Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

OpenBSD Is Now My Workstation

sogubsys.com

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

61–70 of 197 posts

Re: OpenBSD Is Now My Workstation

#61

Post by dTal »

octotoad wrote: post #49
adrianratnapala wrote: post #47

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Does OpenBSD have an alternative to wpa_supplicant? I've been using wpa_supplicant under the hood for ages, but only recently learned anything about it... and it's actually very good, except that it's CLI interface is so low-level and difficult to use.

Its standard ifconfig handles all the equivalent functionality.

I don't use OpenBSD for various functionality-related reasons, but experiencing that was an eye-opener. It makes me mad that Linux doesn't use such a clearly superior system, and leads one to wonder what other needlessly complex interfaces we put up with unquestioningly.

Re: OpenBSD Is Now My Workstation

#62

Post by atq2119 »

user00012-ab wrote: post #45

This article is what is wrong with bsd/linux. You have to write an article about all the things you did to get your desktop to just work like any normal desktop works out of the box. In a normal world, the article should read "I installed bsd, and just used my computer to do something useful."

Throwing Linux in with BSD here is not fair. The experience with the major Linux distribution tends to be exactly this: you install them and stuff just works -- especially on desktop hardware.

Re: OpenBSD Is Now My Workstation

#63

Post by sogubsys »

hnnmzh wrote: post #41
lone_haxx0r wrote: post #39

I hate the fact that Thinkpads are the laptops with the best OpenBSD support. I dislike Thinkpads for two reasons: - They're made by Lenovo. A couple of years ago, Lenovo bundled malware in the BIOS of their laptops [superfish incident]. For that reason, I won't ever again buy a single product from them, since I can't trust them. - They're ugly. I find most current laptops ugly, so this may be my fault, and by itself…

also - they no longer use T40 style keyboards, which are the best.

I do like the keyboard on this T420, it is a pleasure.

Re: OpenBSD Is Now My Workstation

#64

Post by tick_tock_tick »

bitwize wrote: post #60
dijit wrote: post #2

I like openbsd. I like their attitude (even if many don’t) I like what they’ve given to the UNIX-likes, and what they strip away due to complexity (removal of Bluetooth) or lack of decent UX (wpa_supplicant), or just potential issues (removal of Hyperthreading) I know it’s probably controversial to mention it; but I’m also glad they didn’t buy into the code of conduct saga that waved over FreeBSD and eventually Linux…

Projects without a code of conduct are either immature or led by reactionaries, and in either case have a much higher risk of toxicity. If you want to get something done in a communitarian fashion, implementing, clearly stating, and enforcing rules of conduct is an absolute must.

I agree with you in principle but most of the codes of conduct being pushed during the last major wave had very little to do with that goal. They were clearly targeted at policing users online/offline conduct and values outside of the project rather than fixing any active issues for that project.

Re: OpenBSD Is Now My Workstation

#65

Post by asveikau »

wrycoder wrote: post #55
dijit wrote: post #2

I like openbsd. I like their attitude (even if many don’t) I like what they’ve given to the UNIX-likes, and what they strip away due to complexity (removal of Bluetooth) or lack of decent UX (wpa_supplicant), or just potential issues (removal of Hyperthreading) I know it’s probably controversial to mention it; but I’m also glad they didn’t buy into the code of conduct saga that waved over FreeBSD and eventually Linux…

I don't think there are many who send €50/mo, kudos to you! Few of their corporate users give much back at all. I used OpenBSD as my workstation a decade ago and also ran it on a firewall box. However, upgrading the system every six months is tedious: basically, you manually download the files, overwrite the kernel and userland core, and then do a three way merge of /etc. Plus there's a bit of manual work required to…

sysmerge has made the upgrade process a lot easier in the last several years. It was a lot more painful in the past.

Re: OpenBSD Is Now My Workstation

#66

Post by tick_tock_tick »

orbifold wrote: post #30
dijit wrote: post #15

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I wrote a blog post about it but it was used against me by an interviewer at riot games. So I unpublished it. Essentially it boils down to outlawing vague arrays of behaviour that can apply to essentially anyone and thus must be selectively enforced. I used examples from history surrounding vague laws and the implications that came from that (usually it’s the precursor to huge atrocities or totalitarian regimes. Alth…

Regarding commenting on other people’s appearance: this is something I find personally super tedious. When I am at work I really don’t want people to start commenting on my appearance, both negatively or positively.

