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Date:      Mon, 27 Oct 1997 15:18:58 GMT
From:      mouth@ibm.net (John Kelly)
To:        thomas c high iii <tch3@mindspring.com>
Cc:        freebsd-questions@FreeBSD.ORG
Subject:   Re: FreeBSD vs. Linux
Message-ID:  <3454aace.387770@smtp-gw01.ny.us.ibm.net>
In-Reply-To: <345440E5.F9C98BAC@mindspring.com>
References:  <345440E5.F9C98BAC@mindspring.com>

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On Mon, 27 Oct 1997 02:21:09 -0500, thomas c high iii
<tch3@mindspring.com> wrote:

>I currently run Red Hat Linux 4.2. I have only been exposed to Linux,
>and never FreeBSD. *Almost* everyone I know runs Linux

Almost everyone I know uses Windows.  But I have little use for it.

>I have had my curiosity peaked. What are the advantages/disadvantages
>of running FreeBSD instead of Linux?

Linux is a nice learning tool with plenty of docs and help available.
Good device driver support too.

>I am not extremely experienced in administering a unix type operating
> system and am anxious to learn it.

I've tested both Linux and FreeBSD extensively, and I keep my eye on
Linux to see what improvements are made.  I recently tested the 2.1.55
kernel, but it still falls apart where FreeBSD just keeps on humming.
FreeBSD handles a heavy load much better. That's why Walnut Creek runs
its 2000+ user FTP server on FreeBSD.  I don't think you'll find many
Linux servers capable of that load.

There are more Linux users than FreeBSD because in a single user
environment Linux often *appears* to work fine.  But ISPs who need to
run serious production machines almost invariably choose FreeBSD over
Linux.  They're beyond the learning stage and don't need a lot of help
and documentation.

Linux helped me learn UNIX, but I've moved on to FreeBSD.  I don't
recommend that you immediately drop Linux and start with FreeBSD,
because there is more documentation and help available for Linux, and
sometimes the Linux man pages are better than their FreeBSD
counterparts.

But if you have any intention of ever running a serious server, at
some point you should investigate FreeBSD.

John





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