Like all of you, I grew up on Windows.
But in my day, Windows for Workgroups 3.11 was king.
Yes, I am that old.
The GUI was fun to use, but MS-DOS 6.22 was infinitely faster and once you memorized the command variables you could fly across that keyboard like a true DOS Warrior. I spent all of my time in a full screen command window and only went into the GUI when I had to.
Here is my DOS to Linux alias list that I made and use every day...
Paste the following at the end of your .bashrc file which is located in your home directory.
--- DOS WARRIOR ALIASES ---
--- Directory & File Navigation ---
alias dir='ls -laF --color=auto'
alias ..='cd ..'
alias …='cd ../..'
alias ….='cd ../../..'
alias md='mkdir -pv'
alias rd='rmdir -v'
alias pu='pushd'
alias po='popd'
--- File Operations (Safe & Verbose) ---
-i = Interactive (ask before overwrite), -v = Verbose (show action)
alias copy='cp -iv'
alias move='mv -iv'
alias ren='mv -iv'
alias del='rm -iv'
alias erase='rm -iv'
alias type='cat'
--- New File Actions ---
alias create='touch'
alias read='cat'
alias edit='nano'
--- System & Utilities ---
alias cls='clear'
alias sysinfo='uname -a'
alias mem='free -h'
alias cpu='lscpu'
alias disk='df -h'
alias usage='du -sh *'
alias proc='ps auxf'
alias diffcmd='diff'
--- ATTRIB Emulation ---
alias attrib='ls -l'
alias attrib+r='chmod -v a-w'
alias attrib-r='chmod -v u+w'
--- Search & Paging ---
alias search='grep --color=auto'
alias more='less'
--- Safety & Misc ---
alias del.='echo "Error: Use del [filename] to delete files safely."'
alias backup='cp --backup=numbered'
PS: This editor stripped the comment "#" tags for section headers. Please replace them after pasting. Example: "# --- DOS WARRIOR ALIASES ---" otherwise Bash will have conniption fits over it, Lol 
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The last time I used DOS was using COPY command from a dying hard drive to a new one on NT4 Workstation when I was a self-employed IT Contractor. Because it was taking me so long, the company client decided to forget about it and start afresh.
One of the great things about 3.11 for Workgroups was a field you could write into in Network details. Prior to being an IT Contractor I had to Audit the entire hardware inventory of a Social Services Department. This allowed me to enter wall socket number the computers were connected to, thinking it would save whoever did the job of crawling under desks to find the information - little knowing that it would be me again 12 months later.
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I had Windows NT 4.0 Workstation at home running on a Xeon 1. That CPU cost $1500 in 1996! It was a fortune but it kicked Pentium's butt for playing games on it
My first PC I paid for was via a friend who worked for a Church Diocese where the clergy could buy PCs from a PC Guy. It was a Pentium 120, just before the MMX debacle. It had 16 Mb RAM, Windows 95, an obscure sound card, and the infamous S3 Trio Graphics. It cost around £1,000 and it was a shoddy case which spliced your fingers when taking the cover off for upgrades. Additionally, poorly mounted HDD and Optical drive with only two mounting screws instead of four. I upgraded the processor with an Evergreen AMD 400 MHz processor (had to install a fix for Windows 95 as it could not cope with such a high processor, which I had to do in safe graphics mode from memory). I upgraded the graphics to Matrox Mystique 220 and later added the Rainbow Runner Video Editing Card with live TV Capture. I also purchased the Matrox 3d graphics card which ran alongside the main graphics. (For clarity, here in the UK, the MMX debacle was Intel releasing the MMX processors not long after the Pentium range had been released. Consumer TV programmes and consumer organisations wrongly lambasted 'grey' computer manufacturers for not telling consumers about the new processors. Only the now demised PC Plus magazine reported the truth ... Intel had strict contracts with the 'grey' builders of computers - if they leaked any information to the public about the new MMX range they would no longer supply them with processors. This was pivotal in my decision to move to AMD.)
I was also crazy enough to buy a refurbished Matrox TV card just before Analog TV signal was switched off for digital.
2 Likes
I remember Matrox. It was pretty high end stuff. It's cool how folks in the UK went through the same things we did at the same time. I remember MMX. It greatly upset a lot of people after they had already bought the latest greatest Pentium. They had bragging rights for just a few weeks, Lol.
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Getting back on track, I met a clever s*d whilst working as an IT Contractor. He told me that there was 1,000 different DOS commands. During my stint in the build area, he set me a challenge, I was in Bay 1, he was at Bay 3. I changed my login password and he could login as me at Bay 3! So annoying.
I remember he came back from a rebuild job of an NT4 workstation and the client rang to say they could not find an app icon on the desktop, a Purchasing Order Application. Whilst talking on his mobile (he realised he had forgot to add the shortcut on the client's desktop) while he remotely used DOS comnands to place the missing icon, and had the cheek to tell the client that they should look to the bottom right of the screen. The client responded with "Oh yes, Ican't have been looking properly!"
2 Likes
That is just too funny! My favorite tale is about a female client who was happy that I included an automatic coffee cup holder in her PC. I didn't have the heart to tell her that it was the CD drive so I thanked her and hoped for the best 
4 Likes
That reminded me of another true story recanted by a third-line engineer about a real helpdesk case.
Secretary: "I have had a terrible accident. I have spilt coffee onto the manager's keyboard!"
Helpdesk: "Don't panic, run cold water over the keyboard then turn it upside down in the sink for a few minutes to drain then carefully place over a radiator to dry out."
Half-an-hour later ...
Secretary: "The manager is furious, his laptop won't turn on at all!"
Moral of the story ... Always ask the question, "Is this a Desktop keyboard or is it a Notebook?"
3 Likes
That story deserves an award