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<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN"
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"http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd">
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<html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">
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<head>
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<meta name="generator" content="HTML Tidy, see www.w3.org" />
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<title>FreeBSD 4.8-RELEASE README</title>
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<meta name="GENERATOR"
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content="Modular DocBook HTML Stylesheet Version 1.73 " />
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<link rel="STYLESHEET" type="text/css" href="docbook.css" />
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</head>
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<body class="ARTICLE" bgcolor="#FFFFFF" text="#000000"
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link="#0000FF" vlink="#840084" alink="#0000FF">
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<div class="ARTICLE">
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<div class="TITLEPAGE">
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<h1 class="TITLE"><a id="AEN2" name="AEN2">FreeBSD
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4.8-RELEASE README</a></h1>
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<h3 class="CORPAUTHOR">The FreeBSD Project</h3>
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<p class="COPYRIGHT">Copyright © 2000, 2001, 2002,
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2003 by The FreeBSD Documentation Project</p>
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<p class="PUBDATE">$FreeBSD:
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src/release/doc/en_US.ISO8859-1/readme/article.sgml,v
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1.1.2.16 2003/01/06 22:09:00 bmah Exp $<br />
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</p>
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<hr />
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</div>
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<blockquote class="ABSTRACT">
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<div class="ABSTRACT">
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<a id="AEN12" name="AEN12"></a>
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<p>This document gives a brief introduction to FreeBSD
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4.8-RELEASE. It includes some information on how to
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obtain FreeBSD, a listing of various ways to contact the
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FreeBSD Project, and pointers to some other sources of
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information.</p>
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</div>
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</blockquote>
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<div class="SECT1">
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<hr />
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<h1 class="SECT1"><a id="AEN14" name="AEN14">1
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Introduction</a></h1>
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<p>This distribution is a release of FreeBSD 4.8-RELEASE,
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the latest point along the 4-STABLE branch.</p>
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<div class="SECT2">
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<hr />
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<h2 class="SECT2"><a id="AEN17" name="AEN17">1.1 About
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FreeBSD</a></h2>
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<p>FreeBSD is an operating system based on 4.4 BSD Lite
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for Intel, AMD, Cyrix or NexGen ``x86'' based PC hardware
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and Compaq (formerly DEC) Alpha computers. Versions for
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the IA64, PowerPC, and Sparc64 architectures are
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currently under development as well. FreeBSD works with a
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wide variety of peripherals and configurations and can be
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used for everything from software development to games to
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Internet Service Provision.</p>
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<p>This release of FreeBSD contains everything you need
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to run such a system, including full source code for the
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kernel and all utilities in the base distribution. With
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the source distribution installed, you can literally
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recompile the entire system from scratch with one
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command, making it ideal for students, researchers, or
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users who simply want to see how it all works.</p>
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<p>A large collection of third-party ported software (the
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``Ports Collection'') is also provided to make it easy to
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obtain and install all your favorite traditional UNIX
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utilities for FreeBSD. Each ``port'' consists of a set of
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scripts to retrieve, configure, build, and install a
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piece of software, with a single command. Over 8,300
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ports, from editors to programming languages to graphical
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applications, make FreeBSD a powerful and comprehensive
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operating environment that extends far beyond what's
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provided by many commercial versions of UNIX. Most ports
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are also available as pre-compiled ``packages'', which
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can be quickly installed from the installation
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program.</p>
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</div>
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<div class="SECT2">
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<hr />
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<h2 class="SECT2"><a id="AEN26" name="AEN26">1.2 Target
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Audience</a></h2>
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<p>This release of FreeBSD is suitable for all users. It
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has undergone a period of testing and quality assurance
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checking to ensure the highest reliability and
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dependability.</p>
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</div>
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</div>
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<div class="SECT1">
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<hr />
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<h1 class="SECT1"><a id="AEN29" name="AEN29">2 Obtaining
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FreeBSD</a></h1>
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<p>FreeBSD may be obtained in a variety of ways. This
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section focuses on those ways that are primarily useful for
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obtaining a complete FreeBSD distribution, rather than
