No_color (no-color.org)

Article summary

The article discusses the increasing use of ANSI color escape codes in command-line software and the proposal of a standard environment variable, NO_COLOR, to disable colored text output by default. This standard allows users to export NO_COLOR to their shell's environment and automatically disable color in all supported software. The article also provides an example implementation and answers frequently asked questions about the standard. The goal of the standard is to make it easy for users to disable color and improve the readability of text output.

Main themes

• ANSI color escape codes
• NO_COLOR standard
• terminal themes
• color customization
• readability and usability
• programming aesthetics

What commenters say

• Some users prefer colored output and find it helpful, while others find it distracting or hard to read.
• The use of ANSI color escape codes can be problematic when the colors chosen by the developer do not work well with the user's terminal theme.
• A universal switch to turn off colored output would be useful for users who prefer plain text or have trouble reading certain colors.
• The NO_COLOR standard is a good solution for users who want to disable colored output, but some software may not support it.
• The trend of using dark mode and neon colors in programming aesthetics is seen as unnecessary and unprofessional by some users.
• Colored output can be helpful in certain situations, such as distinguishing between different types of information, but can also be overwhelming or hard to read in other cases.
• The ability to customize the color palette in terminals can help mitigate issues with colored output, but may not be sufficient for all users.
• Some users believe that developers should prioritize readability and usability over aesthetics when it comes to colored output.