I Built a Tool That Explains Any Command or Error in Plain Language

Pragmatic Sysadmin — Tue, 04 Aug 2026 00:00:00 +0000

Every sysadmin has the same job, really. It’s not “manage servers.” It’s not “configure networks.” It’s: explain technical things to non-technical people.

My dad calls me. Something’s wrong with his computer. He says: “It says something about DNS and the connection isn’t private.”

What do I actually need to tell him?

I could say: “Your router’s DNS resolution is failing because the ISP’s nameserver at 8.8.8.8 isn’t responding, causing an SSL handshake failure due to certificate verification timing out.”

That’s accurate. It’s also useless.

What I actually say: “Your internet is having a momentary hiccup. Turn the router off and on, wait 30 seconds, try again.”

Same fix. Better explanation.

That’s the gap I tried to fill with Plain English.

Plain-English on Pragmatic Tech

I Built a Tool That Explains Any Command or Error in Plain Language