Google's new Operating System

[BW]

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v55/PikachuMan/12817_large_googlechromeos.jpg

[guyguy]

Isn't it still in Beta?

[BW]

Google's new Chrome OS. Redefining the desktop as you knew it.

What we know:

-It's going to only run on approved hardware.

Google has strict requirements for screen size and display resolutions for devices that will run Chrome. No Chrome device is allowed to have a Hard-Disk drive (!).

-It will only run web apps, built on HTML5, javascript and other common web standards.

There will be no Chrome-specific applications. Apps never have to be installed, updated, or maintained in any way.

-The model inherently is built for security.

Everything will be sandboxed. Nothing extraneous will be added.

[BW]

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v55/PikachuMan/12821_large_googlechromeos_security.jpg

Google Blog 11/19/09

[Link] (http://googleblog.blogspot.com/2009/11/releasing-chromium-os-open-source.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+blogspot%2FMKuf+%28Official+G oogle+Blog%29)



In July we announced that we were working on Google Chrome OS, an open source operating system for people who spend most of their time on the web.

Today we are open-sourcing the project as Chromium OS. We are doing this early, a year before Google Chrome OS will be ready for users, because we are eager to engage with partners, the open source community and developers. As with the Google Chrome browser, development will be done in the open from this point on. This means the code is free, accessible to anyone and open for contributions. The Chromium OS project includes our current code base, user interface experiments and some initial designs for ongoing development. This is the initial sketch and we will color it in over the course of the next year.

We want to take this opportunity to explain why we're excited about the project and how it is a fundamentally different model of computing.

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.

There is still a lot of work to do, and we're excited to work with the open source community. We have benefited hugely from projects like GNU, the Linux Kernel, Moblin, Ubuntu, WebKit and many more. We will be contributing our code upstream and engaging closely with these and other open source efforts.

[BW]

You/Tube Video fun time!

What is Google Chrome OS?
[youtube:2jjeof9v]0QRO3gKj3qw[/youtube:2jjeof9v]

Google Chrome OS Concept UI
[youtube:2jjeof9v]hJ57xzo287U[/youtube:2jjeof9v]

Google Chromium OS Security
[youtube:2jjeof9v]A9WVmNfgjtQ[/youtube:2jjeof9v]

Google Chromium & Open Source
[youtube:2jjeof9v]KA5RQv9mBoY[/youtube:2jjeof9v]

Google Chromium Fast Boot
[youtube:2jjeof9v]mTFfl7AjNfI[/youtube:2jjeof9v]

[BW]

Anandtech 11/20/09

Built Around the Browser, Google's Chrome OS Launches, Reinvents the Operating System [Link] (http://www.dailytech.com/article.aspx?newsid=16883)


New OS is specifically geared towards the netbook market

A radical new day has dawned for the operating system.

Today Google finally aired its long awaited Chrome Operating System. The operating system was detailed at a press conference starting at 1 p.m. EST, and the open source code was posted online just before the start of the presentation. The new operating system brings a dramatically different look and perspective to the market and just may give Microsoft and OS X some tough competition by reinventing a tired old wheel -- the operating system -- offering the first laptop/desktop OS built around the browser and web applications.

A Google engineer set the mood for the presentation announcing in the introduction, "Chrome is the foundation of everything we’re doing here."

[Read entire article with pictures by clicking here (http://www.dailytech.com/article.aspx?newsid=16883)]

----
Engadget 11/20/09

Google's Chrome OS revealed -- with video!
[Link] (http://www.engadget.com/2009/11/19/googles-chrome-os-revealed/)


Google had a low-key event today to preview Chrome OS, its new operating system based on Linux and the Chrome browser. Things are still pretty early -- it's not even in beta yet, let alone on shipping products -- but that's the first official screen shot right there, and the big features are all roughed out. The entire system is web-based and runs in the Chrome browser -- right down to USB drive contents, which show up in a browser tab, and the notepad, which actually creates a Google Docs document. Web apps are launched from a persistent apps panel, which includes Gmail, Facebook, Twitter, and Hulu, among others, and background apps like Google Talk can be minimized to "panels" that dock to the bottom of the screen. Local storage is just used to speed up the system -- everything actually lives in the cloud, so all it takes to swap or borrow machines is a login, and you're good to go. Google also said it's "very committed" to Flash, and that it's looking to hardware accelerate whatever code it can -- although Google didn't have a solid answer to give when asked about Silverlight. Overall, Google was upfront in saying that Chrome OS is focused on very clear use cases for people who primarily use the web, and that it's not trying to do everything: "If you're a lawyer, editing contracts back and forth, this will not be the right machine for you."

