Fixing Linux, Part One: "The Space Between"

I've been thinking about how to best improve the Linux* userland over the last few days. I was venting pretty loudly about my Linux gripe of the day -- I don't even remember what I was complaining about at the time, but it was a mess of shell scripting, pipes, and about half a dozen command line programs that were conspiring to drive me up the wall. Before I could get into a really quality rant, the kind that would peel paint off the walls, the friend who I was giving an earful to asked me a question, probably to shut me up.

"So what would you do to fix it?"

That's not exactly a new question, but I hadn't been asked it before. So I put a little thought into it.