When comparing Berkeley Software Distribution vs NetBSD, the Slant community recommends NetBSD for most people. In the question“What are the best operating systems for advanced users?” NetBSD is ranked 21st while Berkeley Software Distribution is ranked 41st. The most important reason people chose NetBSD is:
It adheres to traditional Unix and new defined standards.
Specs
Ranked in these QuestionsQuestion Ranking
Pros
Pro FreeBSD, OpenBSD, and NetBSD are based on Berkeley Software Distribution
Pro Adhere to the standard
It adheres to traditional Unix and new defined standards.
Pro It's Open Source
It's open source with a BSD License, which is much more business friendly than GPL. It's the real ancestor of Mac, that is being used nowadays.
Pro It's real
Under NetBSD csh is csh not tcsh; also vi is real vi not elvis, nvi or vim. It's ideal for purists.
Pro Architecture portability
It's the most portable OS in the world when considering what architectures it can run on. It runs on very wide range of hardware, from toaster to satellites. This of course does not mean it supports drivers for many consumer facing products making it a difficult solution to just boot up and use when compared to other OSs.
Pro Clean source code
It prioritizes source code cleanliness over anything.
Cons
Con Discontinued in 1995
Con No way to install Berkeley Software Distribution on your PC
Con Lack of drivers
It lacks drivers for some new devices.