The WebbyOS Project

WebbyOS is a computer operating system or WebOS, designed for the Internet and using Internet technologies.  A WebOS provides hardware independence through a distributed Internet computing model that utilizes fewer installed software components and more Internet assets; whereas traditional operating systems including Linux, Windows and MacOS are software, installed to interface a user with a specific set of hardware.  The WebbyOS project begin in May 2002 when inventor and architect Jeffrey B. Turner outlined a series of web applications and a web framework that would address both hardware and Internet needs.  The term "WebOS" is still new to the 50 year old operating system vernacular; however it is seen by many to be the next quantum leap in computing, still largely unexplored.

Today, several distributed computing systems surround the controversy of the WebOS breed, including eyeOS, YouOS, G.ho.st, DesktopTwo and GoogleOS (partially rumored project based in part on the April 2005 Wall Street Journal article titled, "GoogleOS").  The distinction of a WebOS is clearly identified in the WebOS Manifesto published by Jeffrey B. Turner in 2003.  While few have actually read the publication, the ideas expressed have sparked serious debate among technologists.  In 2005, while on a national tour to promote the ideas within his manifesto, Mr. Turner presented to and challenged Sun Microsystems, SalesForce.com, Google, Microsoft, AOL, Yahoo, and others to produce frameworks suitable for WebOS deployment and to adopt his own vision.  The reaction by many was with opposition over the useful application of such technologies within current models; however, it was clear that the results of a larger deployment study were in high demand.  In a move that was anything but surprising, given the bulk of technologies used in the WebbyOS project were based on Java, J2EE and ColdFusion  key resources from the office of CTO at Sun Microsystems, including Kitty Wells and Frank Shwartz dedicated time to Mr. Turner to help craft a plan for a larger release study.

In 2006, Mr. Turner produced an early working version of the SymaOS operating system and renamed it WebbyOS to enforce the idea of a Web operating system.  A year later when the commercial venture supporting the project ("SymbiontWeb") failed to be funded, Mr. Turner began focusing on several key technologies that could be more quickly adopted.  Among the first technologies is the very cornerstone of the WebOS project, the WebbyNetwork communication framework.  The WebbyOS project does live-on however and is being prepared for its first open release in 2008 - in a partial open source project given the name "Calypso".  Mr. Turner continues the Webby related projects from his home part-time in an effort to provide the open technology community the example and took sets for future innovations.

The Calypso Project http://calypso.webbyos.com

The Calypso project is a large scale, partially open-source but non-profit project dedicated to the release, community development and support of the WebbyOS and WebOS related concepts.  It is currently schedule for a 2008 premiere and will include several projects within the WebbyOS platform.

The Free Fusion Project http://freefusion.webbyos.com

The Free Fusion project is an attempt to create a non-profit, open-source community based on the ColdFusion variant and SWML languages/tools by Jeffrey B. Turner.  It is currently schedule for a 2008 premiere along with the Calypso project.

The Fusion Maker Project http://fusionmaker.webbyos.com

The Fusion maker project is an attempt to create a non-profit, open-source community based on a Dreamweaver variant and Mr. Turner's AdvancedIDE for the creation and publishing of Free Fusion content.  It is currently schedule for a 2008 premiere along with the Calypso project.

The WebbyNetwork Project http://network.webbyos.com

The WebbyNetwork project is an attempt to create an open-development community based on the WebbyNetwork software.  It is currently schedule for a 2008 premiere along with the Calypso project and a commercial release in the spring of 2008 at http://webbynetwork.com to help support the non-profit WebbyOS releases.