The OpenBSD Community

OpenBSD is more than just a collection of bits. It’s a community of users, developers, and contributors, with a single central dictator—er, coordinator. And this community can be a bit of a shock for anyone who doesn’t know what to expect.

How can individuals scattered all over the world create, maintain, and develop an operating system, let alone build a community? Almost all discussion occurs through email and online chat. The process is slower than talking face-to-face, but it’s the only cost-effective way for a large group of people in every time zone to communicate in a reasonable fashion. Email and chat also offer written records of discussions. If you want to participate in OpenBSD development, you must be comfortable ...

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