Be, Incorporated Q & A

This document answers questions regarding Be the company, employment at Be, our programs and philosophies, corporate and technical partnerships, etc.

This page was last updated on July 16, 1997.

General

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Q: Is Be, Inc. a publicly traded company? How can I buy stock in Be, Inc.?

A: At this time, Be is a privately held corporation and stock in Be, Incorporated is not publicly available, nor is financial information publicly available.

Of course, we're ambitious! When and if Be goes public, you can be sure we will announce the fact on our Web site, in very large letters! Keep checking back from time to time.

You can find the information we make public about our business and future directions on our Web site:

http://www.be.com/

You might also find the Hoovers profile of Be, Inc. interesting.

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Q: Is Be a profitable company?

A: At this time, Be is a privately held corporation. We are financed by a number of the largest venture capital firms in the Silicon Valley, including August Capital, New Enterprise Associates, Alta Partners, and others. As a private company, financial information regarding Be, Inc. is not publicly available.

You can find the information that is public about our business and future directions on our Web site:

http://www.be.com/

You might also find the Hoovers profile of Be, Inc. interesting.

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Q: Who has invested money in Be?

A: Certain regulations and good business practices limit the amount of financial information it is possible to make public. We can say that we have received investments from some of the largest and most prestigious (and, we think, the smartest!) venture capital firms in the world, including Alta Partners, August Fund, and New Enterprise Associates.

Those interested in more details might find the following press release interesting:

http://www.be.com/aboutbe/pressreleases/96-04-15_Financing.html

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Q: I want to work for Be! How can I get a job there?

A: Be is always interested in talking to quality people, and we currently have a number of openings in Engineering and Marketing. Your best bet for finding a job at Be is to check out the Employment Opportunities page on our Web site:

http://www.be.com/aboutbe/jobs/index.html

To apply, please send your plain text (ASCII) resume included in the body of your e-mail to jobs@be.com (enclosed documents will not be considered), or fax your resume to us at (415) 462-4137.

Our needs are changing constantly. We'll be sure to contact you if your qualifications match any of our openings.

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Q: I'm a student at XYZ college. Does Be offer summer or other internships?

A: Be does indeed have student internships. Many of us had student internships and are interested in hiring students whenever possible.

We always list these positions along with our full-time opportunities, on the Employment Opportunities page on our Web site:

http://www.be.com/aboutbe/jobs/index.html

Be typically has two or three students working in the Menlo Park offices at any given time, so the opportunities are not limited to just the summer. Be sure to check the Web site on a regular basis!

To apply, please send your plain text (ASCII) resume included in the body of your e-mail to jobs@be.com (enclosed documents will not be considered), or fax your resume to us at (415) 462-4137.

We'll be sure to contact you if your qualifications match any of our student intern needs.

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Q: How can I buy one of those cool Be t-shirts?

A: Thanks, we think our t-shirts are cool, too! If you'd like to see what they look like, we have them in black and in white.

If you are interested in placing an order for a Be t-shirt(s), please send e-mail to t-shirt@be.com with your name, mailing address, t-shirt size (L, XL, XXL) and color selection (black or white), and your payment information.

For payment, we accept VISA, MasterCard, Diner's Club, and Japanese Carte Blanche. We need both your card number and expiration date. If you prefer, you can also mail us a check or money order:

Be T-Shirt Orders
Be, Inc.
800 El Camino Real, Suite 300
Menlo Park, CA 94025

We are very sorry, but we cannot accept phone orders for t-shirts.

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Q: Do you have educational pricing discounts?

A: At the present time, no. There are a number of ways to get the BeOS for little or no cost, so it's not clear how much difference a discount program would make.

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Q: What hardware and software is your web site running on?

A: We're running Free BSD and the Apache web server software on a generic Intel box (a Pentium @ 133 MHz). We have a T1 line coming into the building, so generally our server and the pipe that serves it are quite fast.

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Partners

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Q: Who has licensed the BeOS?

A: At this time, we have announced licensing agreements to ship the BeOS with machines from Power Computing and from Motorola.

We are talking with all of the Macintosh compatible vendors about licensing the BeOS because our goal is to let as many people as possible experience the BeOS first hand. As it becomes possible to announce such deals, you can be sure we will put the details on the Be web site.

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Q: I bought a Power Computing machine some time after Be and Power Computing announced their licensing arrangement (on November 26, 1996). Will I get the BeOS? How will I get it?

A: Power Computing has stated that they will bundle the BeOS Preview Release with the systems they sell in 1997. The BeOS Preview Release CD will be in the box for systems sold after it becomes available.

The BeOS Preview Release CD will also be sent automatically to all customers who ordered their Power Computing system after November 26th 1996.

You will need to be a registered Power Computing owner, in order for Power Computing to know that they should send you your CD (as cool as they are, the folks at Power Computing can't read your mind). Be sure you send in your registration card!

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Q: How will Motorola be bundling the BeOS?

A: Motorola has not yet announced the details of how they will include the BeOS for their StarMax computers. When such details become publicly available, they will definitely be posted to the Be web site, so keep your eye out.

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Q: Is Be licensing the BeOS to PIOS?

A: PIOS has stated that they intend to include the BeOS with their systems. When the full details become publicly available, they will definitely be posted to the Be web site, so keep your eye out.

You can also visit the PIOS web site for more information about their product line, including the systems which will run the BeOS:

http://www.pios.de/uk/software.html

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Q: What is the deal between Be and Netscape?

A: Be and Netscape announced they are working together to bring Netscape's FastTrack server and LiveWire products to the BeOS.

It was also stated that Netscape will take advantage of Be's BeOS bundling option. This enables developers to offer PowerPC customers a turn-key solution of an important application and the BeOS Preview Release.

You can read the complete details in the Be/Netscape press release.

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Q: What is the deal between Be and NeoLogic?

A: Be and NeoLogic announced that the BeOS version of their NeoAccess(r) 5.0 object database engine runs 3 to 5 times faster than the Mac OS version running on similar Power Macintosh hardware.

This speed boost is due to the underlying threading, high-performance file system, and overall high performance of the BeOS. This news is encouraging both for developers, such as Netscape, who use the NeoAccess object database engine in some of their products, and for customers who use software based on the NeoAccess engine.

You can read the complete details in the Be/NeoLogic press release.