OpenDarwin 7.2.1 review
DownloadDarwin is the core of Mac OS X
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Darwin is the core of Mac OS X. The Darwin kernel is based on FreeBSD and Mach 3.0 technologies and provides protected memory and pre-emptive multitasking. Darwin runs on PowerPC-based Macintosh computers and a version is also available for x86-compatible computers.
Apple's open source projects allow developers to customize and enhance key Apple software. Through the open source model, Apple engineers and the open source community collaborate to create better, faster and more reliable products for our users.
Beneath the appealing, easy-to-use interface of Mac OS X is a rock-solid foundation that is engineered for stability, reliability, and performance. This foundation is a core operating system commonly known as Darwin.
Darwin integrates a number of technologies, most importantly Mach 3.0, operating-system services based on 4.4BSD (Berkeley Software Distribution), high-performance networking facilities, and support for multiple integrated file systems.
Since it was first released in March 1999, Darwin has been the open-source OS technology underlying Apple's Mac OS X operating system, with all development being managed and hosted by Apple at http://developer.apple.com/darwin/.
Since Apple's Mac OS X releases are based directly on the live Darwin CVS repository, it has been necessary to have a fairly comprehensive procedural framework in place for registering and managing Darwin developers to ensure a good level of quality control. While this system has served its intended purpose quite well, it is desirable to further increase the collaboration between Apple and the open source community beyond the current model.
OpenDarwin.org, jointly founded in April 2002 by Internet Systems Consortium, Inc. (ISC) and Apple, is an attempt to take cooperative Darwin development to the next level. Membership in the OpenDarwin project and access to its works are open to everyone.
The project is also fully independent, with control over its own web site, project news, bug tracking information and CVS repository, as well as any other services that the community owners may wish to provide. Neither Apple nor ISC take any responsibility for, or exercise any editorial control over, the OpenDarwin project.
Many OpenDarwin members are either Apple employees or Darwin Committers, who have an active interest in merging technologies from OpenDarwin.org into Darwin and Mac OS X releases. With OpenDarwin, project members have greater latitude in producing incremental updates or interim releases of Darwin.
The mission of the OpenDarwin project is to innovate and explore new technologies while still remaining relevant, through its informal connection to www.opensource.apple.com, to the mainstream computing environments that Apple provides. It complements Apple's infrastructure by allowing increased participation by the community.
What's New in This Release:
Install script has been enhanced to allow user creating, setting root password
AuthenticAMD cpu's are now properly detected
cvs from upstream feature releases
locate from NetBSD
at/atrun synced with FreeBSD-5
various unix software has been updated.
ODTulipDriver, a driver for tulip-based ethernet controllers, has been added.
ncutil, a network configuration tool for Darwin, has been updated to version 2.1
OpenDarwin 7.2.1 keywords