Re: BSD handbook - was Re: debiantutorials.org seeks input and new blood
On Sat, May 2, 2009 at 3:32 AM, Bret Busby <bret@busby.net> wrote:
> On Sat, 25 Apr 2009, Michael Pobega wrote:
>
>>
>> On Sat, Apr 25, 2009 at 01:12:35PM +0300, Dotan Cohen wrote:
>>>>
>>>> Check out the FreeBSD handbook at:
>>>> http://www.freebsd.org/doc/en_US.ISO8859-1/books/handbook/
>>>> It is also available as a pdf which is >1000 pages! It doesn't cover
>>>> everything, but it does cover a lot. They also have other books and
>>>> articles at http://www.freebsd.org/docs/books.html.
>>>>
>>>
>>> That sounds more like a problem than a solution. I would not try an OS
>>> that had a 1000 page manual. I want simple, not comprehensive.
>>>
>>
>> Well, the thing about FBSD is that it's users are pretty much all
>> hobbyists, so the length of a manual is a good thing. If Debian had
>> documentation of equal or greater length I can only see that as a
>> strength, not a weakness.
>>
>>
>
> And, if the handbook's content is valid and well structured (with Table of
> Contents, and index, etc), it would probably be an incentive for me (and
> others) to try FreeBSD (FreeBSD was on a recent Linux Format DVD, from
> memory).
>
> Decent Linux reference books in printed form, tend to be around 1000-1200
> pages.
>
> Some good ones are less, significantly less, but, provided the content is
> useful and helpful, there is no problem with a single volume text being
> around 1000 pages.
>
> I haven't used BSD for about 30 years, now, and a good reference book, that
> is comprehensive, is a good incentive to have another go with it.
>
> I think that the BSD that I last used, was v4.2, running on a VAX 11/785.
>
> Hmm. I will have to find another free partition, somewhere...
I haven't been closely following this thread. So, if I'm out-o-bounds,
I apologize . . .
But, if you're interested in a BSD with good (dare I say, great)
documentation, I would suggest openBSD (which just came out with 4.5
yesterday). FreeBSD is alright (I've been experimenting with there
most recent stable version), but I found that oBSD to be a more
straightforward, less bloated OS with clear and comprehensive
documentation. Some may say that the environment (mailinglist) is
harsh, but that harshness can/should be interpreted as directness and
it's usually focused on those who provide little/useless info about
his/her situation and don't do their homework . . . i.e., read the
documentation.
FYI - While many of the fBSD folks will tout there ports/package
system, I found it to be a pain (especially the upgrade), as did many
others. There has recently been some chatter on their general mailing
list to overhaul how they handle packages. Again, I found oBSD's
package handling system to be superior.
Good Luck!
>
> --
> Bret Busby
> Armadale
> West Australia
> ..............
>
> "So once you do know what the question actually is,
> you'll know what the answer means."
> - Deep Thought,
> Chapter 28 of Book 1 of
> "The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy:
> A Trilogy In Four Parts",
> written by Douglas Adams,
> published by Pan Books, 1992
>
> ....................................................
--
www.nealhogan.net www.lambdaserver.com
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