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Path: sserve!euryale.cc.adfa.oz.au!newshost.anu.edu.au!harbinger.cc.monash.edu.au!simtel!lll-winken.llnl.gov!enews.sgi.com!sgigate.sgi.com!spool.mu.edu!agate!violet.berkeley.edu!jkh From: jkh@violet.berkeley.edu (Jordan K. Hubbard) Newsgroups: comp.unix.bsd.freebsd.misc Subject: Re: Questions suitable for the FAQ Date: 7 Aug 1995 18:51:32 GMT Organization: University of California, Berkeley Lines: 72 Message-ID: <405nbk$egg@agate.berkeley.edu> References: <DCyAs7.L6y@midway.uchicago.edu> NNTP-Posting-Host: violet.berkeley.edu In article <DCyAs7.L6y@midway.uchicago.edu>, Frank S. Fejes <frank@gsb13580.uchicago.edu> wrote: > 1. Why, upon bootup, do I receive two BSD options? It looks > like this: F1 dos > F2 BSD > F3 BSD You must have two partitions dedicated to FreeBSD. Just boot from whichever one contains your root partition. It's a little strange to have multiple partitions on one drive, but there's nothing illegal about it. You just get the above behavior. > 2. Is there a way to display free memory, both real and swap? > Top does not seem to be sufficient in this regard. Depends on what you mean by "free" - FreeBSD deals with caching differently. > 3. Is there anything similar to linux's 'dip' program for quick, > easy slip/cslip connections? Try /usr/sbin/ppp > 4. How does one go about adding more Virtual Consoles? I have > seen the pseudo-terminal setting in the kernel (default is > 16), but have not been able to find where to enable the VCs. edit /etc/ttys and turn more vty entries "on". > 5. Why, upon bootup, does the processor speed vary so much and > not really give a good account? I have a Pentium 90, but > it is recognized at anywhere from 60 - 74 MHz. I have no idea.. > 6. Has anyone done any temperature testing while running FreeBSD? > I know linux runs cooler than dos, but have never seen a > mention of FreeBSD. It seems to run really hot compared to No, but we have done numerous taste tests on blindfolded volunteers who have also had 250 micrograms of LSD-25 administered beforehand. 35% of the volunteers said that FreeBSD tasted sort of orange, whereas Linux tasted like purple haze. Neither group mentioned any particular variances in temperature that I can remember. We eventually had to throw the results of this survey out entirely anyway when we found that too many volunteers were wandering out of the room during the tests, thus skewing the results. I think most of the volunteers are at Apple now, working on their new "scratch and sniff" GUI. It's a funny old business we're in! > 7. Is there anything "odd" that FreeBSD does when compiling the > kernel which would cause the memory to make a scratchy > sound? When compiling (and for a brief moment after recognizing > the floppy drive upon startup, as well), a strange scratchy > sound emanates from what appears to be the memory banks. I Yes! You'll see frequent references to "daemons" in the BSD documentation, and what most people don't know is that this refers to genuine, non-corporeal entities that now possess your computer. The scratchy sound coming from your memory is actually high-pitched whispering exchanged among the daemons as they best decide how to deal with various system administration tasks. If the noise gets to you, a good `fdisk /mbr' from DOS will get rid of them, but don't be surprised if they react adversely and try to stop you. In fact, if at any point during the exercise you hear the satanic voice of Bill Gates coming from the built-in speaker, take off running and don't ever look back! Freed from the counterbalancing influence of the BSD daemons, the twin demons of DOS and Windows are often able to re-assert total control over your machine to the eternal damnation of your soul. Given a choice, I think I'd prefer to get used to the scratchy noises, myself! Hope this helps. Jordan