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Review: FreeBSD 15.0
Quoting: DistroWatch.com: Put the fun back into computing. Use Linux, BSD. —
While I was a little disappointed FreeBSD 15.0 did not receive the ability to enable a desktop environment right from the system installer, I can understand the project's hesitation. It's a big shift for a project to go from command line only to offering a pre-configured desktop and, as I pointed out in the above paragraphs, the FreeBSD team approaches changes cautiously. For now, people who want to experience FreeBSD with a pre-configured desktop can run GhostBSD.
The other planned change, the move to a unified pkgbase, went smoothly. I like that both approaches, package sets and pkg, are available at install time. I appreciate the chance to unify updates under one tool (which simplifies my work a little), and I like that packages for the core system are clearly marked to help us avoid attempting to remove critical components. My one disappointment was pkg does not create new boot environments when it updates packages on ZFS volumes. Perhaps this addition will be added in future versions, but for now people running pkgbase systems will need to perform snapshots manually or schedule them.
Apart from these changes, FreeBSD has remained pleasantly the same. I found setting up a desktop environment just a bit easier this time around. I couldn't put my finger exactly on why, but I think either FreeBSD has streamlined some permission issues or the handbook has been updated to make the process of enabling a desktop clearer.
FreeBSD is a solid, general purpose operating system that, despite getting less attention than its Linux cousins, continues to be a capable operating system with a lot of useful features - multiple desktop environments, an advanced filesystem, jails for isolating processes, and a fast package manager that provides access to tens of thousands of third-party ports.
I don't think FreeBSD will appeal to people who want to be on the cutting-edge of technology or who want to have a desktop system with a quick and easy setup process. It's more of a workhorse, a powerful, efficient operating system with no flash, but offering reliable software backed by useful documentation.