*BSD News Article 68127


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From: Rahul Dhesi <dhesi@rahul.net>
Newsgroups: comp.unix.bsd.freebsd.misc
Subject: Re: Linux vs. FreeBSD ...
Date: 9 May 1996 22:43:32 GMT
Organization: a2i network
Lines: 24
Message-ID: <4mtsek$rbs@samba.rahul.net>
References: <3188C1E2.45AE@onramp.net> <4mnsc5$6qo@sundial.sundial.net> <Dr1wrL.My0@kithrup.com> <3191B103.167EB0E7@FreeBSD.org>
NNTP-Posting-Host: waltz.rahul.net
NNTP-Posting-User: dhesi

In <3191B103.167EB0E7@FreeBSD.org> "Jordan K. Hubbard" <jkh@FreeBSD.org> writes:

>Actually, the information stream has reversed.  From what I understand
>in talking to Justin Gibbs, the maintainer of FreeBSD's Adaptec driver,
>the Linux folks now take his work from FreeBSD and adapt it back to Linux.

A generic question:

Given that the hardest thing about maintaining two parallel operating
systems is the device support,

   How hard would it be for both Linux and FreeBSD teams to revise their
   respective oeprating systems to accept virtually identical device
   driver code?

It would be so nice if either could grab a device driver from the other
and just plug it in.  

Maybe through a generous set of macros that allow for low-level
differences?  Or a little device-driver writing language that translates
high-level code into C?
-- 
Rahul Dhesi <dhesi@rahul.net>
"please ignore Dhesi" -- Mark Crispin <mrc@CAC.Washington.EDU>