Google Chrome OS- the future or just vapor?
The Internet is filled with comments about the new operating system called Chrome that Google is developing. Opinions run the gamut from asserting that this is the new paradigm for computing to predicting that the idea is nothing but vapor and will never materialize.
Many critics have seized on the minimalist design of Chrome to scoff that it can’t do much and ask who wants an OS that can’t run games or do this or do that. They complain that the OS isn’t much more than a browser. But these critics miss that this is precisely the whole point of Chrome. They don’t understand that there are millions of people who rarely, if ever, use anything on their PC but the browser. For many ordinary PC users the Internet has all the action. Professionals in the computer world often forget that average people do not spend hours every day using and maintaining a home computer. A Web appliance is exactly what they need, not an all-purpose, complex, and demanding system like Windows.
And there is the security problem. Chrome would be inherently more secure than Windows. While no system can defend well against human gullibility and greed, a slimmed-down Linux system like the proposed Chrome would have a much smaller attack surface compared to Windows. In fact, Google proposes a number of new safety features as outlined in this ZDNet post by Ryan Naraine:
Google plans to use a combination of system hardening, process isolation, verified boot, secure auto-update and encryption to thwart malicious hackers from planting malware on its new Google Chrome OS.
I have glanced at dozens of posts and articles about the Chrome OS and they range from rants to raves. I think the best analysis I have seen is from Robert Strohmeyer at PC World . For example, he writes:
If you’re willing to use the Web as your computing platform, there’s little reason to bother running a powerful desktop operating system. In fact, it may actually be slowing you down. A big, powerful, do-everything OS takes a long time to boot and requires a significant chunk of processing power, RAM, and storage just to run its own processes. An “underwhelming” OS like Chrome would eliminate most of that overhead and put more of your computer’s resources into actually doing the things you want to do.
Most of us have grown accustomed to thinking about, managing, and tweaking our operating systems. Whether we run Windows, Mac OS X, or Linux, the OS is a persistent influence on the way we work. It dictates which apps we can run on our machines, and how we get to those apps. But if we take the OS out of the equation and just go straight to the browser, we’re all pretty much living and working in the same environment: the Web. Suddenly, it no longer matters much what kind of computer we’re using.
And I think many will agree when he writes:
I’ve just about had it with operating systems that nag me with notification bubbles and maintenance tasks. I have actual work to do that doesn’t involve worrying about whether the software that runs my computer is stable, up-to-date, backed up, or secure.
Of course, Google Chrome is still more a concept than reality. Actual release is a year away so much can change. Chrome will never be viable unless Google can get enough hardware companies to offer Chrome systems and to develop drivers. I read that some large companies like HP are in fact collaborating with Google but only time will tell how that works out. In the meantime, Microsoft will not sit still if it sees the Windows hegemony threatened. Microsoft can put a lot of pressure on OEMs to keep something like Chrome from being offered on consumer PCs. For example, Netbooks started out with Linux installed but Microsoft squelched that by offering low-cost Windows XP to the OEMs. In fact, Microsoft does not like netbooks, period. Since Google is aiming at netbooks as its initial market, it will be interesting to see what happens in that area.
I have written many times that we need a new operating system for the average home PC user. Whether Google Chrome will be that system remains to be seen. But at least it is aimed in the right direction.
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