BeOS R5
Encyclopedia
BeOS R5 is the final version of BeOS
from Be Inc.
. It was released in March 2000, and came in two varieties: Professional and Personal.
R5 was the 4th major release of BeOS for a public audience, and the 6th since it left developer-only stages. It changed only slightly from the previous release, BeOS R4.5, and was even seeded to developers as "R4.6". Improved POSIX
compliance, particularly in the area of networking
, was provided. The OS in general was moved towards the new modular media kit over the former audio-only sound subsystem. For end-users, new logos and some new icons were the only major differences.
R5 was the first release of BeOS for x86 to have a freely downloadable version which could be fully installed on a user's hard drive; previous versions had a free Live CD
download, which could not be installed. R5 was also to be the last version to support the PowerPC
architecture which BeOS had originated on, including the company's own BeBox
hardware. According to Be's marketing, it was the first OS to ship with legal MP3
encoding and decoding support.
and Indeo
encoders, and RealPlayer
. It was installed into a 500MB "hardfile" through Windows or Linux, and could be booted either directly from Windows 9x
or DOS
, or using a boot floppy. Once booted, it could be installed to a real hard drive or partition, and the Be Bootloader
could be installed to allow dual-booting. This bootloader uses only the MBR
of the hard disk, and will continue to function even if the BeOS is uninstalled.
in the United States, Apacabar and Koch
in Europe, and Hitachi
in Asia. These resellers were responsible for all packaging of the OS, from localisation to CD labelling and packaging. As a result, some variations exist between packaged R5 Professional discs, with some being slipstream updated to the newest patches, and most notably, the inclusion of commercial printer
drivers with Gobe releases, and French
translations of the user documentation on Apacabar.
The CD shipped with an ISO9660/HFS
hybrid partition, containing documentation, GPL licenced source code, the Personal Edition installer (with the aim of you circulating the installer to friends), a copy of Partition Magic for Windows, and the Mac OS boot-loading code for the PowerPC version. Two separate BFS
partitions existed, one for x86, one for PowerPC, and the x86 one is directly bootable from CD.
In addition to all the features of Personal Edition, Professional Edition includes the full developers tools, including a rebranded CodeWarrior
, RealPlayer
G2, Fraunhofer
MP3 encoders, and support for both encoding Indeo
video, and playback/encoding of Indeo Real Time. Additional media on the CD varied by supplier, but always included some sample multimedia files, including two songs composed by Be staff ("5038" and "virtual (void)") as well as a video of Be staff pushing computer monitors off the roof of their building in Menlo Park
.
to do this, and in doing so, updated the version of glibc it was based on, again providing slightly more POSIX compatibility.
, Be's Internet Appliance
venture, the company ceased operations, and R5 was the last official release. A widely leaked version of BeOS that had been seeded to developers, codenamed Dano
, carried many new features, and a build ID indicating it was BeOS R5.1.0.
Another extremely widely leaked update is a new, fully POSIX compliant, kernel-land networking stack, known internally in Be as BONE. While officially alpha, this brings higher stability to R5, as well as opening up the application base available. The updater for BONE Alpha 7 increases the system version number to R5.04.
A new commercial venture, ZETA, is an operating system that appears to be based on the Dano codebase, and has been accepted by some BeOS users as a successor to R5. However, at least during its protracted release candidate stage, it was dogged with problems that have left some people using R5, and in some cases, looking to Haiku
for the future of their OS.
BeOS
BeOS is an operating system for personal computers which began development by Be Inc. in 1991. It was first written to run on BeBox hardware. BeOS was optimized for digital media work and was written to take advantage of modern hardware facilities such as symmetric multiprocessing by utilizing...
from Be Inc.
Be Inc.
Be Incorporated was an American computer company founded in 1990, best known for the Be Operating System and BeBox personal computer. Be was founded by former Apple Computer executive Jean-Louis Gassée with capital from Seymour Cray....
. It was released in March 2000, and came in two varieties: Professional and Personal.
R5 was the 4th major release of BeOS for a public audience, and the 6th since it left developer-only stages. It changed only slightly from the previous release, BeOS R4.5, and was even seeded to developers as "R4.6". Improved POSIX
POSIX
POSIX , an acronym for "Portable Operating System Interface", is a family of standards specified by the IEEE for maintaining compatibility between operating systems...
compliance, particularly in the area of networking
Computer network
A computer network, often simply referred to as a network, is a collection of hardware components and computers interconnected by communication channels that allow sharing of resources and information....
, was provided. The OS in general was moved towards the new modular media kit over the former audio-only sound subsystem. For end-users, new logos and some new icons were the only major differences.
