some more notes

README.rst

@@ -1,12 +1,13 @@
 JSShell
 =======
 
-.. toc:::
+.. toc::
 
 I was thinking about shells, like good ol' bash, and while they fit a
 certain purpose they aren't necessarily the best way to interact with
-files.  They aren't very *modern*, and they are very heavily burdened
-with legacy.
+files and command-line programs.  They aren't very *modern*, and they
+are very heavily burdened with legacy (heck, there's a Posix
+standard).
 
 I'd already been thinking about a terminal in the browser (part of a
 general thought I've had: why do I use any app except a browser?) --
@@ -28,6 +29,8 @@ might output *text*, but the text doesn't *live* on the console, it's
 just text (ignoring for now all interactive terminal programs).  So
 you don't need something like ``screen`` to restart a session -- you
 can store the whole thing in ``localStorage`` to the same effect!
+(Well, I'm not doing that yet, but the point of **all** of this is
+that *could*, not that I *am*.)
 
 The Name
 --------
@@ -49,17 +52,20 @@ The shell doesn't evaluate simply to a list of strings, instead it
 creates an AST (``parser.js:Node``).  Various interpolations are done
 through substitutions in the AST.  Only at the last moment when
 running a command is it turned into a list of strings (which is the
-only way to run commands -- the one fixed API we must conform to).  I
-hope to use this to avoid problems with embedded spaces in filenames
-(i.e., treat filenames as unsplittable strings).  Also it means you
-can have real data structures like arrays.  I haven't made much use of
-this (sometimes it's just *wrong* right now), but I am hoping it will
-be useful.
+only way to run commands -- the one fixed OS-level API we must conform
+to).  I hope to use this to avoid problems with embedded spaces in
+filenames (i.e., treat filenames as unsplittable strings), and maybe
+it'll have other handy side-effects?  Also it means you can work with
+real data structures like arrays, and they won't get implicitly turned
+into strings at any moment.  I haven't made much use of this
+(sometimes it's just *wrong* right now), but I am hoping it will be
+useful.
 
 Also I plan on allowing Javascript-side filtering of both input and
 output, so that things like ``ls`` can be prettied up (e.g., making
 filenames links).  And just generally allowing for nice UI around the
-shell experience.
+shell experience.  Maybe the idea could be thought of as progressive
+enhancement.
 
 Pipes, Background Jobs, etc
 ---------------------------
@@ -69,6 +75,10 @@ I am honestly not sure how to handle these.  At this exact moment
 Probably pipes should be executed on the server, to avoid
 round-tripping to the client.
 
+The whole thing isn't (yet) a programming language.  But with an
+emphasis on UI (not shell scripting) the target isn't really feature
+parity with existing shell languages.
+
 CoffeeScript
 ------------
 
@@ -81,7 +91,17 @@ it makes it almost seem like you are editing the native browser
 language.
 
 I've checked in the ``.js`` files so you can still run this without
-CoffeeScript installed.
+CoffeeScript installed.  But since it's more prototype than functional
+product, you should really just install CoffeeScript (once you have
+Node installed, which you have to do anyway, it's easy to install
+CoffeeScript).
+
+If you are curious, I've been quite enjoying CoffeeScript.  I'm trying
+to avoid some of the more clever syntax, like leaving out ``()`` on
+function calls, and sometimes newlines can be... quirky.  But being
+able to use halfway-decent loops more than makes up for that, and then
+all the other nice CoffeeScript features are just icing.  I'm even
+feeling okay about OO programming.
 
 Interactive/Terminal programs
 -----------------------------
@@ -91,6 +111,11 @@ text.  Those programs aren't supported at all.  I want them all to be
 replicated in the browser anyway (e.g., through an in-browser
 editor).
 
+Basic ANSI escape sequences for color output should be possible and
+desirable (though it requires interpreting that stuff in Javascript --
+messy but doable).  What exact cleverness is necessary to fake a
+program into thinking the output *supports* color is also a question.
+
 Discussion
 ----------