# A curiosity question



## sk8harddiefast (Jun 13, 2010)

If bsd was not exist and you didn't like linux witch os you would install?
I was using one of this 3
Solaris
Opensolaris
Minix
Nexenta (based on solaris)
Maybe haiku (but is not giving me the opinion of a unix os and also not recommended as primary os!)
I am asking just because i am curious.


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## Oxyd (Jun 13, 2010)

Microsoft Windows. Seriously, I ran to that from Linux. (Until I decided to give FreeBSD a go.)

Although I think I'd start longing after a Unix (-like) system soon. I'd probably go with OpenSolaris first. Or Mac OS X, if I had the money. Other than that, I don't know. Minix might be an option, but I don't know just how useful it is -- I should try it one day just for the kicks of it.


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## Anonymous (Jun 13, 2010)

For a few weeks i tried the Hurd, but it was quite difficult (i couldn't get X up and running). Too much work for me.
Not sure what to think about plan9, i couldn't even shut it down again.
Someone posted about Haiku. I once tried it but couldn'T remember, so i tried it again. It looks interesting but i am pretty busy with finding my way in BSD. So: no haiku for me.


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## sk8harddiefast (Jun 14, 2010)

I have tried haiku. Is good  but not as primary os 
I cannot imagine my life without unix.
To be real i am computer user about 3-4 years on my all life. (i bought my fist pc after the school)
Before i had idea even how to open it 
The first year i was using windows. All the others unix.
There is no way for me to go back on windows. I prefer to stop using computers. Seriously.
I don't believe that bsd will stop to have the problem to search for an alternative os.
Just doing conversation.
But i could give a try to solaris or opensolaris.
Also chrome os, revlin os. Even colibrios 
*BUT NO WINDOWS *


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## gall0ws (Jun 14, 2010)

I was thinking to OS X, but it would not exist without *BSD! 
Uhm.. maybe OpenSolaris or Plan9.


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## sk8harddiefast (Jun 14, 2010)

I don't like OS X too much. The reason is that is not free, and of course not flexible
I could not change nothing except the defaults 
Plan9? What is this?


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## gall0ws (Jun 14, 2010)

Actually Plan9 is mainly a research platform. It's based on UNIX (was originally developed by Thompson), it's a distributed OS, all resources are nodes in the filesystem (they invented /proc) and has native support to utf-8.
I found it interesting: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plan9


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## nekoexmachina (Jun 14, 2010)

windows + cygwin looks very good.
I could never try out freebsd if cygwin was more integrated into windows, have had an utf8 support, etc; and if windows disk system was not that ugly c: d:; and if windows has had a good file system; if it had good tiling window managers.. (Oh, wait. Too many if's: so that could never happen. And too many kludges over kludges over kludges.)

If to choose from current OS without huge design changes - definitely solaris. I use it sometimes due to work, and i find it kind of complicated; but well, if there was no bsd - the only real choice is it. 
All the other variants are
a) non-desktopish, closed and very expensive
b) 'experimental', e.g. good for an idea like plan9, but bad for actual usage.

And a little fix: if there was no FreeBSD, but others were here - OpenBSD would be my choice.


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## Anonymous (Jun 14, 2010)

> ; if it had good tiling window managers..


It's not tiling (as far i know), but a good replacement for the windows-shell:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BbLean 
There is a link to an  article about other Windows-shell replacements
I tested some, but would say the blackbox for windows stuff is the most reliable one.

I never have to deal much with windows, so i am ok with it the way it is (cause if i want fluxbox/blackbox-style i also might boot into a Unix-like box).


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## sossego (Jun 14, 2010)

I'd be using plan9, minix, and some university projects.


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## sk8harddiefast (Jun 14, 2010)

Minix worths or not? (as primary os for desktop)


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## sossego (Jun 14, 2010)

Try it out. http://www.oszoo.org/wiki/index.php/Category:OS_images There is a qemu image available with instructions. 
This way, you'll be able to make your own decision without me having influenced you.


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## Alt (Jun 14, 2010)

If FreeBSD was not exist im probably never entered unix world...


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## SirDice (Jun 14, 2010)

I'd probably still use AmigaOS.


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## oliverh (Jun 14, 2010)

Irix in the early 90s -> Slackware Linux -> Solaris/Slackware Linux -> since 5-6 years FreeBSD, since 2-3 years OpenBSD/FreeBSD/Slackware Linux. If I could turn time back, I would certainly use Irix again. I don't hate the Linux kernel, I just don't like certain distros. Apart from that: kill fanboyism, be more productive.


