freebsd-advocacy Digest, Vol 248, Issue 1

[Salvatore Albanese]

Greetings all.

I met with Alan Cox early this year, and we spoke about how Linux and 
FreeBSD should stay compact and hold our ground on Free Open Source 
Software... this is the most important thing we need to keep in mind.

We have to study the history of BSD in general and it's roots.

There are several distro's of FreeBSD, that is good, that allows growth and 
does not isolate any one of the many developers and coders.

We must remind that apple experimented with UNIX many years ago and now use 
the Darwin distro for MAC OS X. This is a big statement! Imagine a BSD 
distro that is so easy even windows users find it confortable. 20% of the 
windows market moved to MAC OX S in that last 18 months.

We have seen several real tries of Desktop based solutions of BSD sprout up 
in the last few years, and they are really good, with very large user base.

With our (we advocates) help we can move along side of MAC and get a larger 
slice of the pie.

Remember it is up to us to advocate. Not like a zelot, but by showing the 
way and putting a good foot forward and not get sucked into my distro is 
better than yours. we need to be honest and show what is best for the users 
needs.

I am looking forward to October 22 - 25 where I will take the FreeBSD 
foundation and FreeBSD to the people and try to get them to try it. I am 
sure we will have lots of people who will say why use FreeBSD there is 
LINUX. I met with the TLUGS, and many told me they already use BSD, infact 
they asked me to come to the last meeting to present some info about 
FreeBSD. The developer from Debian did more advocacy for FreeBSD than I did.

See there are many person who see the power of FreeBSD and will tell you 
straight off. Many users at TLUGS told me they were not aware of what was 
going on with the Desktop distros of FreeBSD, and then the LINUX Users  also 
told me Oh boy now I can have a FreeBSD desktop just like my server OS! I 
said what... they told me a FreeBSD server scales well and they use it.

So ther We need to keep the soft approach, and keep on the drums so that our 
voices are heard.

Many times it is only a short talk about the advances FreeBSD is making that 
will help FreeBSD become used more.

I for one have started a project to push FreeBSD in my area, and I have 
found very positive reactions.  Free Open Source Software is now comming of 
age.

Let all know about the sucess stories, and if you pass some stories my way I 
will be sure to make them known at the Trade show that will be help in 
Ticino Switzerland this year.

Salvatore Albanese
Sr Consultant
OEMS Sagl
CP 210
6576 Gerra (Gambarogno) TI
Switzerland

Tel  +41 91 859 0730
Fax +41 91 859 0731

E-mail info[at]oems(dot).ch
Web www.oems.ch
Skype name: oems_sagl

Please consider the environment before printing this e-mail




----- Original Message ----- 
From: <freebsd-advocacy-request at freebsd.org>
To: <freebsd-advocacy at freebsd.org>
Sent: Monday, July 28, 2008 2:00 PM
Subject: freebsd-advocacy Digest, Vol 248, Issue 1


