*BSD News Article 5844


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From: bostic@toe.CS.Berkeley.EDU (Keith Bostic)
Newsgroups: comp.unix.bsd
Subject: Re: Catch What They're Saying About Us...
Date: 1 Oct 1992 00:08:15 GMT
Organization: University of California at Berkeley
Lines: 49
Message-ID: <1adfhfINNm0a@agate.berkeley.edu>
References: <VIXIE.92Sep23102423@cognition.pa.dec.com> <19ta0nINNj2q@agate.berkeley.edu> <1992Sep27.093703@eklektix.com>
NNTP-Posting-Host: toe.cs.berkeley.edu

There are statements concerning the CSRG in the recent posting by Lynne
Jolitz that are not true.  Specific comments follow.

	> The [386BSD] system was ready for users in 1989,
	> but it's release was consistently put-off by CSRG.

The contribution letter from Jolitz to the CSRG for the 386 architecture
support is dated December 31, 1990.  Regardless of its "readiness for
users", the CSRG had no permission to redistribute it until that time.
The CSRG at no time made any agreement to distribute the 386 support at
any specific time, other than "as part of the next release", which was
done in June of 1991.  A copy of this contribution letter is available
from me by providing me a stamped, self-addressed envelope.

	> They [BSDI] have received many changes from CSRG
	> (one and the same with BSDi), but are not distributing them.

As we have publicly said before, the CSRG does not make software available
to any vendor that is not available to all other vendors and/or
individuals.  Period.  Accusations of this sort should be substantiated
with the names of specific files and programs to permit the truth to be
independently determined by the comparison of releases.

	> They [BSDI] have even received Chris Torek's sparc code, paid for
	> by the taxpayers, which has not been made available to others
	> despite repeated requests, and are currently attempting to make
	> money off of it in the same manner in which they tried to
	> appropriate 386BSD.

We note this statement only because it was part of the above paragraph,
possibly implying that this was an issue for the CSRG.  Chris Torek's
Sparc port belongs to the Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory (his employer) and
we have no idea if BSDI has the Sparc code or not.  A copy has been
contributed by Lawrence Berkeley Laboratories to the CSRG for distribution
with 4BSD.  As is our practice with the code contributed to us, it is
available from the CSRG on our most recent release, 4.4BSD-Alpha.  It is,
unfortunately, a licensed release, but there's nothing we can do about
that.

	> If we hadn't spent the time making sure 386BSD was completed and
	> distributed, it still would not be available either.

Once again.  Every line of code contributed to Berkeley by Jolitz was made
available as part of the next release by the CSRG, in this case, the NET/2
release made last year.

Keith Bostic
Kirk McKusick