BeView Xtars is a collection of bits 'n pieces that complement the BeView system extension.
This package contains:
- a 'Read Me' file
- a Be¬ Icons folder
- Hand Pointer 1.1 folder
Also available at the Info-Mac archives is the companion package to BeView Xtras. It's called BeViewScreens and includes two StartupScreens.
How do I use the Xtras?
Be Icons - use them for hard icons, folders, files, etc. System 7 users can use the Get Info command (á I). Copy any of the Be Icons from it's Get Info dialog box and then paste it into the destination object's Get Info dialog box.
Hand Pointer extensions - drag either the left or right pointer extension onto your System folder. The Finder will then ask if you want it put in the Extensions folder - say OK. When you restart your Mac your cursor will appear as a hand with a pointing finger - just like the BeOS. (NB If you use Extensions Manager, make sure you've added the extension to your BeView set.) See the ReadMe inside the Hand Pointer folder for more info.
What is BeView and where can I get it?
"BeView is a small extension that transforms your Mac user interface to resemble that of the BeBox, a new computer from Be, Inc., check out the Be web site: <http://www.be.com/> ... BeView patches your buttons, windows, scroll bars, menus colors and Finder icons." (Quoted from BeView Docs, Copyright ⌐ 1996 Gregory D. Landweber and Armargosa Software, Inc ). BeView is created by the authors of Aaron, Greg's Buttons, DoubleScroll and Kaleidoscope. BeView is not free - it is shareware, but only costs $10. BeView requires a Mac running System 7, and a 68020 processor or better. BeView is Accelerated for Power Macintosh. The latest version of BeView can be obtained from the web site <http://greg.math.harvard.edu/>. BeView is also available from the InfoMac Archives and other shareware sites that cater for the Mac platform.
What is Be and the Be OS?
Be manafactures computers called a BeBox¬ and an entirely new operating system called the BeOS¬ . Some of the features of a BeBox include 2 or more PowerPC¬ chips; and more input/output (IO) ports than usual, including a multipurpose GeekPort¬. The BeBox provides the hardware foundation for an operating system called the BeOS. Some of the features of the BeOS are a new interface, symmetric multiprocessing (2 or more PowerPC chips working together to process the same tasks) and pre-emptive multitasking (where the OS does several things at once - don't confuse this with the slower 'cooperative multitasking' used in the System 7.x and in Windows 3.1).
Visit the Be web site at <http://www.be.com/> to find out more. While your there, check out the mailing lists on offer. The regular Newsletter offerred on the BeInfo mailing list is excellent. Goto <http://www.be.com/aboutbe.mailinglists.html>.
Be announced in August 1996 that they would be releasing the BeOS for Macintosh. A pre-release version of the BeOS for Macintosh was demonstrated at MacWorld Boston in August 1996 using PowerComputing clones. A commercial version of the BeOS for Macintosh is expected in the first quarter of 1997.
The BeOS and it's icons
Some of the Be drive icons can be used as Mac hard drive icons. However, this won't result in a truly authentic BeOS desktop. This is because the BeOS uses an icon to represent it's Box (the 'BeBox (DR8) icon' in the the 'Be Icons' folder). On a real BeBox, the BeBox icon contains further icons representing hard drives, CD drives, floppy drives or whatever's inside the Box. Printers and other devices are graphically represented, but are shown at the same level as the BeBox icon. This gives users a graphical representation of what's internal or external to their BeBox. Contrast this with your Mac - there is no icon for your box. Hard drives, printers, etc are all represented graphically, but they do not indicate their physical location.
Where did the Xtras come from?
I didn't actually create any of these resources. So I'm not claiming ownership, copyright or any fee. The purpose of this package is to collate the different Macintosh resources that will provide an authentic BeOS look to your Mac.
The Hand Pointer extensions comes from Stefan Anthony. See the Read Me file in the Hand Pointer 1.1 folder for more info. Thanks to Stefan for providing these resources.
The icons are copyright and courtesy of Be. (Thanks to Georges-Edouard Berenger).
Ideas for future versions
If you have any Be related desktop patterns, Startupscreens, sounds, Quicktime, etc that you'd like to see in the package, email them to me (see address below) or send me an URL.
Version history
1.1 - released 10 October 1996
- BeDesktop.gif was deleted to reduce package size
- BeOS icons were updated to include the post-DR5 versions
- Hand Pointer 1.1 extensions, and cursor resources for Navigator & Cyberdog added.
- BeViewScreens also released to Info-Mac archives
1.0 - released 28 August 1996
The original release included:
- BeDesktop.gif (the first screenshot of DR8 available on Be's web site)
- BeOS icons (pre-Developer Release 5 versions)
- Hand Pointer 1.0 system extension
- a request for a StartupScreen
The legal stuff
I claim no fee or payment for "BeView Xtras". The copyright and ownership for each item that comprises "BeView Xtras" remains with its author. I make no warranties, either express or implied, regarding the fitness of "BeView Xtras" for any purpose. Use "BeView Xtras" at your own risk. I claim no liability for data loss or any other problem(s) caused directly or indirectly by "BeView Xtras".
Icons and Graphics Copyright 1996 Be, Inc. Used with permission. All rights reserved.
Be, BeOS, the Be logo, BeBox and GeekPort are trademarks of Be, Inc. All rights reserved.
All other trademarks belong to their respective owners. All rights reserved.
