“WHEN YOU talk about the free operating system the first thing
that comes to mind is Linux. Linux, however, is not the first to
offer a free operating system and source code. A lesser known
operating system developed in 1970 at the University of California,
Berkeley, called the BSD (Berkeley Software Design) is, in fact,
the oldest free operating system….”
“The BSD Unix uses an open-source model just as Linux does.
However, the difference is that while, Linux demands the user
community to disclose modifications, if any, on its source code to
the world, BSD allows its users to make proprietary
changes….”
“In terms of sophistication, the BSD operating system is
better than Linux. Its original kernel is highly advanced. It has
always been popular with people doing their masters and doctorates
in computer science research. The reason why it is not as
popular as Linux is the lack of commercial support,” said Mr Vikram
G Shah, managing director, Novell India.”