By Owen Ferguson

Operating systems just keep getting cheaper. Software manufacturer Be Inc. has jumped into the free software movement by offering its operating system to individuals at no charge.

The company announced it is shifting resources to focus primarily on the growing Internet appliance market.

In order to maximize the visibility and acceptance of Be technology, the upcoming version 5 of the BeOS desktop operating system will be available for personal use at no charge beginning later in the first quarter of 2000.

At that time, individuals who register with Be at http://free.be.com/ will be able to download BeOS 5 for free.

Be also intends to work with publishers and other partners to make commercial versions of BeOS 5 available through retail channels.

"The post-PC revolution of Internet appliances has started," said Jean-Louis Gassée, chairman and CEO of Menlo Park, Calif.-based Be. "Making the free version of BeOS 5 available through the Internet and other channels allows us to aggressively promote our technology, maximize our visibility and obtain valuable market feedback while aggressively pursuing Internet appliance opportunities."

Be also announced that because of this shift in resources and direction, it will not realize the revenue previously anticipated from sales of the desktop version of its operating system. That's US$16 million, or what analysts estimated would account for approximately 85 per cent of revenues this year.

Be admitted the new direction will negatively affect future revenues as well.

The solution to this, however, is a new product aimed at the Internet appliance market, the company says.

Code-named Stinger, it's a software solution for appliances that delivers information and entertainment over the Web.

It's based on BeOS and offers a complete browser and support for popular streaming audio and video standards.

BeOS 5, which will be available for free, is the latest version of BeOS, an alternative desktop operating system that has a small but dedicated following, mostly among multimedia professionals. One of the OS's most touted features is its interoperability with other operating systems.

BeOS 5 users will be able to download BeOS 5 via a Web browser and store it as a file within their existing operating system (such as Windows).

No repartitioning will be necessary, and launching BeOS 5 will be as simple as double-clicking an icon on the desktop, the company says.