NetBSD: An Alternative to Linux

When many people think of free operating systems, or Unix like operating systems. The first thing that comes to many people minds is Linux. It's not the only free operating system, though it gets a lot of press. Open Source is about having a choice, not a dominating operating systems war.

Recently a friend of mine came to me and said "Hey Pat, teach me Unix!" So I decided to teach him what I knew best. He was probably talking about Linux since it's the more popular of the Unix-like operating systems. My knowledge of Linux is very poor, since I mostly use NetBSD, OpenBSD for all my computing needs. Honestly, I'm a NetBSD fanboy so why not convert one more to rally the cause of BSD operating systems.

You can order NetBSD from the web page or you can download and make your own iso-image to burn on CD. My friend really wanted my to do everything for which I don't mind. Since he wanted to learn this operating system I decided to let him do everything while I watch and advise him on. I remind you that we followed the installation steps found at: http://www.netbsd.org/guide/en/. The NetBSD developers put together this documentation and really it is all you need to get started.

We only differ when it can to setting up DNS, this is where I prefer MaraDNS or djbdns. For most users coming for a Microsoft Windows environment you may prefer and Gnome or KDE as your window manager especially if you like icons to click on. A window manager is what most Windows users called their desktop. There are many to choose from within NetBSD. Oh yes, it's safe to install everything or accept the defaults. NetBSD is secure by default even thou portability is more it's focal point. I prefer the fluxbox window manager, just because it's lightweight and very fast. You'll probably enjoy OpenOffice for your wording processing needs but programmers would enjoy the comfort of Gnu Emacs.

Why NetBSD? For the same reasons many people switch to Linux from Microsoft Windows operating system. It's more secure, and it's more stable than many Linux systems that just my opinion of course. NetBSD is based off the BSD UNIX system that was developed at Berkeley University. Linux, by itself, is not a complete operating system -- it's just a "kernel". Packaged versions of Linux, called "distributions," combine Linux with other code, mostly GNU software and, many portions are copied directly from BSD. According to Netcraft.com, there are more web sites using FreeBSD than are using Linux to host web sites on the Internet worldwide as I type this. Who uses BSD for web-hosting solutions Yahoo.com there's a name you should know. I hope this article has got your minds eye thinking or at least considering other open source solutions. Remember open source is about making a choice your choice, not other people opinions that have been push on you by the media or press.