BSD Usage Survey Released!

Well, the Usage Survey is out the door. That's good news! There aren't very many sources of BSD usage information- and we hope this fills that gap. Maybe we can make it an annual thing. We'll see...

The survey is pretty comprehensive as far as determining how BSD systems are used and who uses them. But, as you'll read in the report, there are ways we can make it better. For example, just pre-screening who receives and processes the survey makes it much easier to determine if there are duplicates from the same company.

So- read and enjoy; especially the comments. Again- very good responses from all over the world. BSD truly is international!

Survey Report, Web Site, and Incorporation News

The Usage Survey Report is coming along. A bit slower than the last couple of documents, as we've all been busier than usual with $REAL_JOB. Hope to get more done this weekend on the Report.

The new website is up now, and everything works. We had some problems with the contact form, but it should be working now.

Incorporation is complete! We got our offical papers from the State of NJ. We can now open a business account and get ready for the flood of donations. You are going to donate aren't you? Hope so... :-)

BTW- the business plan is ready for publication. Use the Contact Us form on the website if you want a copy. Or just post to the mailing list. We'll get started on a wider distribution this soon.

BSDA Certification Requirements Document Completed!

After some last minute scrambling, we finally got the BSD Certification Requirements Document done. The document lists seven different study domains and has over 100 different topics. Here's the PDF copy. And a humorous note- even after all that checking, the first version we put up had an 'ipconfig(8)' in one of the entries! Thanks to Hugo Silva, one of our translators, for pointing it out.

Also- the Business Plan is now available. We're releasing it to our Advisory Board first, then to the general public. If you want an advance copy- send an email to info AT bsdcertification dot org.

We're now looking for sponsors. If you or your company has benefited from BSD, and would like to sponsor development of the certification, please contact us. We need your help!

Next up is the report on the BSD Usage Survey. We're drafting that right now. And just like the first survey (Task Analysis Survey), this survey is loaded with comments. There are hundreds of comments. Here are a few samples:

• We're a small start-up. The BSD family of OSes has enabled us to create products and provide an on-line store using no-cost systems. Without BSD we would never have got off the ground. A big thank-you to everyone who has contributed in whatever way. We've been supporting the cause for several years now and hope to be able to increase funding as our business grows.


• BSD, in any form, is an excellent product and a very robust OS. I am forced to use Windows for one program, but, everything else is done in BSD.


• And my favorite: Hurry up :-)

Rest assured, we are working as fast as we can!


Side note- Unfortunately, I've had to turn on word verification to prevent spam commenting. My apologies, but it will save me quite a bit of time to remove them. But please don't let that prevent you from commenting :-)

A Hectic Two Weeks

It's been a hectic two weeks. There is a lot going on right now.

We've just finished up the BSD Usage Survey. The data needs some massaging before we are ready to publish a survey report. That will be a few days yet. Over 4000 people responded to that survey. Wow! I was impressed when 500 responded. The survey was very popular, and there were many comments. We'll devote space to the comments again, like we did for the Task Analysis Survey Report. The comments are really refreshing to read.

The BSD Associate certification requirements document is nearing completion. This has been a huge effort. Many people contributed ideas and suggestions, and it's up over 50 pages now. The document contains seven "study domains" that contain about a dozen or so exam objectives each. It's quite detailed. One nifty feature is in the appendix- a chart listing the four BSD projects and common administrative commands and files among them. This should be quite useful to BSD students, young and old.

A lot of time has gone into getting the Business Plan shaped up. The plan is done, and is now being reviewed by the Group. It contains an operating plan for the next two years, and shows three revenue streams- sponsorships, donations, and exam fees.

Speaking of business, that's where more time went- into researching and drafting articles of incorporation and bylaws. We've decided to incorporate as a non-profit organization and we plan on submitting an application to the IRS as a 501(c)(3) scientific and educational charitable organization. If the IRS accepts our application, contributions may be tax deductible. That's good news for us, and for donors too! More details as they become available.

And if all that wasn't enough, I'm transitioning into a new role at my company. More responsibility, and (probably) more work to do.

And that starts in just a few hours- so I better get some sleep!