As far as going to market, Google's not talking details until the targeted launch at the end of next year, but Chrome OS won't run on just anything -- there'll be specific reference hardware. For example, Chrome OS won't work with standard hard drives, just SSDs, but Google is supporting both x86 and ARM CPUs. That also means you won't be able to just download Chrome OS and go, you'll have to buy a Chrome OS device approved by Google. Interesting move, for sure -- but since the entire OS is totally open-source as of today, we're sure it'll be hacked onto all kinds of hardware soon enough. (And for the record, the demo was run on an off-the-shelf Eee PC.)

[Read entire article with pictures by clicking here (http://www.engadget.com/2009/11/19/googles-chrome-os-revealed/)]

[guyguy]

Sounds good. But will it run on my Mac Pro, iMacs, Macbook Pros and Mac Books?

[BW]

Sounds good. But will it run on my Mac Pro, iMacs, Macbook Pros and Mac Books?

No.

It only runs on hardware approved by Google. The end-user cannot install it on any generic hardware.

[BW]

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v55/PikachuMan/fp__chrome_logo.png Chrome OS

[eMJayy]

I have a feeling I'm going to be buying one or two machines running Chrome OS next year if it's released on schedule.

[Huma]

It looks really interesting, but those requirements have moved it from a must-try to a novelty for me.

[mammadon]

sounds cool. Windows needs a rival, and i ent keen on Windows 7.

Would the interface be similar to Windows, and how stable would it be?

[Sirius]

This looks very, very interesting. When I heard about Google OS I originally got the impression of it being little more than just another Linux distro. Now however it is something I am rather excited about. It won't replace my current systems but I sure won't mind a Google OS based netbook.

mammadon: the browser is the interface. There won't be any start menu or anything of the sort. Just a browser with tabs. The file system opens in a tab and all your applications are web based.

[mammadon]

mammadon: the browser is the interface. There won't be any start menu or anything of the sort. Just a browser with tabs. The file system opens in a tab and all your applications are web based.

cool. :)

[deathwinger]

It sounds interesting but I am afraid of using a system that stores all my information in its 'cloud'. What happens if the 'cloud' is hacked and my information is taken from it.

This would definitely be the way to go for netbooks but like Linux, for actual productivity, I can't see it making a huge dent.

[eMJayy]

It sounds interesting but I am afraid of using a system that stores all my information in its 'cloud'. What happens if the 'cloud' is hacked and my information is taken from it.

This would definitely be the way to go for netbooks but like Linux, for actual productivity, I can't see it making a huge dent.


Given that email for most people is essentially stored safely 'in the cloud', I don't get where this fear of the cloud is coming from. At the end of the day, what you store is just 1's and 0's, just like email data.

As for productivity, that will depend on the variety and quality of online apps that third party developers will come up with. Given Google's current momentum and the move they've made towards open sourcing the OS, I highly doubt their platform will come up short on variety.

[CPL593H]

Google's spyware in a box...and you can have the privilage of paying for it...And no way to avoid them with this thing...nice...(But, no thanks)
You know what they say about one being born every minute...
"email for most people is essentially stored safely 'in the cloud"...Mine's delivered through the "Cloud", but if it's worth keeping, it's stored safely on a couple of my hard drives...

[jamez]

On another funny note:


Google dumps Windows: Would you do the same?
http://blogs.techrepublic.com.com/itdojo/?p=1816
Date: June 1st, 2010
Author: Bill Detwiler
On Monday, the Financial Times reported that Google will no longer allow employees to use Microsoft Windows on all but a select few internal machines. In the past, new employees were able to choose between Windows, Mac OS X, or Linux. Going forward, employees won’t be able to stay on Windows or get a new Windows machine without approval from approval from senior management.

According to Google employees quoted in the Financial Times story, two factors are driving the policy change–security and a desire to run Google on Google products. After the attack on Google’s China operations earlier this year, the company began phasing out internal use of Microsoft Windows. Google also wants to begin running the company on its own products–chiefly Chrome OS.

I’m sure there’s some truth to both reasons given for the switch, but there’s also a fair bit of Google PR here. The company gets a chance to promote their own OS and take a pot shot at its main rival–Windows.

[Randall]

^ rofl

[deathwinger]

I'm sorry, Windows 7 makes me money. (OSX could do the same but for an unnecessarily higher price)
Chrome OS...maybe a bit...but not as much.

Windows 7 for me all the way. :D

[lexbarker]

Apple is now bigger than Microsoft....who would have predicted this 10 years ago when they almost went belly up.

http://www.computerweekly.com/Articles/2010/05/27/241370/Apple-bigger-than-Microsoft-or-Google-on-priceearnings.htm