Why is freebsd unlike openbsd and netbsd not supplied with the x window system?

[Polytropon]

On Sat, 11 Apr 2020 16:50:12 +0600, Nikita Stepanov wrote:
> [nothing]

FreeBSD is a multi-purpose operating system. It can be used
for servers, for desktops, for laptops, for appliances, and
for "mixed forms". That's why X is not part of the OS. On
FreeBSD, only the kernel and the userland - the parts comprising
the operating system - are delivered as a unit. Nothing else
is needed to boot a fully operational system. Everything else,
like X (which is optional) can be installed via pkg in binary
form, or built from source using the ports collection Using
this approach, FreeBSD keeps the "installation footprint"
low, while _not_ stopping any specific kind of use. You
want a server? Install what you wish to run, omit X. You
want a gaming system? Install X, probably wine or winex,
and your games. Want to run servers on your laptop? No
problem, absolutely possible. And all those things are
possible with one and the same (!) OS distribution.

Ths OS can be installed for many different platforms.
All of them are derived from the same set of sources.
THis applies even to platforms that probably cannot
even run X.

This philosophy makes FreeBSD superior compared to other
systems where you need one distribution for a server,
another one for a desktop, and a third one for an
embedded system. Sometimes distributions for something
that is neither server nor desktop doesn't even exist.

If you use FreeBSD's default installation media (usually
the memstick image or the DVD image), you'll find X as
a package that you can install. Using FreeBSD's media
offline is possible - you don't need an Internet connection
to obtain X.

Furthermore, X is developed by the port maintainer, not
by the folks maintaining the operating system. FreeBSD
draws a nice line between "the operating system" and
"third party software" (i. e., stuff from the ports
collection). The OS can be installed and booted without
anything else. _You_ decide what else you wish to install.

So the consensus is: X is not part of the operating
system, that's why it is not installed by default.

If you want FreeBSD with X, try TrueOS (ex PC-BSD).



PS.

For reference purposes of the list, please state your question
in the message body, and use the subject for a summary of the
topic you wish to discuss. Thanks! :-)


-- 
Polytropon
Magdeburg, Germany
Happy FreeBSD user since 4.0
Andra moi ennepe, Mousa, ...