Re: Definition of NetBSD users

["Jeremy C. Reed" <reed%reedmedia.net@localhost>]

On Mon, 22 Mar 2010, kamel derouiche wrote:

> I think that it's not overnight that NetBSD will because an OS 
> oriented user's, knowing that NetBSD, behind two others system FreeBSD 
> and GNU/Linux that for exceeds the NetBSD on the side , we should 
> reflect on the way that can be a desktop system without becoming like 
> Ubuntu and here I'm entirely ok with Jean-Yves Migeon

I do see a few features that Linux systems commonly provide that make it 
easier, most notably: 1) automated tasks on hardware plugin/removal 
(dynamic device management from userlevel); 2) more consistently 
provided binary packages for common platforms and better tested binary 
package maintenance tools; 3) friendly installer that installs common 
desktop" software by default; 4) Flash support.

For NetBSD: 1) code for this has been done a few times and core@ is 
attempting to make a decision on this; 2) need more official bulk build 
machines and need some more maintenance to pkgin; 3) a few projects have 
been done to redesign and rewrite a NetBSD installer (but not complete 
as far as I know); 4) Convince the world to not use proprietary 
technologies! (Let's not re-discuss #3 on this thread.)

I am not sure how FreeBSD exceeds NetBSD for desktop systems. Please 
explain and share examples.

> However it would be interesting to study more closely the raison that 
> make the success of FreeBSD and GNU/Linux by the side of newbie and 
> pressed administrator
> 
> I noticed that GNU/Linux et FreeBSD have specialized teams,  some 
> GNU/Linux distributions done investigation in close of newbie about 
> the usability of desktop with the reset of the system. I 'm not a 
> specialist of the subject but i think that we must establish goals 
> before thinking to design a NetBSD Desktop for example:

http://wiki.netbsd.se/Desktop_Project  listed some goals.

> a- Create groups of maintainer specialized and dedicated to take care  
> of famous Desktop (GNOME, KDE, ...) and offer applications 
> (Multimedia, ...) for that a create a new maintainer pkgsrc.gnome 
> http://pkgsrc.se/bbmaint.php?maint=pkgsrc.gnome@gmail, to regroup all 
> the gnome packages which are not imported to pkgsrc

Also see


pkgsrc/meta-pkgs/desktop-gnome

http://www.netbsd.org/docs/pkgsrc/gnome.html

GNOME project list
http://www.netbsd.org/contrib/projects.html#gnome 


> b- reflect on the manere to desgin NetBSD Desktop adaptable with 
> NetBSD philosophy
> 
> c- there a Desktop applications depend of GNU/Linux technology if we 
> find them why we don't change them with NetBSD proper technology 
> (NetBSD/usermode, virtualization, rump)