[GNUz] O/S compare

[Rik Tindall]

Jim Cheetham wrote:

>>Is OS/X a BSD?
>>
>No, it's not "a BSD" because you are not being precise. It doesn't use
>the same kernel as the existing BSD *distributions*. It takes a lot of
>the user-space tools from FreeBSD, and adds a lot of it's own stuff into
>Dawrin, including the arguably innovative _launchd_ service that
>replaces rc* scripts, cron, inittab and a lot of other interesting
>things. None of the other unixes have that (Solaris has an approach that
>does similar things, I just don't quite know what it is yet!), but
>because it's been open sourced (under Apple's license) "a Linux" may
>choose to use it too.
>  
>
Ah, thanks. So OS/X is 'a Mach', more closely related to (Debian/) 
GNU/Hurd <http://www.debian.org/ports/hurd/> than to either *BSD or 
LINUX®. I'm glad that's been clarified. Interesting how much the user 
experience can differ, layers above the kernel. I haven't heard that 
OS/X's Mach kernel is open-source yet, tho Wes put up the MIT (BSD-like) 
license that showed it needn't be.

Open-source kernels must be few in number, so the table I'm making 
should never grow huge.

>>I guess that's why everything just gets called 'Unix'. ..But that's a brand too ..moreso that BSD.
>>    
>>
>
>Everything gets called "unix" because it has a set of common features,
>including a priviledged kernel, many "cheap" inheriting processes,
>"everything as a file" access to resources and ultimately compliance to
>POSIX, which goes to the level of saying you must have an "ls" command.
>
>The license is not a part of that definition :-)
>
That'll be the point of the NixDiff table - to contextualise the 
important license trails for selection / higher learning.

>and the "brand" of unix is going the way of becoming a generic term, IMHO. Probably why Apple
>have chosen to stay away from claiming that they are a "unix", even
>though all the hackers know that they are.
>
Ah, subtlety indeed: "Unix-based" is generic to all *Nix o/s - 
http://www.apple.com/macosx/features/unix/ - and divorces no live 
current. Diversity is great.

Where are you writing from now Jim? I hope the move goes/went well.

Cheers,

-- 
Rik Tindall, InfoHelp Services <http://www.infohelp.co.nz> on:
Ubuntu GNU/Linux 5.10 free OS, 2.6.12-9-686 kernel, GNOME 2.12.1 desktop