[r3trohack3r]

The FreeBSD handbook, and FreeBSD’s bit-rot resistant documentation, are the primary reasons I use it as a daily driver. I migrated from Linux on the Laptop ~1.5 years ago and my day-to-day has been more calm ever since.

[Ducki]

The system is just so nice. Memory footprint is very low, there are like a hand full of processes running, almost no magical stuff happening. Additionally to the handbook, the man pages are also way more informative than the Linux pendants.

[benwills]

It seems that finding a FreeBSD-compatible laptop can be a bit of a process. I've been considering the same for the last couple years, but always end up hesitating once I get into researching it.

Are you up for sharing which laptop you got? And do you have any advice on the process of choosing one? My needs are pretty basic (no gaming, etc): web browser, sublimetext, command line.

[hericium]

ThinkPads usually work well.

My T14s AMD Gen1 lacks fingerprint scanner support and as of now, AC/AX WiFi drivers are in very alpha stage, so I had to downgrade to 80211n.

Everything else, including AMD GPU acceleration in X.org, works perfectly. I am glad to be able to do some tinkering to have a system working just as I want it to, not like some corporation's investors prefer.

[benwills]

Cool. Thanks for that. I think I'd be fine on 80211n.

[comprev]

Judging by this list [0] Thinkpads seem to have a good reputation, like they do for Linux too.

[0] https://wiki.freebsd.org/Laptops

[benwills]

Yeah, I've reviewed that and other forums as well and previously narrowed it down to 3-4 options (It was a while back and I don't remember which).

I'm expecting I just have to make the decision at some point, and work through whatever comes up.

[r3trohack3r]

I use a Panasonic Toughbook.

It’s a bit of a beast - weighs several pounds - but I can use it in the swimming pool and rain.

[nauticacom]

I've been thinking of throwing FreeBSD on an old Thinkpad and trying to use it normally. Right now I run Debian, with most of my work happening in Firefox or the shell.

Is there anything you didn't even think about that ended up being a problem, or noticeably worse? Or the opposite, something you thought would be an issue but wasn't?

[andrewzah]

FreeBSD runs pretty nice on thinkpads. I've thrown it (and OpenBSD) on my x201s and x220s. There are a few pain points:

* getting used to the BSD version of utilities. make frequently breaks for me, and last time I used gmake there were still issues.

* random software isn't packaged or just doesn't run/build on *BSDs well.

* lack of support for games. these days, steam games run rather well on linux as long as they don't require anticheats.

* no docker. this is what keeps me on linux, I use it every day for work and I have a server at home running software through docker containers.

For me, OpenBSD is the goto.. for servers. I still stick with debian or arch for my daily drivers.

[GekkePrutser]

Most gmake works well but sometimes you have to change the include and lib paths. FreeBSD is just a bit different in that respect bit it's a good thing IMO. It's very consistent

[dddddaviddddd]

WiFi is currently limited to 802.11n on all chipsets. Work to support 802.11ac (and more wireless cards) is ongoing and looks to me like it could be ready in 2022. Also, options for videoconferencing programs (Zoom, Skype) are poor, you're effectively limited to browser-based versions, which don't perform well with an iGPU at least.

[GekkePrutser]

Jitsi works fine though at least in Firefox!

I don't want zoom anywhere near my FreeBSD box after what they did with that backdoor on macOS. And refused to remove it until apple blacklisted them.

[r3trohack3r]

Honestly - I expected it to be harder than it was. I read the entire handbook cover to cover before doing an install. I think that was the trick. It’s just been smooth sailing.

I keep an R620 running Linux that I can ssh into if I need Docker - but I use it a lot less than I expected.

[barkingcat]

I've used it as my primary server platform for 10+ years now and the handbook is still great - very resistant to any kind of bitrot at all.