Executive TL;DR:

• Modern TUIs are often more hostile to accessibility than poorly coded graphical interfaces.
• Developers are taking the worst practices from the past and wrapping them into one unwieldy TUI.
• Sticking to established interface standards like CUA could improve accessibility.

The Internet’s Verdict: 70% Hyped, 30% Skeptical

The Problem with Modern TUIs

Most modern Text User Interfaces are not what they seem. They are layers of complexity, hidden behind a simple text-based interface.

The reality is different. Most modern Text User Interfaces (TUIs) are often more hostile to accessibility than poorly coded graphical interfaces.

A Lack of Standards

Developers are creating TUIs without following established interface standards, making them difficult to use for vision-impaired users.

I’d agree with this assessment. Moreover, if developers were to stick with the eminently satisfactory CUA (IBM’s Common User Access) interface standard and further regularize that then things would be much easier.

The result is a TUI that is more like a DOS or Borland UI system, rather than a true command line interface.

A Call to Action

It’s time for developers to take accessibility seriously and create TUIs that are simple, intuitive, and follow established standards.

TUIs were supposed to be the simple option. now they’re just web apps wearing a terminal costume

Focus Keyword: TUI Accessibility