From owner-freebsd-advocacy Tue May 12 22:57:47 1998 Return-Path: Received: (from majordom@localhost) by hub.freebsd.org (8.8.8/8.8.8) id WAA18210 for freebsd-advocacy-outgoing; Tue, 12 May 1998 22:57:47 -0700 (PDT) (envelope-from owner-freebsd-advocacy@FreeBSD.ORG) Received: from mailgw02.execpc.com (mailgw02.execpc.com [169.207.16.10]) by hub.freebsd.org (8.8.8/8.8.8) with ESMTP id WAA18192 for ; Tue, 12 May 1998 22:57:30 -0700 (PDT) (envelope-from fpawlak@execpc.com) Received: from john (androzani-2-17.mdm.mke.execpc.com [169.207.92.145]) by mailgw02.execpc.com (8.8.8) id AAA02688; Wed, 13 May 1998 00:57:28 -0500 (CDT) Message-ID: <199805130057270627.00F7F70D@mailgate.execpc.com> In-Reply-To: <199805130549.WAA04218@implode.root.com> References: <199805130549.WAA04218@implode.root.com> X-Mailer: Calypso Evaluation Version 2.40.41.04 Date: Wed, 13 May 1998 00:57:27 -0500 From: "Frank Pawlak" To: dg@root.com Cc: freebsd-advocacy@FreeBSD.ORG Subject: Re: BSD vs Linux Sender: owner-freebsd-advocacy@FreeBSD.ORG Precedence: bulk X-Loop: FreeBSD.ORG Thanks David, I appreciate the history and the growth run rate numbers. I really hope we can come together as a team and make some things happen. Regards, Frank *********** REPLY SEPARATOR *********** On 5/13/98, at 12:51 AM, David Greenman wrote: >>What was it that attracted all the attention to what was in essence a make >>over of Minux, given that BSD was already in existence? It doesn't appear >>that there were or are restrictions in BSD on kernel and subsystem >>development or were there? It appears that BSD hackers as well as users >>are for the most part an older group in contrast to the Linux community. >>What was or is it that attracted the attention of the young hackers to >>Linux and not to BSD? That fundamental something that I am seeking is the >>key to the almost fanatical growth and creation of the illusion that Linux >>is the "cream" of the "open source" operating systems. Or, is it in fact >>not an illusion at all? Why did Linux, late to the game, blow by BSD like >>shit through a tin horn, and now is everybody's darling? Why is it that >>every time the question of why one or the other is the better OS comes up, >>even on the BSD NG, no definitive answer is given? Does all of this >>condense into just a matter of hackers tearing at each other's throats? > > Linux started several years before 386BSD and nearly three years before >FreeBSD. Prior to 386BSD, there wasn't a freeware version of BSD available. >You had to pay $20K to AT&T for a 32V (?) source license. Linus started >Linux because he wanted to hack on Unix and couldn't ("because I was a >poor Finish college student"). If 386BSD had been released from Berkeley >just two years earlier, Linux would never have happend (according to Linus). > The timing here is important because the year-to-year growth of both >Linux and FreeBSD are very similar; the difference is that Linux got started >building their usership years before we did. > >>I have read in an article listed on BSDI's web page that they have >>something like 7,000 customers running over 75,000 servers. We must have > > Current estimates for FreeBSD's installed base is more than 5 times that >and may be as high as 10 times that figure. > >-DG > >David Greenman >Co-founder/Principal Architect, The FreeBSD Project To Unsubscribe: send mail to majordomo@FreeBSD.org with "unsubscribe freebsd-advocacy" in the body of the message