Why does FreeBSD not use the Linux kernel?

[Kurt Buff - GSEC, GCIH]

On Wed, Jun 17, 2020 at 11:43 AM Mario Lobo <lobo at bsd.com.br> wrote:
>
> On Wed, Jun 17, 2020 at 9:19 AM Polytropon <freebsd at edvax.de> wrote:
>
> > On Wed, 17 Jun 2020 11:33:25 +0800, kindu smith wrote:
> > > Why does FreeBSD not use the Linux kernel? The structure of FreeBSD is
> > > very good, such as the startup and directory structure, and the user
> > > island program. The only shortcoming is poor hardware support. This is
> > > mainly due to the lack of drivers provided by the kernel.

Reading this thread, several thoughts came to mind, which might have
only minimal bearing on the discussion, but perhaps OP might find them
useful/amusing/provocative.

JFTR, my thoughts do not imply anything regarding the relative merits
of FreeBSD vs. Linux. I'm not primarily a *nix guy, and never have
been, but use both freely, as my job requires, and prefer using
FreeBSD at home, vs. Linux.

- Linux is more properly known as GUN/Linux. GNU, in this context, is
a recursive acronym, meaning "Gnu's Not Unix". This is pertinent,
because considered from the perspective of lineage/heritage, FreeBSD
(all of the BSDs) *are* Unix. Once might quibble about several
assumptions in that statement, but for the purposes of this
discussion, it's true enough, and brings to the fore the idea that
FreeBSD and Linux are very different in critical ways. Others have
pointed out the more technical reasons what this is so, but this bit
of background might illuminate the topic a bit.

- I started playing with Linux back in the '90s. I didn't like it
much, and flitted from distro to distro, and wasn't terribly
successful. I then started a job with a small startup which used
FreeBSD for its platform. I got some tutoring from one of the devs
(who was, and I think still is a kernel committer), and things just
fell into place. i felt comfortable. It wasn't until several years
later than I found an article that clarified my thoughts. It's old
now, and therefore some of it is out of date, but I still point people
at it: https://www.over-yonder.net/~fullermd/rants/bsd4linux/01

So, take the above for what it's worth.

Kurt