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updating an existing installation.</p>
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<div class="SECT2">
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<hr />
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<h2 class="SECT2"><a id="AEN32" name="AEN32">2.1 CDROM
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and DVD</a></h2>
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<p>FreeBSD -RELEASE distributions may be ordered on CDROM
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or DVD from several publishers. This is frequently the
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most convenient way to obtain FreeBSD for new
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installations, as it provides a convenient way to quickly
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reinstall the system if necessary. Some distributions
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include some of the optional, precompiled ``packages''
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from the FreeBSD Ports Collection.</p>
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<p>A list of the CDROM and DVD publishers known to the
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project are listed in the <a
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href="http://www.FreeBSD.org/doc/en_US.ISO8859-1/books/handbook/mirrors.html"
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target="_top">``Obtaining FreeBSD''</a> appendix to the
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Handbook.</p>
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</div>
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<div class="SECT2">
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<hr />
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<h2 class="SECT2"><a id="AEN39" name="AEN39">2.2
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FTP</a></h2>
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<p>You can use FTP to retrieve FreeBSD and any or all of
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its optional packages from <a
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href="ftp://ftp.FreeBSD.org/"
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target="_top">ftp://ftp.FreeBSD.org/</a>, which is the
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official FreeBSD release site, or any of its
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``mirrors''.</p>
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<p>Lists of locations that mirror FreeBSD can be found in
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the <a
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href="http://www.FreeBSD.org/doc/en_US.ISO8859-1/books/handbook/mirrors-ftp.html"
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target="_top">FTP Sites</a> section of the Handbook, or
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on the <a href="http://mirrorlist.FreeBSD.org/"
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target="_top">http://mirrorlist.FreeBSD.org/</a> Web
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pages. Finding a close (in networking terms) mirror from
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which to download the distribution is highly
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recommended.</p>
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<p>Additional mirror sites are always welcome. Contact
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<tt class="EMAIL"><<a
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href="mailto:freebsd-admin@FreeBSD.org">freebsd-admin@FreeBSD.org</a>></tt>
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for more details on becoming an official mirror site.</p>
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<p>Mirrors generally contain the floppy disk images
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necessary to begin an installation, as well as the
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distribution files needed for the install process itself.
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Many mirrors also contain the ISO images necessary to
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create a CDROM of a FreeBSD release.</p>
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</div>
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</div>
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<div class="SECT1">
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<hr />
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<h1 class="SECT1"><a id="CONTACTING" name="CONTACTING">3
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Contacting the FreeBSD Project</a></h1>
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<div class="SECT2">
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<h2 class="SECT2"><a id="AEN52" name="AEN52">3.1 Email
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and Mailing Lists</a></h2>
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<p>For any questions or general technical support issues,
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please send mail to the FreeBSD general questions mailing
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list <tt class="EMAIL"><<a
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href="mailto:freebsd-questions@FreeBSD.org">freebsd-questions@FreeBSD.org</a>></tt>.</p>
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<p>If you are tracking the -STABLE development efforts,
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you <span class="emphasis"><i
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class="EMPHASIS">must</i></span> join the FreeBSD-STABLE
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mailing list <tt class="EMAIL"><<a
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href="mailto:freebsd-stable@FreeBSD.org">freebsd-stable@FreeBSD.org</a>></tt>,
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in order to keep abreast of recent developments and
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changes that may affect the way you use and maintain the
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system.</p>
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<p>Being a largely-volunteer effort, the FreeBSD Project
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is always happy to have extra hands willing to
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help--there are already far more desired enhancements
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than there is time to implement them. To contact the
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developers on technical matters, or with offers of help,
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please send mail to the FreeBSD technical discussions
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mailing list <tt class="EMAIL"><<a
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href="mailto:freebsd-hackers@FreeBSD.org">freebsd-hackers@FreeBSD.org</a>></tt>.</p>
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<p>Please note that these mailing lists can experience
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<span class="emphasis"><i
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class="EMPHASIS">significant</i></span> amounts of
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traffic. If you have slow or expensive mail access, or
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are only interested in keeping up with major FreeBSD
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events, you may find it preferable to subscribe instead
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to the FreeBSD announcements mailing list <tt
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class="EMAIL"><<a
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href="mailto:freebsd-announce@FreeBSD.org">freebsd-announce@FreeBSD.org</a>></tt>.</p>
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<p>All of the mailing lists can be freely joined by
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anyone wishing to do so. Visit <a href="http://lists.FreeBSD.org/mailman/listinfo">FreeBSD
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Mailman Info Page</a>.
