Inconsolation
inconsolation.wordpress.com · Personal blog · on HN since 2013
A now-inactive blog reviewing lightweight terminal and minimalist Linux programs, run by the author of the earlier KMandla site.
What HN saysHN commenters recommend it as a treasure trove of reviews of hundreds of CLI and TUI tools, though it stopped updating in 2015.
16HN people shared it
11linked it in comments
6stories submitted
94story points
12 months agolast shared
2013people per year2026
Most-shared posts
- 1Inconsolation – lightweight and minimalist software for Linux11 people · 23 points · first shared 2014 · discussion on HN
- 2Dmesg: An old, new, cool tool1 people · 70 points · first shared 2013 · 9 comments on HN
- 3A lot With notmuch help involved, and little more1 people · 1 points · first shared 2020 · discussion on HN
- 4Wpe and we someones been reading my mind1 people · first shared 2024
- 5Cmatrix none the worse for wear1 people · first shared 2018
- 6Conquest much time spent not much to show1 people · first shared 2025
- 7Shpaint for the toulouse lautrec of the terminal1 people · first shared 2022
What HN people wrote when they linked it
klez · 2025-04-13
When talking about Linux workflows on older devices it is always worth it to remind people of the existence of kmandla[0] and their later website Inconsolation[1]
Too bad they don't seem to publish anymore.
[0] https://kmandla.wordpress.com/projects/
[1] https://inconsolation.wordpress.com/
leonim · 2024-05-07
I would add another site to the list: https://inconsolation.wordpress.com/
You can find reviews of hundreds of CLI And TUI programs, some great, others barely known and clearly forgotten. The last review is from 2015. Some reviews are very short, others are more involved.
The site is a blog with a tagline "Adventures with lightweight and minimalist software for Linux". The author K.Mandla is opinionated and has certain preferences for such programs like [1].
I have not looked at the site in years, but if you are willing to explore, this could be a fun option to find a variety of these tools.
[1]: https://inconsolation.wordpress.com/2015/01/19/wpe-and-we-someones-bee…
edgarvaldes · 2018-05-07
It is no longer updated, but I recommend https://inconsolation.wordpress.com/ as a very good read. From the about page:
>This blog is intended as a quick look at terminal-based applications available in Linux, and in some similar operating systems. Not only are these ideal for modern, low-power and space-saving computers, but they go a long way toward invigorating out-of-date hardware.
timrichard · 2017-08-21
Looks good.
I'd previously bookmarked this blog (closed in 2015) for
a large number of smaller utilities :
https://inconsolation.wordpress.com/
A bit of a treasure trove. I had a great time going through those reviews.
RexRollman · 2014-03-01
If you like command line Unix tools, the Inconsolation blog is pretty good. He's currently running through the tools alphabetically.
http://inconsolation.wordpress.com/
vhodges · 2023-12-12
Also see: https://inconsolation.wordpress.com/
juef · 2014-09-21
another one: http://inconsolation.wordpress.com/
temp869129 · 2022-10-31
I remember messing around with this when I tried linux on an old computer back in the day.
https://inconsolation.wordpress.com/2015/04/18/shpaint-for-the-toulous…
Fnoord · 2018-01-31
Not sure if this answers your question but I already ran a Matrix screensaver in a framebuffer on Linux ~16 years ago. As per this post I believe it was cmatrix [1]. There's a screenshot on that page. If you look carefully you can notice some odd symbols.
One could also use MPlayer + libcaca + framebuffer.
[1] https://inconsolation.wordpress.com/2013/09/23/cmatrix-none-the-worse-…
rol · 2015-09-04
glances is nice if you want to get an overview of your system resources:
https://github.com/nicolargo/glances
bmon and iftop can be used to see network usage:
https://github.com/tgraf/bmon/
http://www.ex-parrot.com/pdw/iftop/
Similar to iftop there is also iotop, but instead of showing network usage, it shows disk usage:
http://guichaz.free.fr/iotop/
Side note: There was a blog a couple years ago, which isn't being updated now, that would post reviews of CLI tools. Anyone that is interested in this topic should take a look at it:
https://kmandla.wordpress.com/software/
https://inconsolation.wordpress.com/ (new blog from the same person that did http://kmandla.wordpress.com)