from Rick Byers <rb-netbsd@BigScaryChildren.net>:

>As I mentioned before, thats why you need to do "export TERM=vt100".  But
>if you haven't read anything about how to use vi, I suggest you don't
>bother YET, it'll just make you more frustrated (its not a program you can
>learn easily just by pressing keys).  Use the "echo rc_configured=YES >>
>/etc/rc.conf" instead.

Trouble with echo rc_conf... is the possibility of a typo, in which case the new
user is thrown at the mercy of vi to correct the damage.  I think there is a
:help command now?  My only experience with vi is elvis in Linux, and a few
short sessions with elvis ported to OS/2 and DOS.  Not user-friendly.  I much
preferred EPM (enhanced editor) in OS/2.

>Any type of UNIX isn't really the sort of thing you can just install and
>use without having some idea of how it works (unlike MS-Windows for
>example).  NetBSD isn't really designed to be easily picked up by people
>with little UNIX experience (although it is getting better - back when I
>installed it there wasn't even sysinst to help with the installation, had
>to do it all manually).  I'll probably get flamed for this, but generally
>Linux is considered to be aimed more towards PC users new to UNIX (it has
>more "hand-holding"), but NetBSD is a better system in the end in my
>oppinion.

Some Linux distributions are trying to out-Windows MS-Windows in the way they
cater to the novice and hide the details from the user.  MS-Windows-like
interface adds to the CPU and RAM requirements, and it might crawl or not run at
all on an older computer.  Then there is Mac OS X, now Unix-based.

I've never seen Mac OS X in action, so I can't really judge.  I have very
limited experience with MS-Windows, and I felt like all thumbs with the GUI.
I feel much more at home with the command prompt.