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This will give you more information on joining the
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various lists, accessing archives, etc. There are a
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number of mailing lists targeted at special interest
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groups not mentioned here; more information can be
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obtained either through majordomo or the <a
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href="http://www.FreeBSD.org/support.html#mailing-list"
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target="_top">mailing lists section</a> of the FreeBSD
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Web site.</p>
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<div class="IMPORTANT">
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<blockquote class="IMPORTANT">
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<p><b>Important:</b> Do <span class="emphasis"><i
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class="EMPHASIS">not</i></span> send email to the
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lists asking to be subscribed. Use the <tt
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class="EMAIL"><<a
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href="mailto:majordomo@FreeBSD.org">majordomo@FreeBSD.org</a>></tt>
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address instead.</p>
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</blockquote>
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</div>
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</div>
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<div class="SECT2">
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<hr />
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<h2 class="SECT2"><a id="AEN72" name="AEN72">3.2
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Submitting Problem Reports</a></h2>
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<p>Suggestions, bug reports and contributions of code are
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always valued--please do not hesitate to report any
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problems you may find. Bug reports with attached fixes
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are of course even more welcome.</p>
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<p>The preferred method to submit bug reports from a
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machine with Internet mail connectivity is to use the <a
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href="http://www.FreeBSD.org/cgi/man.cgi?query=send-pr&sektion=1&manpath=FreeBSD+4.8-RELEASE">
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<span class="CITEREFENTRY"><span
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class="REFENTRYTITLE">send-pr</span>(1)</span></a>
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command or use the Web form at <a
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href="http://www.FreeBSD.org/send-pr.html"
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target="_top">http://www.FreeBSD.org/send-pr.html</a>.
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``Problem Reports'' (PRs) submitted in this way will be
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filed and their progress tracked; the FreeBSD developers
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will do their best to respond to all reported bugs as
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soon as possible. <a
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href="http://www.FreeBSD.org/cgi/query-pr-summary.cgi"
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target="_top">A list of all active PRs</a> is available
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on the FreeBSD Web site; this list is useful to see what
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potential problems other users have encountered.</p>
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<p>Note that <a
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href="http://www.FreeBSD.org/cgi/man.cgi?query=send-pr&sektion=1&manpath=FreeBSD+4.8-RELEASE">
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<span class="CITEREFENTRY"><span
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class="REFENTRYTITLE">send-pr</span>(1)</span></a> itself
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is a shell script that should be easy to move even onto a
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non-FreeBSD system. Using this interface is highly
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preferred. If, for some reason, you are unable to use <a
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href="http://www.FreeBSD.org/cgi/man.cgi?query=send-pr&sektion=1&manpath=FreeBSD+4.8-RELEASE">
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<span class="CITEREFENTRY"><span
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class="REFENTRYTITLE">send-pr</span>(1)</span></a> to
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submit a bug report, you can try to send it to the
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FreeBSD problem reports mailing list <tt
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class="EMAIL"><<a
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href="mailto:freebsd-bugs@FreeBSD.org">freebsd-bugs@FreeBSD.org</a>></tt>.</p>
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<p>For more information, <a
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href="http://www.FreeBSD.org/doc/en_US.ISO8859-1/articles/problem-reports/"
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target="_top">``Writing FreeBSD Problem Reports''</a>,
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available on the FreeBSD Web site, has a number of
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helpful hints on writing and submitting effective problem
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reports.</p>
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</div>
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</div>
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<div class="SECT1">
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<hr />
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<h1 class="SECT1"><a id="AEN93" name="AEN93">4 Further
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Reading</a></h1>
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<p>There are many sources of information about FreeBSD;
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some are included with this distribution, while others are
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available on-line or in print versions.</p>
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<div class="SECT2">
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<hr />
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<h2 class="SECT2"><a id="RELEASE-DOCS"
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name="RELEASE-DOCS">4.1 Release Documentation</a></h2>
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<p>A number of other files provide more specific
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information about this release distribution. These files
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are provided in various formats. Most distributions will
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include both ASCII text (<tt class="FILENAME">.TXT</tt>)
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and HTML (<tt class="FILENAME">.HTM</tt>) renditions.
