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OpenBSD 2.5 released
Chris Frost writes "As found on OpenBSD's website today (www.openbsd.org), "The current release of OpenBSD is 2.5 which started shipping May 19, 1999." Not sure what calendering method was used to calculate this and then post, but nonetheless OpenBSD 2.5 has been released. "
If you go to each website separately and look under goals or something like that, you'll see what each emphasizes.
Nevertheless, it goes like this:
FreeBSD: concentrates on x86, so it is th fastest on x86, ports to Alpha (somewhat working) and Sparc (not working) underway. has good VM system, good under high load. Easiest to install and use.
NetBSD: Concentrates on being a stable research platform. Their big thing is portability, supports lots and lots of hardware platforms.
OpenBSD: forked from NetBSD, supports lots of hardware platforms. Big emphasis on security, has bunch of integrated encryption. A no brainer if you REALLY NEED security.
Don't forget that there are lots of new T-shirts availible as well! There is the new 2.5 graphic, as well as the older OpenBSD daemon shots, as well as the blowfish encryption shirt. They're all availible at http://www.OpenBSD.org/orders.html. Adam
One very important thing to keep in mind is that OpenBSD is a very small operation, especially when compared with some behemoths these days.
:)
So, even though the project is alive and well, it's indeed a good idea to buy the CDs, or T-Shirts (for one thing, the CD artwork is nice, and it comes with mondo-cool stickers).
For one thing, sales are not large enough to warrant a larger format than 2 CDs right now (shipping & handling...), but if sales continue growing, it'll be economically viable to go to 4.
Yep, we do have enough material to fill the space
It's important to try to financially support these projects, especially non-commercial ones like OpenBSD. Of course many people are pretty strapped for cash, but if you can afford it, $30 for a super secure, open source, reliable UNIX-like OS is a real bargain, and it helps make great software possible.
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In a real emergency, we would have all fled in terror, and you would not have been notified.
NetBSD - Portability - Made for a multitude of platforms including things like iMAC and Amiga, and a bunch of things you've probably never heard of before.
OpenBSD - Security - Ultra secure version, less platform support.
FreeBSD - the "original" version, with a variety of support for actual hardware/peripherials, etc. Also has the most options to it (software, libs, etc)
You can find some really nifty OpenBSD images at http://www.monkey.org/~nemickol/openbs d.html
There's some other OpenBSD stuff here
There is no ISO image for openBSD. I think this is a decission of Theo to encourage people to buy the official cdrom. You can install for free over the net by ftp or http if you have a real network connection.
There was a big conversation on the openBSD mailing list this month or last (I forget exactly when). There was a method posted then for creating a cd image. That was for 2.4, but it might work for 2.5.
This continues to develop as a great OS.
NetBSD, FreeBSD, and now OpenBSD have all had major revs in the last six months - its great to see hardware support, platform support (all BSDs are multiplatform, contrary to linux.com's assessment), and performance enhancement across the line. I fully expect these OSs to flourish intensely as support for free software increases over the next few years.
Viva BSD!