Dear Boss,

Hello, how are you? I am doing well. I want to give you an update on my progress.

As you know, part of our product includes a command-line processor, where users can edit their commands, review previous commands, and edit and resubmit previous commands. This is familiar to anyone who's used a capable command-line on a Unix-like operating system, for example.

This is quite possible in Perl. However, I've come to a place of decision and would appreciate your guidance; I have two incompatible alternatives that affect the schedule. Can you advise me on which requirement is more important?

As you know, The Great and Powerful Code Image Builder Who Cannot Be Argued With has selected a small number of Perl modules, beyond which he will not install any more. There are several very capable Perl moduels which provide the command-line history and editing capability our product requires. They are small, well-tested, and well-documented. I estimate that we could integrate one into our product (from me selecting it, understanding its documentation, testing it, and having it installed into our image) in one afternoon.

If keeping the image as it is is more important, I estimate that it will take at least two weeks for me to reimplement this feature by myself. I have some confidence that I can get it working on our major platform, but with each subsequent platform, my confidence wavers. The difficulty of this task relates to historical standards for character sets, user shells, command characters, and terminal settings. For a good time, read through /etc/termcap on a Unix-like OS sometime.

A third option, of course, is to remove this feature.

As you can see, each of these options has positives and negatives which affect the end product. I feel that this is a decision which can best benefit from your input.

Best regards,
Ken