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Some distributions may also include other formats such as
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PostScript (<tt class="FILENAME">.PS</tt>) or Portable
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Document Format (<tt class="FILENAME">.PDF</tt>).</p>
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<ul>
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<li>
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<p><tt class="FILENAME">README.TXT</tt>: This file,
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which gives some general information about FreeBSD as
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well as some cursory notes about obtaining a
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distribution.</p>
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</li>
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<li>
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<p><tt class="FILENAME">RELNOTES.TXT</tt>: The
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release notes, showing what's new and different in
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FreeBSD 4.8-RELEASE compared to the previous release
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(FreeBSD 4.7-RELEASE).</p>
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</li>
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<li>
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<p><tt class="FILENAME">HARDWARE.TXT</tt>: The
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hardware compatability list, showing devices with
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which FreeBSD has been tested and is known to
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work.</p>
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</li>
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<li>
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<p><tt class="FILENAME">INSTALL.TXT</tt>:
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Installation instructions for installing FreeBSD from
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its distribution media.</p>
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</li>
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<li>
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<p><tt class="FILENAME">ERRATA.TXT</tt>: Release
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errata. Late-breaking, post-release information can
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be found in this file, which is principally
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applicable to releases (as opposed to snapshots). It
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is important to consult this file before installing a
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release of FreeBSD, as it contains the latest
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information on problems which have been found and
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fixed since the release was created.</p>
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</li>
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</ul>
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<div class="NOTE">
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<blockquote class="NOTE">
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<p><b>Note:</b> Several of these documents (in
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particular, <tt class="FILENAME">RELNOTES.TXT</tt>,
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<tt class="FILENAME">HARDWARE.TXT</tt>, and <tt
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class="FILENAME">INSTALL.TXT</tt>) contain
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information that is specific to a particular hardware
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architecture. For example, the alpha release notes
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contain information not applicable to the i386, and
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vice versa. The architecture for which each document
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applies will be listed in that document's title.</p>
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</blockquote>
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</div>
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<br />
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<br />
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<p>These documents are generally available via the
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Documentation menu during installation. Once the system
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is installed, you can revisit this menu by running the <a
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href="http://www.FreeBSD.org/cgi/man.cgi?query=sysinstall&sektion=8&manpath=FreeBSD+4.8-RELEASE">
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<span class="CITEREFENTRY"><span
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class="REFENTRYTITLE">sysinstall</span>(8)</span></a>
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utility.</p>
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<div class="NOTE">
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<blockquote class="NOTE">
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<p><b>Note:</b> It is extremely important to read the
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errata for any given release before installing it, to
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learn about any ``late-breaking news'' or
|
|
post-release problems. The errata file accompanying
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|
each release (most likely right next to this file) is
|
|
already out of date by definition, but other copies
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|
are kept updated on the Internet and should be
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|
consulted as the ``current errata'' for this release.
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|
These other copies of the errata are located at <a
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|
href="http://www.FreeBSD.org/releases/"
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|
target="_top">http://www.FreeBSD.org/releases/</a>
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|
(as well as any sites which keep up-to-date mirrors
|
|
of this location).</p>
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|
</blockquote>
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</div>
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</div>
|
