Back in July, Google made a move that long seemed inevitable when they announced the impending launch of their own operating system: Chrome OS.
Since then, details on the project have remained sparse, other than that it would be lightweight (like the Chrome web browser), open source, and initially focused on the emerging netbook market.
Today, we’re learning a bit more about Chrome OS, as Google is providing an update on the product and announced the open sourcing of the code, meaning developers will be able to keep up with developments and start contributing to it. Commercial availability of the OS, however, is still likely at least a year out.
The company did announce a few other interesting tidbits about Chrome (the web browser):
There are now more than 40 million users of Chrome.Chrome Extensions are nearly ready to launch.Chrome for Mac will be ready by end of the year
Why are these updates important? Because Chrome the browser essentially is Chrome the operating system. Applications live on the web, anything you save is available from anywhere, and Google says the current version boots in 7 seconds.
Google Chrome OS: Google’s Description
Here’s how Google describes Chrome OS on their blog:
“First, it’s all about the web. All apps are web apps. The entire experience takes place within the browser and there are no conventional desktop applications. This means users do not have to deal with installing, managing and updating programs.
Second, because all apps live within the browser, there are significant benefits to security. Unlike traditional operating systems, Chrome OS doesn’t trust the applications you run. Each app is contained within a security sandbox making it harder for malware and viruses to infect your computer. Furthermore, Chrome OS barely trusts itself. Every time you restart your computer the operating system verifies the integrity of its code. If your system has been compromised, it is designed to fix itself with a reboot. While no computer can be made completely secure, we’re going to make life much harder (and less profitable) for the bad guys. If you dig security, read the Chrome OS Security Overview or watch the video.
Most of all, we are obsessed with speed. We are taking out every unnecessary process, optimizing many operations and running everything possible in parallel. This means you can go from turning on the computer to surfing the web in a few seconds. Our obsession with speed goes all the way down to the metal. We are specifying reference hardware components to create the fastest experience for Google Chrome OS.”
Google Chrome OS Screenshots and Video
Since then, details on the project have remained sparse, other than that it would be lightweight (like the Chrome web browser), open source, and initially focused on the emerging netbook market.
Today, we’re learning a bit more about Chrome OS, as Google is providing an update on the product and announced the open sourcing of the code, meaning developers will be able to keep up with developments and start contributing to it. Commercial availability of the OS, however, is still likely at least a year out.
The company did announce a few other interesting tidbits about Chrome (the web browser):
There are now more than 40 million users of Chrome.Chrome Extensions are nearly ready to launch.Chrome for Mac will be ready by end of the year
Why are these updates important? Because Chrome the browser essentially is Chrome the operating system. Applications live on the web, anything you save is available from anywhere, and Google says the current version boots in 7 seconds.
Google Chrome OS: Google’s Description
Here’s how Google describes Chrome OS on their blog:
“First, it’s all about the web. All apps are web apps. The entire experience takes place within the browser and there are no conventional desktop applications. This means users do not have to deal with installing, managing and updating programs.
Second, because all apps live within the browser, there are significant benefits to security. Unlike traditional operating systems, Chrome OS doesn’t trust the applications you run. Each app is contained within a security sandbox making it harder for malware and viruses to infect your computer. Furthermore, Chrome OS barely trusts itself. Every time you restart your computer the operating system verifies the integrity of its code. If your system has been compromised, it is designed to fix itself with a reboot. While no computer can be made completely secure, we’re going to make life much harder (and less profitable) for the bad guys. If you dig security, read the Chrome OS Security Overview or watch the video.
Most of all, we are obsessed with speed. We are taking out every unnecessary process, optimizing many operations and running everything possible in parallel. This means you can go from turning on the computer to surfing the web in a few seconds. Our obsession with speed goes all the way down to the metal. We are specifying reference hardware components to create the fastest experience for Google Chrome OS.”
Google Chrome OS Screenshots and Video
Here’s an early screenshot of the “Apps” tab in Chrome OS:
Here’s a Windows Live Office spreadsheet running on Chrome OS:
Here’s what the Chrome OS team calls the “in-place panel,” which in this example lets you play video within the same panel as another website or app:
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