Speaking of which: are there any "distros" out there ship a combination of FreeBSD and the latest Gnome desktop? I think that would be a better combination than Ubuntu's Debian+Gnome combo, personally.
Yes, the only FreeBSD 'distro'. FreeBSD is not fragmented like the 100 and 1 Linux distros Download the FBSD isos, install the gnome packages. Not new enough, build from source using ports. While it probably doesn't include the absolutely latest Gnome, the FreeBSD people tend to appreciate stability over cutting edge features, so its probably going to be a little behind the bleeding edge, for something popular like gnome though, it should match up with the latest stable release within a very short period
yeah whe you only have 101 (its much quicker type than explicitly spelling out the and) users you just don't have time to setup distros. Whats the advantage of not having any distros? that everything needs to be compiled from source (ala gentoo) or that everything is precompiled for somebody else's needs (ala debian). While i see that BSD does have many advantages (reliablity, checked code, speed), i really don't see how not-having distros is one, sure it means you don't have to choose a distro, but it also
that everything needs to be compiled from source (ala gentoo) or that everything is precompiled for somebody else's needs (ala debian)
If you want to compile from source, you can, that's how Ports works. If you want to use precompiled versions you can install packages. You don't need to have multiple distros to be able to configure the system the way you need, you start with a core OS (which you can rebuild from source if you *really* want) and then add packages. There are people who do canned FreeBSD installs and ISOs, similar to Linux distros, but without the distro drama.
(especially as stupid license nazis stop us sharing code *shakes fist*)
I thought I had just gone through explaining how you didn't need distros to get choice. You can do everything you want to do with a distro using ports and packages. FreeBSD has a "hell of a package management system". The FreeBSD core doesn't include the GUI (even X11 is optional) and you can build less than the core (PicoBSD, for example, which we used to make automatic "ghost"-like Windows NT install floppies at ABB).
Basically, almost all the options you're talking about are possible with FreeBSD... includ
The closest to perfection a person ever comes is when he fills out a job
application form.
-- Stanley J. Randall
It's that year again! (Score:5, Funny)
Wait, what?
BSD Desktops (Score:3, Interesting)
Re: (Score:3, Interesting)
Download the FBSD isos, install the gnome packages. Not new enough, build from source using ports. While it probably doesn't include the absolutely latest Gnome, the FreeBSD people tend to appreciate stability over cutting edge features, so its probably going to be a little behind the bleeding edge, for something popular like gnome though, it should match up with the latest stable release within a very short period
Re: (Score:0, Offtopic)
Whats the advantage of not having any distros? that everything needs to be compiled from source (ala gentoo) or that everything is precompiled for somebody else's needs (ala debian). While i see that BSD does have many advantages (reliablity, checked code, speed), i really don't see how not-having distros is one, sure it means you don't have to choose a distro, but it also
Why do you "need" distros? (Score:2)
What's the advantage of having multiple distros?
that everything needs to be compiled from source (ala gentoo) or that everything is precompiled for somebody else's needs (ala debian)
If you want to compile from source, you can, that's how Ports works. If you want to use precompiled versions you can install packages. You don't need to have multiple distros to be able to configure the system the way you need, you start with a core OS (which you can rebuild from source if you *really* want) and then add packages. There are people who do canned FreeBSD installs and ISOs, similar to Linux distros, but without the distro drama.
(especially as stupid license nazis stop us sharing code *shakes fist*)
What on earth does that refer to?
Re: (Score:2)
You can do everything you want to do with a distro using ports and packages. FreeBSD has a "hell of a package management system". The FreeBSD core doesn't include the GUI (even X11 is optional) and you can build less than the core (PicoBSD, for example, which we used to make automatic "ghost"-like Windows NT install floppies at ABB).
Basically, almost all the options you're talking about are possible with FreeBSD... includ