*BSD News Article 29119


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From: jkh@whisker.hubbard.ie (Jordan K. Hubbard)
Newsgroups: comp.os.386bsd.misc,comp.os.linux.misc
Subject: Re: Impressions: FreeBSD vs Linux
Date: 03 Apr 1994 17:44:42 GMT
Organization: Jordan Hubbard
Lines: 49
Distribution: world
Message-ID: <JKH.94Apr3184442@whisker.hubbard.ie>
References: <CMzw69.92K@tower.nullnet.fi> <2neomp$k5t@clarknet.clark.net>
	<2nf0fo$76u@sbus.entropic.com> <2nm6tb$m6u@klaava.Helsinki.FI>
	<2nmeb4$ro@menudo.uh.edu>
NNTP-Posting-Host: whisker.hubbard.ie
In-reply-to: cosc19v2@menudo.uh.edu's message of 3 Apr 1994 07:55:00 -0500

In article <2nmeb4$ro@menudo.uh.edu> cosc19v2@menudo.uh.edu (cosc19v2) writes:
   In fact, if the instructions are given correctly, I can do it, but
   in case of *BSD, most the instructions are either outdated, incorrect, or
   not clear.

Oh dear.  I think it's time for me to get into some serious capital
letter usage here!

I find it somewhat annoying that you say `*BSD' here and then proceed
to later admit that you've only tried NetBSD.  Not to flame NetBSD at
all, but each group is different and has different strengths and
weaknesses.  Please do not tar us all with the same brush!

That aside, and speaking more generally, many of the instructions
WON'T GET ANY BETTER IF PEOPLE DON'T HELP US TO IMPROVE THEM!  It
never ceases to amaze me how many people seem to regard 100%
perfection in something they have not paid one penny for as a
god-given right, and for every one person that sends in constructive
criticisms that we can _WORK WITH_, ten more simply whine at us for
not doing a `better job', never even stopping to consider how they
might contribute to the effort themselves!

It also seems to me that Linux is blessed with the twin advantages of
both a very large user base (several times larger than FreeBSD's) and
one that is willing to PITCH IN AND HELP OUT.  In the FreeBSD group,
at least, we are a VERY SMALL group of SERIOUSLY OVERWORKED
individuals who are now giving up what amounts to pretty much *ALL* of
their free time to bring the general public these releases!  I ask
you, would you yourself feel perhaps just a little bit bitter about
the amount of flaming and destructive comparison that goes on here if
you were in my shoes?

Even in the worst situation, where one has tried hard to install some
version of *BSD and had no luck, what do you think that the best thing
to then do is?  Jump on the net and say "xxxBSD is a heap of flaming
horse exhaust!" or drop one of our frequently published mailing lists
a line saying "I've had this bad problem trying to install, can anyone
help me?  Is there anything I can do to help make it work?"  I think
the answer's pretty clear.  We're not commercial software
organizations here, and we can't do it without public help and
support.  If we get fed up and go away, where will that have gotten
everyone?

					Jordan



--
Jordan K. Hubbard	FreeBSD core team	Raving lunatic