Date: Fri, 24 Jul 1998 10:46:37 -0700 (PDT) From: David Wolfskill <dhw@whistle.com> To: freebsd-newbies@FreeBSD.ORG Subject: RE: FreeBSD Newbies FAK Message-ID: <199807241746.KAA11663@pau-amma.whistle.com> In-Reply-To: <8625664B.0056D8AA.00@mailex01.Armstrong.com>
next in thread | previous in thread | raw e-mail | index | archive | help
>From: Edmund_L_Mulligan@armstrong.com
>Date: Fri, 24 Jul 1998 11:31:15 -0500
>I think the comments about the changing face of the average newbie from "new to
>FreeBSD" to "new to Unix style systems" is very true....
>From what I have seen the instructions available from the main www.freebsd.org
>site are still directed at the first type of newbie. While it gives simple
>directions to make the boot disk, etc., if there are any issues about the
>install you're in trouble.....
Actually, my perception is that the instructions seem to be oriented
toward folks who have a familiarity with PC hardware (or M$
environments) that, to me, is mind-boggling... and who are new to
UNIX-style systems.
So I suppose we have differing perceptions, which is an interesting
observation, and thus possibly apropos to -newbies. (For the record: I
think it's OK to have differing perceptions -- just in case anyone might
start getting jumpy, or something.)
For example, I haven't yet a clue how to do some of the simple things I
do with Sun machines, like hit L1-A ("Stop-A," for those with newer
keyboards) & modify the boot PROM (to change the boot device order, or
put the machine in diagnostic mode, or probe the SCSI bus(es), for
example). Or how to give arguments to "reboot" so I can (for example)
cause a single-user-mode reboot; on the Suns, I do that by issuing
"reboot -- -s" -- but on FreeBSD, that seems to merely do a normal
multi-user reboot.
And I find that if (as usual), I'm not all that familiar with the
hardware that happens to be available for someone's desktop -- and as I
mentioned in another note, there are quite a few of those, and sometimes
parts get swapped around -- things get reduced to a "hardware-hacking"
session pretty quickly.
This is something that is outside my "comfort zone," since it's my job
(among other things) to make the systems and the network *work* for the
folks I support....
Related to this, I find it difficult to determine precisely what
hardware is in a given machine. Again, on the Suns, I have a program
("sysinfo") that does a pretty good job of figuring this stuff out. If
I can possibly get the time(!), I'd like to port (note "verb" use, vs.
the common FreeBSD "noun" use of "port") the program to FreeBSD, because
it's something I find useful -- especially for documenting the (current)
configuration of a machine (which is something I would like to get
automated for "disaster recovery" preparation).
>One thing I've seen in industry is having a spec/manual/document (whatever) that
>is very information intensive that caters to the people who use it every day and
>are familiar with all the details. Then there is another version of the same
>document with all kinds of additional definitions, details, examples, history,
>etc. to bring you up to speed. The National Electrical Code works that way,
>I've seen electrical specifications work that way, and I like that approach.
Hmmm... that sounds like it could be useful....
>I am NOT trying to look down on the efforts of the group that created FreeBSD.
>I think this is absolutely amazing that such a system can exist as free
>software. I will continue to follow here and -questions. I do intend to keep
>beating on the system until I learn how it works and get it running. I'm not
>even upset, I'm smiling as I write this. I'm the kind of person who likes to
>add the missing rungs, that's all. This is NOT to complain, just to see if
>other newbies feel the same way.
Points taken & understood. I think there's a lot of overlap between
your perceptions & mine, but a fair amount of separation, as well. With
work from folks with a broad enough range of perceptions, I expect that
"missing rungs" can be crafted & placed where they're most appropriate.
Cheers,
david
--
David Wolfskill UNIX System Administrator
dhw@whistle.com voice: (650) 577-7158 pager: (650) 371-4621
To Unsubscribe: send mail to majordomo@FreeBSD.org
with "unsubscribe freebsd-newbies" in the body of the message
Want to link to this message? Use this URL: <https://mail-archive.FreeBSD.org/cgi/mid.cgi?199807241746.KAA11663>