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> Today's Topics:
>
>   1. Re: FreeBSD News blog (Norberto Meijome)
>   2. Re: FreeBSD News blog (Norberto Meijome)
>   3. Re: FreeBSD News blog (J.C.)
>   4. Re: FreeBSD News blog (Norberto Meijome)
>
>
> ----------------------------------------------------------------------
>
> Message: 1
> Date: Sun, 27 Jul 2008 22:23:39 +1000
> From: Norberto Meijome <freebsd at meijome.net>
> Subject: Re: FreeBSD News blog
> To: freebsd-advocacy at freebsd.org
> Message-ID: <20080727222339.1357308e at ayiin>
> Content-Type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII
>
> On Fri, 25 Jul 2008 11:46:21 +0200
> Raven <raven at apriliaforum.net> wrote:
>
>> Gerard van Essen wrote:
>> > is there anything you guys think I should add/change to make the 
>> > website
>> > even better for newbies, for people moving on from Linux and those who 
>> > just
>> > want to read what's happening in "FreeBSD land".
>> >
>> To BSD users, your Blog makes perfect sense.
>> I read it with interest, follow the links  and mostly share your view.
>> . . but I'm a Unix user since 1989.
>>
>> There are very few things that make "normal" users  interested in 
>> FreeBSD.
>> Maybe our development model, the ports, and our tolerant community.
>> (Everything comes from a single source, no one tells you to RTFM -
>> Newbies like that)
>
> Quality of documentation in FreeBSD is astounding compared to that of any 
> Linux
> distro - the fact that there aren't x00s of BSD distros obviously makes it
> 'simpler' to document, but comparing to any one big distro, i think the
> consistent quality of documentation throughout the 'ecosystem' ( website,
> handbook (site + installed), mailing lists, manpages, configuration 
> files,etc)
>
>> Folks want an OS, not a religion - this is where we beat Linux single
>> handed.
>
> probably one of the nicest (+ more accurate) comparisons i've yet read on 
> this.
> couldn't agree more...
>
>> It is of utmost importance to tell a Windows user, that we are NOT Linux.
>> Don't say FreeBSD is a Linux alternative - they might get the wrong
>> impression.
>
> +1
>
>> The "marketing strategy" should be a tad more aggressive.
>>  FreeBSD was there before everyone else, and we will be there after them.
>> (You wouldn't believe how many ppl are impressed by that fact)
>> They might also like to know, that FreeBSD/Windows  can be dual booted
>> by the Vista loader.
>> (Afaik, this is not possible with Linux)
>
> interesting, didn't know that (possibly because i haven't touched vista).
> b
> _________________________
> {Beto|Norberto|Numard} Meijome
>
> "Gravity cannot be blamed for people falling in love."
>  Albert Einstein
>
> I speak for myself, not my employer. Contents may be hot. Slippery when 
> wet.
> Reading disclaimers makes you go blind. Writing them is worse. You have 
> been
> Warned.
>
>
> ------------------------------
>
> Message: 2
> Date: Sun, 27 Jul 2008 23:45:54 +1000
> From: Norberto Meijome <freebsd at meijome.net>
> Subject: Re: FreeBSD News blog
> To: freebsd-advocacy at freebsd.org
> Message-ID: <20080727234554.66dcfa05 at ayiin>
> Content-Type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII
>
> On Thu, 24 Jul 2008 19:34:03 -0400
> "Gerard van Essen" <gvanessen at gmail.com> wrote:
>
>> is there anything you guys think I should add/change to make the website
>> even better for newbies, for people moving on from Linux and those who 
>> just
>> want to read what's happening in "FreeBSD land".
>
> ( I've just subscribed to your RSS ;) thanks! ).
> n ideas below, each n/$0.02 :)
>
> - provide links to interesting discussions happening in the different 
> mailing lists.... similar to blog pings / digg or  ./ even?  . For 
> example, the one at  -security@ , 'Subject: A new kind of security needed 
> , Date: Wed, 16 Jul 2008 17:10:32 -0700' .
>
> - for the v. technical minded, new to *BSD or not, it may be interesting 
> to know what is the latest feature MFC'ed ( eg, Julian E's multiple 
> routing code). Similarly, 'requests for test of new features' ( NAT-T 
> patchset a few weeks back in -net@ ).
>
> - idem major additions to ports ( eg, a major application / framework / 
> tool added...? maybe this is available @ freshports  , but i think 
> freshports is just automated stuff...
>
> B
> _________________________
> {Beto|Norberto|Numard} Meijome
>
> "I don't think they could put him in a mental hospital.  On the other 
> hand, if he were already in, I don't think they'd let him out."
>
> I speak for myself, not my employer. Contents may be hot. Slippery when 
> wet. Reading disclaimers makes you go blind. Writing them is worse. You 
> have been Warned.
>
>
> ------------------------------
>
> Message: 3
> Date: Sun, 27 Jul 2008 18:15:49 -0400
> From: J.C. <human2205 at gmail.com>
> Subject: Re: FreeBSD News blog
> To: freebsd-advocacy at freebsd.org
> Message-ID:
> <818ba6630807271515u2eaa4ddbqa883c5c380529843 at mail.gmail.com>
> Content-Type: text/plain; charset=UTF-8
>
>>> Folks want an OS, not a religion - this is where we beat Linux single
>>> handed.
>>
>> probably one of the nicest (+ more accurate) comparisons i've yet read on 
>> this.
>> couldn't agree more...
>
> I second that. Being a computer lover, I was drawn to free/open source
> software because of its superior quality, the elevated levels of
> competence of its users, and the comparatively limitless technical
> capabilities. Software freedom is very attractive but hardly a moral
> requirement, not to mention an absolute non-issue for the
> unsophisticated 99% of computer users.
>
> I began looking at the BSDs, etc. after being repulsed by the
> unintelligent religiosity of the GNU/Linux communities, especially
> (with a few exceptions) the senseless illogic and useless appeals to
> emotion of one of Free Software's most outspoken advocates. I was
> surprised to learn that what I valued most about "Linux systems" is
> actually true of *any* UNIX or UNIX-like operating system. Then I
> learned that FreeBSD is both reasonable towards proprietary software
