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Date:      Tue, 8 Oct 1996 23:19:02 -0700 (PDT)
From:      Doug White <dwhite@gdi.uoregon.edu>
To:        Scot Bohnenstiehl <bohnenstiehl@earthlink.net>
Cc:        questions@freebsd.org
Subject:   Re: Windows 95
Message-ID:  <Pine.BSI.3.94.961008231544.232D-100000@gdi.uoregon.edu>
In-Reply-To: <325AFAD2.6AF6@earthlink.net>

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On Tue, 8 Oct 1996, Scot Bohnenstiehl wrote:

> I have DOS 6.0 and Windows 95 operating systems.  I use the Internet a
> lot and am interested in getting FreeBSD for my Internet use.  I was
> wondering what advantages does FreeBSD have over Windows 95 for the
> Internet and just general use?  Earthlink Network is my ISP and I use
> Netscape Navigator 2.0 as my browser.  I already have e-mail,
> newsgroups, WWW, ftp, gopher, etc.  Also, if I get FreeBSD will I be
> able to still use Windows 95 and DOS?  I was thinking about getting
> FreeBSD from Walnut Creek because it seems they sell quality software. 

If you wanted to learn UNIX from the inside out, setting up a FreeBSD box
would be the way to do it.  If you have no intention of learning UNIX,
then stick to your Win95 box.  

You can get Netscape and a bunch of other software for FreeBSD, so
crossing over net apps isn't that bad.  It gets bad when you try to find a
good word processor like Word; you can't get them (for cheap anyway).  

> P.S. I have heard of another Unix-based operating system called Linux. 
> Could you tell me about this OS and compare/contrast it to FreeBSD? 

Linux is another such free UNIX-style OS.  FreeBSD prides itself on
rock-hard stability, something that is hard to find in any Linux version.
However, Linux tends to be the first to get drivers for new toys, like the
QuickCam -- until someone ports them over to FreeBSD.  Luckily, we have a
nice central repository for all ports with one-command-installation of
many helpful programs.  Try that on Linux.  :)

The FreeBSD vs Linux question is pretty religious -- use what you like.

Doug White                              | University of Oregon  
Internet:  dwhite@resnet.uoregon.edu    | Residence Networking Assistant
http://gladstone.uoregon.edu/~dwhite    | Computer Science Major




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