Since there is such a fine line between server and desktop use, to avoid confusion there should be a consistent behavior--either the password has visual feedback or it doesn't.
So if this is really a security issue (showing feedback), then there should be no feedback ever. No dots or asterisks for the GUI environment. No asterisks for the CLI.
But if it isn't a security issue, then it's really just a matter of "what old *nix users are used to" as opposed to what makes the most sense, in which case dots or asterisks should be used in both the GUI and the CLI.
Since there is such a fine line between server and desktop use, to avoid confusion there should be a consistent behavior--either the password has visual feedback or it doesn't.
So if this is really a security issue (showing feedback), then there should be no feedback ever. No dots or asterisks for the GUI environment. No asterisks for the CLI.
But if it isn't a security issue, then it's really just a matter of "what old *nix users are used to" as opposed to what makes the most sense, in which case dots or asterisks should be used in both the GUI and the CLI.