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Xref: sserve comp.os.386bsd.misc:2691 comp.os.linux.misc:19603 Newsgroups: comp.os.386bsd.misc,comp.os.linux.misc Path: sserve!newshost.anu.edu.au!harbinger.cc.monash.edu.au!msuinfo!agate!howland.reston.ans.net!EU.net!dkuug!dde!kim From: kim@dde.dk (Kim Andersen) Subject: Re: I hope this won't ignite a major flame war, but I've got to know! Organization: Dansk Data Elektronik A/S Date: Mon, 18 Jul 1994 21:27:15 GMT Message-ID: <1994Jul18.212715.18684@dde.dk> References: <30drlt$7tc@news.u.washington.edu> <1994Jul18.093302.19670@wmichgw> <30e4dr$jno@bigblue.oit.unc.edu> Lines: 55 ewt@merengue.unc.edu (Erik Troan) writes: >2) BSD has a crowded namespace. Should you install 386BSD, FreeBSD, or NetBSD? > They're all similiar, they just happen to be different. There's only one > Linux kernel. That pretty amazing when you consider the Linux copyleft This is a silly comparison. 386BSD, FreeBSD and NetBSD are *complete* distributions. If you want to compare Linux and the *BSD's do it on basis of SLS-MCC-Slackware-T???-Debian. >3) Linux started first. It was up and running before BSD was released which > gave us a head start on user count. Sure, but the first "users" of linux should probably be described as adventurous hackers. >5) Open distributions play a big role. When SLS's problems became unacceptable > Patrick stepped in with Slackware and saved the day. MCC/TinyX makes > Linux a great laptop system. Linux's GPL nature makes it easy for someone > to step in and fix problems. I don't know why this hasn't led to mass > confusion in the Linux community, but so far it hasn't. And every Linux distribution used to have their own filesystem layout. You're free to make *any* packacked distribution of the *BSD's, you can even sell it for whatever you think the market will pay. > Linux is designed for users while BSD is designed for system admins. I > know a lot of good unix folks who run BSD, but they say Linux is better > for the average user. There are a lot more average users then power > users in the world. I don't really see this, please explain. >9) The Linux Documentation Project (LDP) is doing a fantastic job. Anyone > trying to decide between BSD and Linux would find the Linux's Installation > and Getting Started Guide a good incentive to follow Linux. I can't > give Matt, Michael, et all enough kudos for their good work there. The *BSD's have had documentation from the very start, you can even get a book about the os. >Anyway, those are my thoughts. Don't think that BSD doesn't have advantages >over Linux - it certainly does (especially in networking code, though Linux >is catching up). Both systems work very well and the competition between >the two is certainly a good thing. I changed from ISC2.0.1 to Linux0.12, and stayed with Linux until 0.95?, then changed to 386BSD0.1 I've run NetBSD since the first release in Apr '93 >PS: I forgot one reason for Linux's popularity - it has a fabulous ftp > site at sunsite ;-) This probably could be the second most important reason. regards kim -- -- Kim Andersen @ Dansk Data Elektronik A/S, Herlev, Denmark. E-mail: kim@dde.dk or ...!uunet!mcvax!dkuug!dde!nessie!kim