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Newsgroups: comp.unix.bsd.freebsd.misc Path: euryale.cc.adfa.oz.au!newshost.anu.edu.au!harbinger.cc.monash.edu.au!simtel!oleane!tank.news.pipex.net!pipex!in1.uu.net!spcuna!ritz!ritz From: ritz@ritz.mordor.com (Chris Mauritz) Subject: Re: Linux or FreeBSD References: <409iah$inf@galaxy.ucr.edu> <40alp5$psg@agate.berkeley.edu> <413bkc$3t2@kadath.zeitgeist.net> <1995Aug24.222509.28085@state.systems.sa.gov.au> <41ko58$rqh@hamilton.maths.tcd.ie> <41l9eo$17h@park.uvsc.edu> <41nfbu$sg@bell.maths.tcd.ie> Organization: Mordor International Date: Sat, 26 Aug 1995 16:48:11 GMT X-Newsreader: TIN [UNIX 1.3 950726BETA PL0] Message-ID: <DDxG0B.95K@ritz.mordor.com> Lines: 55 Timothy Murphy (tim@maths.tcd.ie) wrote: : Terry Lambert <terry@cs.weber.edu> writes: : : >Documentation is an issue, but it's also a red herring. There is : >a significant amount of printed literature that deals with BSD : >and UNIX that is directly applicable to BSD. It's just not : >necessarily labelled "BSD". The Linux documentation that exists : >is rarely more useful than the printed materials not specific to : >BSD when it comes to doing "interesting things". The main cry : >in these cases (like writing device drivers) is that "the source : >code is the documentation". : : I'm really speaking only for the "hoi polloi", : not for system hackers or Unix gurus. : Most people getting a free Unix are not going to buy books : to see how it should be run. : Linux has excellent books as part of the standard distribution; : FreeBSD does not. Um, no. To wit: 4.4BSD System Manager's Manual 4.4BSD User's Reference Manual 4.4BSD User's Supplementary Documents 4.4BSD Programmer's Reference Manual 4.4BSD Programmer's Supplementary Documents These are all published by The USENIX Associaltion and O'Reilly & Associates. Taken together, this is roughly an 8 inch stack of highly detailed information on almost every aspect of 4.4BSD. : In my opinion this is the major single reason : why 10 times as many people use Linux as FreeBSD. Nah, I just think it's because linux used to be easier for newbies to install. That has DEFINITELY changed. FreeBSD is just as easy these days and I personally think it's a bit more robust than linux. However, I liked linux too. They both have their strengths and weaknesses. : in promoting FreeBSD for use by ordinary users like me : they would be much wiser to look to the documentation : provided with the system : rather than to esoteric issues of networking efficiency : which might perhaps arise if one was using a Unix box as a file server : but simply never occur when using a PC as a single-user machine. Feel free to visit your local bookstore and buy the docs. I did and it was well worth it. Regards, Chris -- Christopher Mauritz | For info on internet access: ritz@mordor.com | finger/mail info@ritz.mordor.com OR Mordor International | http://www.mordor.com/ 201/212/718 internet access | Modem: (201)433-7343,(212)843-3451