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## pamdirac (Jun 14, 2010)

solaris, probably


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## fronclynne (Jun 14, 2010)

What, no love for Apple DOS?


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## nekoexmachina (Jun 14, 2010)

> Apart from that: kill fanboyism, be more productive.


That's not fanboyism as for me: linux just works like crap on my hardware. (plenty of problems with hdds & network) May be if i would dig deeper - that problems could be avoided (except for iowait bug, that could be fixed only by zen-kernel compilation, and i totally hate reconfiguring and compiling linux kernel), but well, if another variant works faster and overall better, why should i care?
E.g.: because of that bugs, each of what look like 'wtf how could _this_ even happen' - i dislike linux. 
If to look overall, and to take the best-linux-hw-available - every distro that i've tried out was crap by some reason (mostly due to distros package management system), and i do not like to choose the best crap in the pile of available crap. 
I could end up using linux, if i've had the skillfull administrator that would install & maintain my best-for-linux-with-no-hw-bugs-that-annoy-me-machines. In this case - i see almost no difference between linux and fbsd.


upd on windows opinion: i will never use _that_ by the free will. Just to do some very basic text-editing work without cygwin, i need to click tons of crappy buttons. This totally sucks.


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## darkshadow (Jun 14, 2010)

*mmmm*

openbsd for sure


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## roddierod (Jun 14, 2010)

I would say QNX, but I don't think it would exists without BSD. 

But if BSD never existed that might mean that everyone went to VMS instead so I'd be running OpenVMS on my quad-core dual DEC Alpha EV200 AlphaStation!


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## sk8harddiefast (Jun 14, 2010)

Also i have tried QNX and i prefer it more than haiku.


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## oliverh (Jun 14, 2010)

roddierod said:
			
		

> I would say QNX, but I don't think it would exists without BSD.
> 
> But if BSD never existed that might mean that everyone went to VMS instead so I'd be running OpenVMS on my quad-core dual DEC Alpha EV200 AlphaStation!



I doubt it, QNX was a new operating system, developed in 1980 for IBM personal computers.


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## Erratus (Jun 14, 2010)

fronclynne said:
			
		

> What, no love for Apple DOS?


Up until Apple UCSD Pascal started.


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## sk8harddiefast (Jun 14, 2010)

Well...
Qnx today
http://www.guidebookgallery.org/pics/gui/desktop/empty/qnx621.png
http://www.guidebookgallery.org/pics/gui/desktop/full/qnx621-1-1.png
http://www.jfedor.org/shots/qnx.png
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/e/e0/QNX_6.4.1_screenshot.png


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## anomie (Jun 14, 2010)

sk8harddiefast said:
			
		

> If bsd was not exist and you didn't like linux witch os you would install?



Hard to say. I might have lost interest in computing and looked for a career change. 

It's nothing short of amazing how much one can learn (e.g. about service management, networking, encryption, et al.) with a well-designed FOSS OS.


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## sixtydoses (Jun 15, 2010)

anomie said:
			
		

> Hard to say. I might have lost interest in computing and looked for a career change.
> 
> It's nothing short of amazing how much one can learn (e.g. about service management, networking, encryption, et al.) with a well-designed FOSS OS.



So I guess the next question is what would you be if you're not working in IT industry due to the non existence of BSD.


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## anomie (Jun 15, 2010)

Well, I don't want to hijack the nice gentleman's thread, but I'd probably either 1) work in a decent ROI medical profession (nursing or radiology); or 2) get sucked into the family business back home. 

Back on point: I was discouraged early on by what a broken mess GNU/Linux was (a certain couple distributions in particular, which I won't mention here). Somehow I got turned onto the idea of FreeBSD, and my interest was _completely_ revitalized. Understanding FreeBSD helped me understand Linux, which led to an interest in other related areas in computing. 

If FreeBSD did not exist, I suspect I may have just said "%$@# it" and moved on. (The rest of the learning chain never would have been completed.)


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## gore (Jun 17, 2010)

Linux -

SuSE / OpenSUSE
Slackware
Debian

Haven't ever really had a problem with those.

Windows 7

If I could afford it:

SGI anything
Alpha
Sun boxes
IBM Blue Gene /L

I wouldn't use Minix if it was free.... Oh wait. Ah well.


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