R5 was the first release of BeOS for x86 to have a freely downloadable version which could be fully installed on a user's hard drive; previous versions had a free Live CD
Live CD
A live CD, live DVD, or live disc is a CD or DVD containing a bootable computer operating system. Live CDs are unique in that they have the ability to run a complete, modern operating system on a computer lacking mutable secondary storage, such as a hard disk drive...
download, which could not be installed. R5 was also to be the last version to support the PowerPC
PowerPC
PowerPC is a RISC architecture created by the 1991 Apple–IBM–Motorola alliance, known as AIM...
architecture which BeOS had originated on, including the company's own BeBox
BeBox
The BeBox was a short-lived dual processor personal computer, offered by Be Inc. to run the company's own operating system, BeOS. Notable aspects of the system include its CPU configuration, I/O board with "GeekPort", and "Blinkenlights" on the front bezel....
hardware. According to Be's marketing, it was the first OS to ship with legal MP3
MP3
MPEG-1 or MPEG-2 Audio Layer III, more commonly referred to as MP3, is a patented digital audio encoding format using a form of lossy data compression...
encoding and decoding support.
Personal Edition
Personal Edition, a 48MB download, was the most commonly used version of R5. Stripped of developer tools (though these were later made available as a separate download), mp3MP3
MPEG-1 or MPEG-2 Audio Layer III, more commonly referred to as MP3, is a patented digital audio encoding format using a form of lossy data compression...
and Indeo
Indeo
Indeo Video is a video codec developed by Intel in 1992. It was sold to Ligos Corporation in 2000. While its original version was related to Intel's DVI video stream format, a hardware-only codec for the compression of television-quality video onto compact disks, Indeo was distinguished by being...
encoders, and RealPlayer
RealPlayer
RealPlayer is a cross-platform media player by RealNetworks that plays a number of multimedia formats including MP3, MPEG-4, QuickTime, Windows Media, and multiple versions of proprietary RealAudio and RealVideo formats.-History:...
. It was installed into a 500MB "hardfile" through Windows or Linux, and could be booted either directly from Windows 9x
Windows 9x
Windows 9x is a generic term referring to a series of Microsoft Windows computer operating systems produced since 1995, which were based on the original and later modified Windows 95 kernel...
or DOS
DOS
DOS, short for "Disk Operating System", is an acronym for several closely related operating systems that dominated the IBM PC compatible market between 1981 and 1995, or until about 2000 if one includes the partially DOS-based Microsoft Windows versions 95, 98, and Millennium Edition.Related...
, or using a boot floppy. Once booted, it could be installed to a real hard drive or partition, and the Be Bootloader
Bootman
bootman is the Haiku and BeOS boot loader on x86 systems. It resides solely in the master boot record and does not require installing Haiku or BeOS, although it must be installed from Haiku or BeOS....
could be installed to allow dual-booting. This bootloader uses only the MBR
Master boot record
A master boot record is a type of boot sector popularized by the IBM Personal Computer. It consists of a sequence of 512 bytes located at the first sector of a data storage device such as a hard disk...
of the hard disk, and will continue to function even if the BeOS is uninstalled.
Professional Edition
Professional Edition was only available commercially, and for the first time in BeOS's history, could not be purchased from the company unless you were a developer. Instead, a number of regional resellers sold it - Gobe SoftwareGobe Software
Gobe Software, Inc was a software company that published an integrated desktop software suite for BeOS. In later years, it was the publisher of BeOS itself....
in the United States, Apacabar and Koch
Koch
Koch may refer to:* Koch , a type of Arctic boat* Koch people , an ethnic group originally from the ancient Koch kingdom in north east India* Koch , people with this surname* Koch, Łódź Voivodeship, a village in central Poland...
in Europe, and Hitachi
Hitachi, Ltd.
is a Japanese multinational conglomerate headquartered in Marunouchi 1-chome, Chiyoda, Tokyo, Japan. The company is the parent of the Hitachi Group as part of the larger DKB Group companies...
in Asia. These resellers were responsible for all packaging of the OS, from localisation to CD labelling and packaging. As a result, some variations exist between packaged R5 Professional discs, with some being slipstream updated to the newest patches, and most notably, the inclusion of commercial printer
Computer printer
In computing, a printer is a peripheral which produces a text or graphics of documents stored in electronic form, usually on physical print media such as paper or transparencies. Many printers are primarily used as local peripherals, and are attached by a printer cable or, in most new printers, a...
drivers with Gobe releases, and French
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
translations of the user documentation on Apacabar.
The CD shipped with an ISO9660/HFS
Hierarchical File System
Hierarchical File System is a file system developed by Apple Inc. for use in computer systems running Mac OS. Originally designed for use on floppy and hard disks, it can also be found on read-only media such as CD-ROMs...
hybrid partition, containing documentation, GPL licenced source code, the Personal Edition installer (with the aim of you circulating the installer to friends), a copy of Partition Magic for Windows, and the Mac OS boot-loading code for the PowerPC version. Two separate BFS
Be File System
The Be File System is the native file system for the BeOS....
partitions existed, one for x86, one for PowerPC, and the x86 one is directly bootable from CD.
