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Date: Fri, 18 Apr 1997 19:32:45 -0700
From: Sean Eric Fagan <sef@Kithrup.COM>
Message-Id: <199704190232.TAA06434@kithrup.com>
To: hackers@freebsd.org
Subject: Re: Price of FreeBSD (was On Holy Wars...)
Newsgroups: kithrup.freebsd.hackers
In-Reply-To: <199704190157.LAA28991.kithrup.freebsd.hackers@genesis.atrad.adelaide.edu.au>
References: <3.0.32.19970418121536.00b52b60@etinc.com> from dennis at "Apr 18, 97 12:15:38 pm"
Organization: Kithrup Enterprises, Ltd.
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In article <199704190157.LAA28991.kithrup.freebsd.hackers@genesis.atrad.adelaide.edu.au> you write:
>If your gripe is that customers are coming to you complaining that
>you're not supporting -current, sit them down and explain to them in
>short words that FreeBSD is _not_ Linux

Alternatively, work with the developers to come up with a device driver
interface (DDI).

It won't be easy, but if you come up with one, and can get the developers to
adhere to it for the lifetime of a major release (e.g., 1.x, 2.x, 3.x), then
that would probably suit you and your customers just fine.

In the meanwhile, I am reminded about customers (in a previous life) who
wanted the lastest ANSI C features in a compiler that had been out for six
months.  Interestingly enough, free software tends to track moving targets
more easily; perhaps the solution is to release the source code for your
device drivers.