Diana Eichert wrote:
On Wed, 03 Jan 2007 21:07:16 +0100, "Patrick Useldinger"
SNIP
True. I'm currently evaluating OpenBSD and I am trying to understand the
mindset of OpenBSD users by reading the newsgroups. And this thread *is*
strange.
Patrick, I guess I don't understand why someone would need to "understand
the mindset of OpenBSD users" in order to evaluate the O/S. Evaluate it
for what it does well. I use it for a variety of services, DNS servers,
packet filter, VPN server. All these in production environment because it
"just workds".
Yeah, I agree, especially hearing this come from someone who has been
involved with the project for so long.
'understand the mindset' of users is perhaps elusive anyhow, -it's
perhaps a social approach to a computing intent. my mindset for so long
with regard to openbsd was that is a was a perfect academic focus
whereas my interest in linux was hard to pursue due to the fact it was
so much broader of a scope -openbsd was just modular enough to actually
be good at what it intended.
Linux had alot more stuff going on, -a hardcore Java community on one
side, a hardcore gamer element on another side, and deep-end web 1.0/2.0
stuff going on in yet another quarter. It was really hard to get
answers sometimes because there were simply so many lists, all hosted by
different folks.
I first learned openbsd in-depth and then shifted the portable unix
knowledge to linux, and found life much easier. I studied the network
tools and daemons, -and security.
The misc list was the most helpful place to learn. Imagine, asking Jason
Wright and Angeleos Keromytis and Daniel Hartmeier direct questions
about 'bridge' (jason wrote it), Encryption (angeleos was the expert in
it), or Packet Filtering (daniel wrote it) and getting back detailed
responses. To be able to walk up to my boss and say "I just talked with
the maintainers of the tools we run and they confirmed our hunch, -we
can proceed with "x" if "y" criteria are met". Talk about a huge
difference with calling a vendor and paying to talk to a trainee looking
at a database entry that might not even be relevant.
The misc@ list is actually a pretty helpful list when used in the way
it's defined, "User questions and answers, general questions". See here,
http://marc.theaimsgroup.com/?l=openbsd-misc&r=1&b=200701&w=2 , for a good
archive.
g.day
diana
Past hissy-fits are not a predictor of future hissy-fits.
Nick Holland(06 Dec 2005)
