I've been using FreeBSD and Linux side by side for about 10 years. FreeBSD appeals strongly to the developer side of me: a typical install puts the complete ker

I've been using FreeBSD and Linux side by side for about 10 years. FreeBSD appeals strongly to the developer side of me: a typical install puts the complete kernel source code in /usr/src, includes a compiler and other build tools, section 3 man pages, and Makefiles for 20,000+ software packages (the ports system). On Debian-based systems at least, these are things I have to ask for later, and there always seems to be a bit more struggle involved in any given developer setup...it's almost like there's a velvet rope separating users from developers. Maybe other developer-centric Linux distros have caught up in certain ways; I'm actually quite interested in hearing more about them. With FreeBSD though, the low barrier to development has always been there, and when you dig deeper, you'll start to feel like part of a great tradition.