> *and* a better operating system internally, and I was sold.
>
>>> It is of utmost importance to tell a Windows user, that we are NOT 
>>> Linux.
>>> Don't say FreeBSD is a Linux alternative - they might get the wrong
>>> impression.
>
> There are very subtle psychological fallacies at work with Linux. Take
> laundry detergent as an example. Manufacturers have long known that
> many people choose their brand of detergent using trivial (and I would
> argue nonsensical) criteria, like the images, shapes, and colors of
> the packaging, vivid word imagery like "Fresh Breeze" or "Refreshing
> Lavender", perceived (instead of actual) quality differences resulting
> from advertising or higher price, the imagery used in advertising, the
> smell, the perceived status of using higher-priced detergent, or
> simply being the same brand that one grew up with. Thus, companies
> like Proctor & Gamble actually have several brands of laundry
> detergent "competing" with each other to increase the likelihood that
> a customer will choose one of their brands. This is also why there are
> so many "makes" of GM automobiles. I remember how, growing up, my
> father would never fill up at any gas station except Mobile (a common
> gas station chain in the eastern United States) because they had
> "better gas", and, for a long time, I believed that. Does Mobile
> really have better gas than their competitors? I doubt it. Did my dad
> know that gas stations like Mobile routinely buy gas from other chains
> that they're supposedly competing with? *That's* a good question. : )
>
> What first frustrated me about Linux is actually the main reason for
> its popularity: the hundreds of distributions of the exact same
> operating system with mostly the exact same software, differing only
> by mostly trivial characteristics like the choice of desktop
> environment or package management system, which applications are
> included by default and in the repositories, the default theme of the
> user interface, and the wallpaper. And users will actually argue over
> which is better. Even though it's possible to use Red Hat packages and
> repositories to maintain a live "Debian" system, for example. Ubuntu
> is a particularly "fashionable" distribution at the moment. Flashy?
> Certainly. Accessible? Sure. I always keep an Xubuntu Live CD on hand
> for when I just want a graphical operating system up and working
> quickly. But as a primary operating system, is it that much better
> than mature distributions like Fedora? Not really. Do its annoying
> design limitations in the name of "accessibility" and immaturity piss
> me off? Very quickly. Its popularity is mainly because of those
> trivial secondary characteristics, i.e. it's "cool".
>
> Experienced Linux users know that Linux is Linux is Linux, but many
> don't seem to know that Unix is Unix is Unix, and Linux is just
> another Unix*. This is a great place to start talking about Unix.
> Those powerful command lines in "Linux" that they love so much? They
> work the same on *any* UNIX-like system. Shell scripts? Configurable
> window managers? Desktop environments? Apache? Postgre? MySQL? PHP?
> All identical. So many of the things people love about "Linux" are
> really characteristics of UNIX-like systems. Talk about why Unix is so
> great. Explain that Linux is not Unix. Then explain why FreeBSD is
> better than Linux. If that doesn't work, maybe we could make a hundred
> different distributions of wallpaper and desktop themes, to ease the
> transition a little bit? ; )
>
> I would also caution against going after Windows users too
> aggressively. FreeBSD is for users who can handle a UNIX-like
> operating systems. Ample documentation and an approachable community
> do not change the fact that any UNIX-like system, be it Linux,
> FreeBSD, or any other, is considerably more difficult to learn and
> less accessible than a Windows system. Since about 99% of computer
> users have no computer literacy at all, there are many people for whom
> *any* Unix system is completely inappropriate. The emergence of
> quality free software for Windows (particularly GPL-licensed software;
> the GPL is a much more useful license for Windows software than for
> Unix) can help close the functional gap for Windows users and perhaps
> ease the transition, as it did for me.
>
> Really, it's just about the software.
>
> - Jonathan
>
>
> _____
> *UNIX is a registered trademark of The Open Group, all rights
> reserved, blah blah blah, but Unix is not. "Unix" is a genericized
> ex-trademark describing any UNIX-like opearting system, as well as the
> general characteristics of such a system. Capitalization matters.
>
>
> ------------------------------
>
> Message: 4
> Date: Mon, 28 Jul 2008 14:50:34 +1000
> From: Norberto Meijome <freebsd at meijome.net>
> Subject: Re: FreeBSD News blog
> To: freebsd-advocacy at freebsd.org
> Message-ID: <20080728145034.575b4c1f at ayiin>
> Content-Type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII
>
> On Sun, 27 Jul 2008 18:15:49 -0400
> J.C. <human2205 at gmail.com> wrote:
>
>> I would also caution against going after Windows users too
>> aggressively. FreeBSD is for users who can handle a UNIX-like
>> operating systems. Ample documentation and an approachable community
>> do not change the fact that any UNIX-like system, be it Linux,
>> FreeBSD, or any other, is considerably more difficult to learn and
>> less accessible than a Windows system.
>
> "Linux is for people who hate Windows, BSD is for people who love UNIX."
>
> B
>
> _________________________
> {Beto|Norberto|Numard} Meijome
>
> "That's what I love about GUIs: They make simple tasks easier, and complex 
> tasks impossible."
>   John William Chambless
>
> I speak for myself, not my employer. Contents may be hot. Slippery when 
> wet. Reading disclaimers makes you go blind. Writing them is worse. You 
> have been Warned.
>
>
> ------------------------------
>
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> End of freebsd-advocacy Digest, Vol 248, Issue 1
> ************************************************
>