We are thrilled to announce the restoration of Be Inc’s original website, Be.com, to ProtoWeb!
For those who may not remember, Be Inc was a pioneering technology company founded by former Apple executive Jean-Louis Gassée. Be Inc was best known for its innovative operating system, BeOS, which was ahead of its time with features like preemptive multitasking and pervasive multithreading.
Be Inc also ventured into hardware with the BeBox. The BeBox was a personal computer manufactured by Be Inc, designed to run the BeOS. It featured dual CPU setups, a multitude of expansion ports, and even featured two “Blinkenlights” on the front panel that indicated CPU activity. However, the BeBox was only produced for a short period from 1995 to 1997.
The Be.com website served as the primary source of information for BeOS and BeBox enthusiasts, developers, and users around the world.
In the mid-1990s, Apple Computer considered acquiring Be Inc.,but ultimately decided to acquire NeXT, Inc. and its NeXTSTEP operating system. This decision marked a turning point for Be Inc. The company was eventually acquired by Palm, Inc. in 2001 marking the end of Be Inc.’s journey. However the spirit of BeOS lives on in the form of Haiku OS, an open-source operating system that is inspired by and compatible with BeOS.