Almost all of the CoCs being discussed here explicit make no distinction between project communication channels and general communication channels. In other words a comment you made on a generic social media account will see you removed from a project.

Re: OpenBSD Is Now My Workstation

#67

Post by hiram112 »

bitwize wrote: post #60
dijit wrote: post #2

I like openbsd. I like their attitude (even if many don’t) I like what they’ve given to the UNIX-likes, and what they strip away due to complexity (removal of Bluetooth) or lack of decent UX (wpa_supplicant), or just potential issues (removal of Hyperthreading) I know it’s probably controversial to mention it; but I’m also glad they didn’t buy into the code of conduct saga that waved over FreeBSD and eventually Linux…

Projects without a code of conduct are either immature or led by reactionaries, and in either case have a much higher risk of toxicity. If you want to get something done in a communitarian fashion, implementing, clearly stating, and enforcing rules of conduct is an absolute must.

I suppose you're right. Before the CoC craze, the open source community just wasn't able to crank out anything of technical value. But since then, things have really taken off, and there's no doubt we can attribute it to the CoC and also the non-technical community members who, more often than not, demanded we carry it.

Re: OpenBSD Is Now My Workstation

#68

Post by bitwize »

tick_tock_tick wrote: post #64
bitwize wrote: post #60

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Projects without a code of conduct are either immature or led by reactionaries, and in either case have a much higher risk of toxicity. If you want to get something done in a communitarian fashion, implementing, clearly stating, and enforcing rules of conduct is an absolute must.

I agree with you in principle but most of the codes of conduct being pushed during the last major wave had very little to do with that goal. They were clearly targeted at policing users online/offline conduct and values outside of the project rather than fixing any active issues for that project.

A person who's a dick outside the official channels is much more likely to be a dick on the official channels also. Tolerating such people is inimical to creating a welcoming community, as they pose considerable risk of disrupting development activity and intimidating people who are or might potentially be making valuable contributions.

Re: OpenBSD Is Now My Workstation

#69

Post by microcolonel »

bitwize wrote: post #60
dijit wrote: post #2

I like openbsd. I like their attitude (even if many don’t) I like what they’ve given to the UNIX-likes, and what they strip away due to complexity (removal of Bluetooth) or lack of decent UX (wpa_supplicant), or just potential issues (removal of Hyperthreading) I know it’s probably controversial to mention it; but I’m also glad they didn’t buy into the code of conduct saga that waved over FreeBSD and eventually Linux…

Projects without a code of conduct are either immature or led by reactionaries, and in either case have a much higher risk of toxicity. If you want to get something done in a communitarian fashion, implementing, clearly stating, and enforcing rules of conduct is an absolute must.

> Projects without a code of conduct are either immature or led by reactionaries.

That seems like a pretty "reactionary" take.

OpenBSD is a mature project with a relatively snooty/picky but not abusive or cruel community. I've found that not only are the people helpful, if you show that you've made an effort to meet them half way; but working of the software itself shows a degree of empathy which is not common elsewhere.

To fj39dkf since I've been rate limited and can't reply:

> "Reactionary" doesn't mean literally "reacting to a problem", it's a political term that comes from the French revolution, referring to monarchists who became organized and motivated as a reaction against the French revolution.

I am aware of the origin of the term in English, I think it still applies. The people who are shoving their rigid CoCs down people's throats are the establishment; it's just that by adopting the symbols of causes which were previously anti-establishment, they've avoided being seen as such.

Being a bit edgy on the internet is an anti-establishment cause, like hacking[0].

[0]: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=20346865

Re: OpenBSD Is Now My Workstation

#70

Post by microcolonel »

dTal wrote: post #61
octotoad wrote: post #49

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Its standard ifconfig handles all the equivalent functionality.

I don't use OpenBSD for various functionality-related reasons, but experiencing that was an eye-opener. It makes me mad that Linux doesn't use such a clearly superior system, and leads one to wonder what other needlessly complex interfaces we put up with unquestioningly.

There are things other than wpa_supplicant, but wpa_supplicant is just sorta "good enough", everything generally works. It's a different approach.

For me, my OpenBSD moment was when I used the backlight brightness keys on a laptop in a vt, and it Just Worked™.

Post reply on HN