Table of Contents
Editing Text With A Restricted80-characters Per Column
| Field | Computing |
| Went Obsolete | Became less common in the early 90s, but still not completely obsolete |
| Made Obsolete By | High-res framebuffer consoles, and the advent of GUI editors |
| Knowledge Assumed | Basic ability in one of the console editors, such as vi, emacs, or the |
| When useful | Working on systems without a GUI installed and no framebuffer (typical of dedicated servers), or using some systems remotely |
The use of text-mode editors is still a valuable skill, handy for users and critical for administrators, and is not particularly difficult; however, the small size of the standard 80×25 console presents special concerns; long lines in scripts and programs can easily run off the edge of the screen.
Not obsolete. Lines in email should be limited to 80-cols. Coding standards for the Linux kernel require 80-col lines.
