", you know you can close the terminal without losing any work. If a program is running (even suspended with CTRL-Z) Terminal changes the button to a circle to indicate that work would be lost if the window was closed.

Re: Introducing Prompt. Nice SSH for iOS.

#129

Post by aiiie »

ezy wrote: post #53
swombat wrote: post #36

Earlier quoted context omitted.

As a happy user of Terminal, what's wrong with it? It's fast, it's simple, it supports multiple colour profiles, it can be customised like any other shell... What more do you want out of your terminals?

To choose a few obvious gaffes: - no xterm mouse support (no, option-click is not the same) - the utterly stupid default for PageUp/PageDown/Home/End, which is correct for OSX UI, but utterly wrong for terminals. Less obvious (relavent to UI): - No notification support - No window splitting (yes, screen works, but, re: changing panes, see xterm mouse, above) - inability to launch a particular named window group from…

I was never really a fan of iTerm, but I do really like using my mouse in terminal applications, so I wrote a SIMBL plugin for Terminal that implements support for mouse tracking: [link redacted]

Also, I think a recent update added support for horizontally splitting windows (with cmd+D).

I do agree though, I think Apple could do a much better job with Terminal.

Re: Introducing Prompt. Nice SSH for iOS.

#130

Post by leon_ »

bxr wrote: post #57
rimantas wrote: post #49

Earlier quoted context omitted.

assume you're talking to a slightly technical audience Some, even in technical audience have a taste for good UI.

Ok, and thanks for assuming from my post that I don't care about interface, but then show me _that_. All I see other than an generic iOS interface is a keyboard with a few convenience keys. Is that it?

Yep, that's all. But hey, it's iOS where you can - given enough hype and marketing - make everything sell well.

I wouldn't dream of installing a SSH client on my iPad - simply because the keyboard has no physical feedback. I can't type on that thing. I guess there will be many people who will buy this app and still will be disappointed afterwards.

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