Windows Vista vs Windows XP

[caravel]

I have to concur with Blodrast, who has put over the argument better than I could have.

The command line is surprisingly faster than a GUI. I don't claim to be anything like a UNIX/Linux pro myself but when it comes down to it, using a terminal is easier than using the GUI almost every time. If I was to go to an official forum for a given distro for technical assistance with any issue, then the solution is often a cut and paste terminal command. Basically I can study the command and see what the poster is trying to do, and learn from that, or I can take it as read cut and paste it into my terminal and hit enter. This is a hell of a lot easier and faster than trying to to tell a user to: "click here, click there, click that, click the something tab, right click properties, uncheck the something box, click apply now reboot"... etc, etc. Basically you'll only find yourself using the terminal if something needs fixing, configuring or if the X server is broken (rare). Otherwise you'll spend most of your time at the GUI.

So adding to the argument: The terminal isn't used because it's overly technical and makes us feel as if we look clever by knowing seemingly complex commands, it's there because it's faster, more expedient and is much better for user support.