Learning to Walk: A Linux User Migrates to FreeBSD

[Alex de Kruijff]

On Sat, Oct 25, 2003 at 01:48:39PM -0700, peter lageotakes wrote:
> 
> --- Alex de Kruijff <freebsd at akruijff.dds.nl> wrote:
> > On Sat, Oct 25, 2003 at 08:49:25AM +0300, Giorgos
> > Keramidas wrote:
> > > On 2003-10-24 14:47, Alex de Kruijff
> > <freebsd at akruijff.dds.nl> wrote:
> > > >On Thu, Oct 23, 2003 at 07:17:20PM -0700, peter
> > lageotakes wrote:
> > > >> This is the follow up (part 2) to Babe in the
> > Woods: A
> > > >> Linux User Migrates to FreeBSD.
> > > >>
> > > >> Interesting article. However I disagree with
> > the views
> > > >> about handbook being written at the admin.
> > level (and
> > > >> more). The article could be more positive.
> > > >>
> > > >>
> >
> http://www.ofb.biz/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=269
> > > >
> > > > I say this is prity positive considering his
> > previous article about
> > > > 5.0.  I feel that he gives _his_ fair point of
> > view on FreeBSD.
> > > > Strainge that top didn' run, i didn't had this
> > happening to me.
> > > 
> > > This is very likely a result of more serious
> > problems with the /dev
> > > directory of the installation (like the missing
> > /dev/null described in
> > > the article).
> > > 
> > > I'll agree that it is a rather fair article,
> > despite my reservations
> > > regarding the problems described.  I've installed
> > 4.8-REL a lot of times
> > > but didn't have any of the same problems.  The
> > fact that someone else
> > > did, which is probably unsurprising for newcomers
> > to FreeBSD, doesn't
> > > mean that I'm super smart or that the authors of
> > the article are silly
> > > either.  The installation process depends on very
> > scrutinous attention
> > > to details whose significance isn't yet very
> > apparent when one is a
> > > FreeBSD newbie.  This is what the documentation
> > team is trying to help
> > > about by writing the Handbook and the rest of the
> > docs.
> > > 
> > > Let's hope that the quality of the existing
> > documentation and the future
> > > efforts of the doc team make problematic cases
> > like the one described in
> > > the article less and less frequent :-)
> > 
> > Its not just the doc team who arre responcible for
> > the succes of
> > FreeBSD. Its the whole team, including amoung
> > others, the doc-team,
> > developers, core and the users on the lists
> > (esecialy those on
> > questions, newbie, stable and current).
> 
> The install process in the handbook is very detailed. 
> I dont believe that is an issue (imho).  One aspect I
> think might need a small amount of clairification is
> release, stable and new technology relase (etc).  That
> seems to be a small stumbling block for new users to
> FreeBSD.  

I would also think the handbook is good the way it is. I think the mail
problem with the handbook is that people don't read it. I feel this is
essecialy true for newcommers.

The freebsd fourtune might help with this. Like showing messages that
adverstise the handbook. (i.e. "Do you wan't to have a NFS server? Read
-url to nfs chapter-" and follow with if it still doesn't work send a
mail to questions@) This obviously won't point someone who has trouble
installing FreeBSD to the handbook. But it might show a large number of
other newbies that the handbook has a large number of issues solved.

-- 
Alex

Articles based on solutions that I use:
http://www.kruijff.org/alex/index.php?dir=docs/FreeBSD/