> > You should realy start with a 2.0_BETA system from 
> > ftp://releng.netbsd.org
> 
> I don't understand it when people say this on lists when the original poster
> has pointed out that they're a newbie to the system under discussion (hence
> my original comment). What is the point of OSes like NetBSD having a formal
> release if the opinion of many of the users is that it's not worth using
> (this appears to be the same for many Open Source Oses)? Does the beta have
> an easily downloadable and bootable image for first time users to install
> and play about with? Does the beta have the same wealth of documentation
> that the formal version does? Is the beta release as predictable and
> accomadating as a formal release version?

This could be because there has historically been a fair amount of time
between formal releases (this is something that, hopefully, will be addressed
after 2.0).  So, if you want support for newer hardware, or hardware that
wasn't supported in the previous release, or newer software, you need to run
the development (-current) code.

In the case of 2.0 beta, this is close to what the final 2.0 formal release
will be.  As such, yes, it does have the same set of images and documentation
as a formal release (apart from ISO images).  There is a mention of the
latest schedule at:

  http://www.netbsd.org/Changes/#20schedule

and when the remaining bugs are fixed, the release cycle will be started.  As
this is quite an advance on the previous 1.6 branch, it's a good place to
start if you want features that aren't in 1.6.*.

Not quite sure what you mean by "predictable and accomadating".  Building a
release (or downloading a snapshot) from either -current or one of the
release branches will give you the same set of files that are available in a
formal release.  Note that, if you build from -current, it's not guaranteed
to be stable (or even working, if you build in the middle of a new feature),
but it usually is.  For example, I'm running a system built from 1.6G
(October 2002) and it's no different from running a formal release.

J

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