“Even though many server admins prefer BSD Unix, there’s no
denying that Linux is “where it’s at” for third-party software
development. So, what’s a BSD admin to do?”
“In the bygone misty past of Unix (in the era historians call
the 80s), acceptance and market share were hampered by the
diverging standards that forced application developers to write for
only one version of Unix. This (as the youngsters today say) really
sucked. Fortunately, however, the tide has turned in favor of
compatibility among the many *nixes.”
“To commercial software vendors, market share is everything. As
such, if *BSD forced Linux vendors to develop for their OSes, it
would be like your average Unix sysadmin saying, “If Cindy Crawford
wants to go out, she can call me.”
“Fortunately, Jordan Hubbard of FreeBSD pointed out that Linux
API is becoming the default for third-party developers (independent
software vendors, or ISVs) to develop for free *nixes. Therefore,
it’s better for BSD users to accept the Linux ABI (application
binary interface) rather than making ISVs choose between Linux and
BSD. This, in my opinion, is a very pragmatic and wise
attitude.”
Web Webster has more than 20 years of writing and editorial experience in the tech sector. He’s written and edited news, demand generation, user-focused, and thought leadership content for business software solutions, consumer tech, and Linux Today, he edits and writes for a portfolio of tech industry news and analysis websites including webopedia.com, and DatabaseJournal.com.
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