In addition to all the features of Personal Edition, Professional Edition includes the full developers tools, including a rebranded CodeWarrior
CodeWarrior
CodeWarrior is an integrated development environment for the creation of software that runs on a number of embedded systems. Prior to the acquisition of the product by Freescale Semiconductor, versions existed for Macintosh, Microsoft Windows, Linux, Solaris, PlayStation 2, Nintendo GameCube,...
, RealPlayer
RealPlayer
RealPlayer is a cross-platform media player by RealNetworks that plays a number of multimedia formats including MP3, MPEG-4, QuickTime, Windows Media, and multiple versions of proprietary RealAudio and RealVideo formats.-History:...
G2, Fraunhofer
Fraunhofer
Fraunhofer, , may refer to:*Joseph von Fraunhofer , German physicist*Fraunhofer , a lunar crater*Fraunhofer Society , a large German research organization with 59 institutes throughout Germany...
MP3 encoders, and support for both encoding Indeo
Indeo
Indeo Video is a video codec developed by Intel in 1992. It was sold to Ligos Corporation in 2000. While its original version was related to Intel's DVI video stream format, a hardware-only codec for the compression of television-quality video onto compact disks, Indeo was distinguished by being...
video, and playback/encoding of Indeo Real Time. Additional media on the CD varied by supplier, but always included some sample multimedia files, including two songs composed by Be staff ("5038" and "virtual (void)") as well as a video of Be staff pushing computer monitors off the roof of their building in Menlo Park
Menlo Park, California
Menlo Park, California is a city at the eastern edge of San Mateo County, in the San Francisco Bay Area of California, in the United States. It is bordered by San Francisco Bay on the north and east; East Palo Alto, Palo Alto, and Stanford to the south; Atherton, North Fair Oaks, and Redwood City...
.
R5.01
R5.01 was mainly a stability fix for R5 Professional, fixing some deadlocks in drivers and critical servers. However, additional POSIX support was again added for networking, although the update neglected to include the newer headers to use some of these functions - they were only available in an updated Developer Tools for Personal Edition download.R5.02
R5.02 (marked as R5.01 on personal) contained all of R5.01's updates, as well as some enhanced drivers, and more stability fixes.R5.03
R5.03 was solely a security fix, and fixed a remote-access bug in the system's ftpd. The update, however, made a change to the core C libraryC standard library
The C Standard Library is the standard library for the programming language C, as specified in the ANSI C standard.. It was developed at the same time as the C POSIX library, which is basically a superset of it...
to do this, and in doing so, updated the version of glibc it was based on, again providing slightly more POSIX compatibility.
Succession
Following the failure of BeIABeIA
BeIA, or BeOS for Internet Appliances, was a minimized version of Be Inc.'s BeOS operating system for embedded systems.The BeIA system presents a browser based interface to the user. The browser was based on the Opera 4.0 code base, and was named Wanger...
, Be's Internet Appliance
Internet appliance
An Internet appliance is a consumer device whose main function is easy access to Internet services such as WWW or e-mail. The term was popularized in the 1990s, when it somewhat overlapped in meaning with an information appliance, Internet computer, network computer, or even thin client, but now it...
venture, the company ceased operations, and R5 was the last official release. A widely leaked version of BeOS that had been seeded to developers, codenamed Dano
Dano (BeOS)
BeOS R5.1d0 or Dano/EXP is the build codename and most commonly used name to refer to a leaked R5.1 prerelease of the Be Operating System. Dano's build date is 15 November 2001, the day of Be Inc.'s closure...
, carried many new features, and a build ID indicating it was BeOS R5.1.0.
Another extremely widely leaked update is a new, fully POSIX compliant, kernel-land networking stack, known internally in Be as BONE. While officially alpha, this brings higher stability to R5, as well as opening up the application base available. The updater for BONE Alpha 7 increases the system version number to R5.04.
A new commercial venture, ZETA, is an operating system that appears to be based on the Dano codebase, and has been accepted by some BeOS users as a successor to R5. However, at least during its protracted release candidate stage, it was dogged with problems that have left some people using R5, and in some cases, looking to Haiku
Haiku (operating system)
Haiku is a free and open source operating system compatible with BeOS. Its development began in 2001, and the operating system became self-hosting in 2008, with the first alpha release in September 2009, the second in May 2010 and the third in June 2011....
for the future of their OS.
External links
- Get BeOS 5 Personal Edition as a free download for those interested/curious. (Most likely to be documented for early 2000-01 hardware.)