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<div class="SECT2">
|
|
<hr />
|
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<h2 class="SECT2"><a id="AEN133" name="AEN133">4.2 Manual
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Pages</a></h2>
|
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|
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<p>As with almost all UNIX-like operating systems,
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FreeBSD comes with a set of on-line manual pages,
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|
accessed through the <a
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|
href="http://www.FreeBSD.org/cgi/man.cgi?query=man&sektion=1&manpath=FreeBSD+4.8-RELEASE">
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|
<span class="CITEREFENTRY"><span
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class="REFENTRYTITLE">man</span>(1)</span></a> command or
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|
through the <a href="http://www.FreeBSD.org/cgi/man.cgi"
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target="_top">hypertext manual pages gateway</a> on the
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FreeBSD Web site. In general, the manual pages provide
|
|
information on the different commands and APIs available
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to the FreeBSD user.</p>
|
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|
<p>In some cases, manual pages are written to give
|
|
information on particular topics. Notable examples of
|
|
such manual pages are <a
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|
href="http://www.FreeBSD.org/cgi/man.cgi?query=tuning&sektion=7&manpath=FreeBSD+4.8-RELEASE">
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|
<span class="CITEREFENTRY"><span
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|
class="REFENTRYTITLE">tuning</span>(7)</span></a> (a
|
|
guide to performance tuning), <a
|
|
href="http://www.FreeBSD.org/cgi/man.cgi?query=security&sektion=7&manpath=FreeBSD+4.8-RELEASE">
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<span class="CITEREFENTRY"><span
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class="REFENTRYTITLE">security</span>(7)</span></a> (an
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|
introduction to FreeBSD security), and <a
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href="http://www.FreeBSD.org/cgi/man.cgi?query=style&sektion=9&manpath=FreeBSD+4.8-RELEASE">
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<span class="CITEREFENTRY"><span
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class="REFENTRYTITLE">style</span>(9)</span></a> (a style
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|
guide to kernel coding).</p>
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</div>
|
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<div class="SECT2">
|
|
<hr />
|
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|
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<h2 class="SECT2"><a id="AEN150" name="AEN150">4.3 Books
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|
and Articles</a></h2>
|
|
|
|
<p>Two highly-useful collections of FreeBSD-related
|
|
information, maintained by the FreeBSD Project, are the
|
|
FreeBSD Handbook and FreeBSD FAQ (Frequently Asked
|
|
Questions document). On-line versions of the <a
|
|
href="http://www.FreeBSD.org/doc/en_US.ISO8859-1/books/handbook/"
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|
target="_top">Handbook</a> and <a
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|
href="http://www.FreeBSD.org/doc/en_US.ISO8859-1/books/faq/"
|
|
target="_top">FAQ</a> are always available from the <a
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|
href="http://www.FreeBSD.org/docs.html"
|
|
target="_top">FreeBSD Documentation page</a> or its
|
|
mirrors. If you install the <tt class="FILENAME">doc</tt>
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|
distribution set, you can use a Web browser to read the
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Handbook and FAQ locally.</p>
|
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|
|
<p>A number of on-line books and articles, also
|
|
maintained by the FreeBSD Project, cover
|
|
more-specialized, FreeBSD-related topics. This material
|
|
spans a wide range of topics, from effective use of the
|
|
mailing lists, to dual-booting FreeBSD with other
|
|
operating systems, to guidelines for new committers. Like
|
|
the Handbook and FAQ, these documents are available from
|
|
the FreeBSD Documentation Page or in the <tt
|
|
class="FILENAME">doc</tt> distribution set.</p>
|
|
|
|
<p>A listing of other books and documents about FreeBSD
|
|
can be found in the <a
|
|
href="http://www.FreeBSD.org/doc/en_US.ISO8859-1/books/handbook/bibliography.html"
|
|
target="_top">bibliography</a> of the FreeBSD Handbook.
|
|
Because of FreeBSD's strong UNIX heritage, many other
|
|
articles and books written for UNIX systems are
|
|
applicable as well, some of which are also listed in the
|
|
bibliography.</p>
|
|
</div>
|
|
</div>
|
|
|
|
<div class="SECT1">
|
|
<hr />
|
|
|
|
<h1 class="SECT1"><a id="AEN161" name="AEN161">5
|
|
Acknowledgments</a></h1>
|
|
|
|
<p>FreeBSD represents the cumulative work of many hundreds,
|
|
if not thousands, of individuals from around the world who
|
|
have worked countless hours to bring about this release.
|
|
For a complete list of FreeBSD developers and contributors,
|
|
please see <a
|
|
href="http://www.FreeBSD.org/doc/en_US.ISO8859-1/articles/contributors/"
|
|
target="_top">``Contributors to FreeBSD''</a> on the
|
|
FreeBSD Web site or any of its mirrors.</p>
|
|
|
|
<p>Special thanks also go to the many thousands of FreeBSD
|
|
users and testers all over the world, without whom this
|
|
release simply would not have been possible.</p>
|
|
</div>
|
|
</div>
|
|
<hr />
|
|
|
|
<p align="center"><small>This file, and other release-related
|
|
documents, can be downloaded from <a
|
|
href="ftp://ftp.FreeBSD.org/">ftp://ftp.FreeBSD.org/</a>.</small></p>
|
|
|
|
<p align="center"><small>For questions about FreeBSD, read the
|
|
<a href="http://www.FreeBSD.org/docs.html">documentation</a>
|
|
before contacting <<a
|
|
href="mailto:questions@FreeBSD.org">questions@FreeBSD.org</a>>.</small></p>
|
|
|
|
<p align="center"><small><small>All users of FreeBSD 4-STABLE
|
|
should subscribe to the <<a
|
|
href="mailto:stable@FreeBSD.org">stable@FreeBSD.org</a>>
|
|
mailing list.</small></small></p>
|
|
|
|
<p align="center">For questions about this documentation,
|
|
e-mail <<a
|
|
href="mailto:doc@FreeBSD.org">doc@FreeBSD.org</a>>.</p>
|
|
<br />
|
|
<br />
|
|
</body>
|
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</html>
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