BSD's obscurity is just part of the reason it is now considered cooler than Linux among the geekiest geeks. But the software some say is the most secure operating system in the world may be poised to make a Linux-like leap to the forefront. The list of big-name companies and Web sites that use BSD is impressive. BSD had quite a head start.
Legal troubles tell part of the story.
At the same time, Torvalds was welcoming help from all comers, mainly young computer science students enamored of with the coming information explosion. BSD groups have focused on servers, never putting much work into appealing to a mass market. But that doesn't mean there's not some obvious jealousy that the new Unix on the block has gotten all the attention. That was the time Linux was gaining functionality. Talk to BSD users, and a quiet but clear sense of superiority comes through.