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reploodayesterday at 11:01 PM1 replyview on HN

What is? No coddling? Little tolerance toward laziness? Zero toward entitlement? That's closer to the opposite of being patronizing, I would say.

They point to documentation in response to the kind of request I've seen closed with RTFMs elsewhere. They'll expect one to read it, and try one's hand at whatever one is trying to accomplish — and they'll feel slighted by a refusal, given how much work they put into it.

And yet, they go to great, unexpected (given the fame) lengths to help someone actually making the effort; they don't try to put anyone down in order to feel bigger than they are, but they don't sugar coat things to appear more likable either.

In short, no, knowing what one is doing isn't a prerequisite; it's more about not foisting onto others the responsibility for the effort required to move from where one is to where one wants to be — whether in knowledge, maturity or tools.


Replies

nobodyandproudyesterday at 11:39 PM

What do you consider laziness?

Why do you believe pointing to the manual is newbie friendly?

In the Linux world, it took ages before it was newbie friendly (thinking Ubuntu and Mint).

OpenBSD serves an important niche, but to brand it as newbie-friendly does OpenBSD a disservice.

Or perhaps you mean newbie tolerant?

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