Text-Based Reports

Text-based reports are structured documents generated programmatically to present data, logs, or analysis results in a human-readable plain text format, often using ASCII characters, tables, or simple markup. They are commonly used in command-line tools, system administration, data processing pipelines, and automated workflows to output information without graphical interfaces. Examples include log summaries, data dumps, CSV exports, and formatted console outputs.

Also known as: Text Reports, ASCII Reports, Console Reports, Plain Text Reports, CLI Reports

Why learn Text-Based Reports?

Developers should learn to create text-based reports for scenarios requiring lightweight, portable, and scriptable data presentation, such as generating logs in server environments, outputting results from batch jobs, or creating reports for automated systems where GUI tools are unavailable. They are essential in DevOps for monitoring, in data analysis for quick insights, and in software testing for result summaries, as they integrate easily with other command-line tools and can be processed with scripts.

Learning Resources

• docs: Python's textwrap and format for Text Reports
• tutorial: Creating Text-Based Reports in Bash
• tutorial: Data Reporting with Command-Line Tools
• docs: Text-Based Log Analysis Techniques