Helloooooo !

[John Shelton]

Mohammad Khan wrote:
> Hello Everybody:
> 
> I am a Linux user. I use mostly RedHat and Fedora.
> I am planning to use freeBSD. I never used freeBSD.
> 
> Would anyone please explain:
> 
> What is the benefit of freeBSD over Linux?
> Why should I consider freeBSD instead of Linux?
> What are the current drawback of freeBSD compared to Linux?
> 

The Complete FreeBSD 3rd ed. by Greg Lehey (ISBN 1-57176-246-9) gives a nice 
table of comparisons. It is a few years old, but has (in my experience) remained 
the most fair comparison of linux and freebsd.

"FreeBSD is a direct descendent of the original UNIX, though it contains no 
residual AT&T code.
"Linux is a clone and never contained any AT&T code."

"FreeBSD is a complete operating system, maintained by a central group of 
software developers. There is only one distribution of FreeBSD.
"Linux is a kernel, personally maintained by Linus Torvalds. The non-kernel 
programs supplied with Linux are part of a distribution, of which there are 
several."

"FreeBSD aims to be a stable production environment.
"Linux is still a 'bleeding edge' development environment, though many 
distributions aim to make it more suitable for production use."

"As a result of the centralized development style, FreeBSD is straightforward 
and easy to install.
"The ease of installation of Linux depends on the 'distribution.' If you switch 
from one distribution of Linux to another, you'll have to learn a new set of 
installation tools."

"FreeBSD is still relatively unknown, since its distributino was restricted for 
a long time due to the AT&T lawsuits.
"Linux did not have any lawsuits to contend with, so for a long time it was the 
only free UNIX-type system available."

"As a result of the lack of knowledge of FreeBSD, not much commercial software 
is available for it.
"A growing amount of commercial software is becoming available for Linux."

"As a result of the smaller user base, FreeBSD is less likely to have drivers 
for brand-new boards than Linux.
"Just about any new board will soon have a driver for Linux."

"Because of the lack of commercial applications and drivers, FreeBSD will run 
most Linux programs, whether commercial or not. It's also relatively simple to 
port Linux drivers to FreeBSD.
"Linux appears not to need to be able to run FreeBSD programs or drivers."

"FreeBSD has a large number of afficionados who are prepared to flame anybody 
who dares suggest that it's not better than Linux.
"Linux has a large number of afficionados who are prepared to flame anybody who 
dares suggest that it's not better than FreeBSD."

"In summary, Linux is also a very good operating system. For many, it's better 
than FreeBSD. It's a pity that so many people on both sides are prepared to 
flame each other. There are signs that both sides are learning to appreciate 
each other, and a number of people are now running both systems."


thank you Greg Lehey!
~John, Linux From Scratch and FreeBSD user