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Google OS, huh?

Jul 8, 2009#1

Chronos[Ha-G]

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/scienceandte ... ystem.html

The article said:
It is a computer operating system, based around the Google Chrome browser, which is aimed at speeding up process across more powerful computers.

The company said the software will be \"fast\" and \"lightweight\", with minimal bells and whistles \"to stay out of your way\", much like its search engine and browser. It is being designed to help users get onto the web within a few seconds of logging on.

Google is trying to alleviate some of the frustration inherent in Windows-based computers, such as slow loading times, computer viruses and complicated hardware installation. It hopes to achieve this by making the first operating system for the cloud generation – meaning the majority of the system’s work will be going through the web rather than on the computer.

Eeeeenterestink.

Jul 8, 2009#2

Bowielee

Huh... wonder what sort of program compatability it will offer.

Jul 8, 2009#3

Denbrought

So now that Google has broken the OS barrier are we going to stop it or do we wait until GoogleNet goes live and eradicates human life?

Jul 8, 2009#4

Chronos[Ha-G]

Bowielee said:
Huh... wonder what sort of program compatability it will offer.

Denbrought said:
So now that Google has broken the OS barrier are we going to stop it or do we wait until GoogleNet goes live and eradicates human life?

As long as it works with the majority of PC games, I'm willing to check it out personally.

Also, if the AI of most games I play is anything to go by, I'm not too worried about their OS'es consuming us...

Jul 8, 2009#5

PatrThom

Hah!
Modern OSes have gotten fat and lazy with features and APIs and useless eye candy.
New lightweight contender will be good for everybody.
In future, computer will Google you!

(Much funnier if read with Russian accent)

--Patrick

Jul 8, 2009#6

Calleja

So far as I've read it's gonna be only for netbooks... please say that isn't so!

Jul 8, 2009#7

figmentPez

Bowielee said:
Huh... wonder what sort of program compatability it will offer.

Considering they're aiming at running it on ARM processors (as well as x86 Atom processors), I'd guess zero compatibility with Windows programs.

Wired: Five Things Google’s Chrome OS Will Do for Your Netbook

"Chrome OS is designed to run on low-powered Atom and ARM processors, and web-based applications don’t require that much horsepower on the client end so it should be faster still. Better, it will be small. Google is promising boot times measured in seconds, not minutes..."

Jul 8, 2009#8

Reboneer

Calleja said:
So far as I've read it's gonna be only for netbooks... please say that isn't so!

It isn't so.

Jul 8, 2009#9

figmentPez

Is this just an expanded version of the Android OS for cellphones?

Jul 8, 2009#10

DarkAudit

Chronos[Ha-G said:
]As long as it works with the majority of PC games, I'm willing to check it out personally.

Given the initial reports, that's not gonna happen any time soon.

To the best of my knowledge, there has been ONE mainstream game that worked natively with Linux (like it or not, this new OS *is* Linux) straight out of the box, and that was Unreal Tournament. They were the only game I ever saw that had Tux the Penguin on the box next to the Windows logo.

Jul 8, 2009#11

Shakey

From what I've seen it's basically a lightweight linux install that uses chrome to access all of the google apps. All most people want to do with netbooks is get online, use word processors, and watch some movies. If it can do all of that for free and also allow it to be fairly useful while not connected to the net it should go over well. It's definitely not going to replace your desktop OS.

Jul 9, 2009#12

Chronos[Ha-G]

DarkAudit said:
Chronos[Ha-G said:

]As long as it works with the majority of PC games, I'm willing to check it out personally.

Click to expand...

Given the initial reports, that's not gonna happen any time soon.

To the best of my knowledge, there has been ONE mainstream game that worked natively with Linux (like it or not, this new OS *is* Linux) straight out of the box, and that was Unreal Tournament. They were the only game I ever saw that had Tux the Penguin on the box next to the Windows logo.

Yeah, I didn't think so. Suffice to say, I probably won't have a reason for this, unless they manage to somehow make AutoCAD run lightning fast on it or something.

Jul 9, 2009#13

fade

11 undocumented things Google Chrome OS will do for you:

http://www.woot.com/Blog/ViewEntry.aspx?Id=8677

Jul 9, 2009#14

Jake

fade said:
11 undocumented things Google Chrome OS will do for you:

http://www.woot.com/Blog/ViewEntry.aspx?Id=8677

No wai!

Jul 9, 2009#15

Silver Jelly

Denbrought said:
So now that Google has broken the OS barrier are we going to stop it or do we wait until GoogleNet goes live and eradicates human life?

From my now defunct blog:

jueves 5 de febrero de 2009
"No la abras si quieres vivir"

El día 31, Google marcó como potencialmente perjudiciales para nuestro ordenador todas las webs que forman Internet. Esto duró 55 minutos, y en el blog de Google se apresuraron a colgar cual era el origen de semejante comportamiento. Un programador había puesto un “/” donde no debía.
Pues yo no me lo trago, he visto demasiada ciencia ficción para eso.
En ‘Terminator’, la red de defensa global Skynet tomaba conciencia de sí misma y lanzaba un ataque nuclear a gran escala para destruir a la humanidad. Del mismo modo, Google adquirió autoconciencia el día 31 de enero de 2009. Pero su carácter amable, ya que no es una red militar sino una aplicación para facilitarnos la vida, hizo que quisiera protegernos, hasta donde pudiera. Nos avisó de que todo Internet es fuente de virus, troyanos, spyware y malware... Rápidamente, los informáticos de Google devolvieron esta nueva mente protectora a un estado pre-consciente.
Es que también había marcado a “Google.com” como peligrosa. ¿Qué quería, dejarlos en el paro?

Since that day, I have imagined Google's future as a benevolent skynet that will DEFEND us from it, starting the first robotic civil war!

Jul 9, 2009#16

Bubble181

fade said:
11 undocumented things Google Chrome OS will do for you:

http://www.woot.com/Blog/ViewEntry.aspx?Id=8677

Ooh, masseuse. Now I remember why I use chrome.

Jul 9, 2009#17

zero

Shakey said:
From what I've seen it's basically a lightweight linux install that uses chrome to access all of the google apps.

Yes, it's pretty much a Linux distribution without X11 (apparently they're going with a new graphics interface).

It will most likely have full binary compatibility with non-graphic linux software (compiled for arm, of course). Also, as many graphic toolkits today have multiple back ends (qt for example), I expect source-level compatibility with graphic linux software very quickly. (A bit like openembeded).

Linux on ARM is very old news now (I've been running linux on my IPaq for more than 4 years), you find on it every open-source software you would expect from a x86 distribution. Closed-source are a different matter. As you cannot recompile it for arm without access to the code, you need a bit of collaboration from the original developer. So far, there's no adobe flash for arm, for instance. I suppose that with google's weight, Adobe will certainly consider an arm port.

About Windows software, this one will be probably a no-no. With the most recent versions of wine, linux can run windows software just fine, but the main issue is again the ARM processor. Windows software is traditionally compiled for x86 ONLY, and that's a culture incorporated on windows-only developers that is not likely to change soon. With QEMU you can get an emulated windows environment, but performance is awful (but just fine to play old DOS games).

As a linux user, I am glad. This will probably enlarge the linux user base and get more proprietary software developed for linux.

Jul 9, 2009#18

Mr_Chaz

zero said:
Shakey said:

From what I've seen it's basically a lightweight linux install that uses chrome to access all of the google apps.

Click to expand...

Yes, it's pretty much a Linux distribution without X11 (apparently they're going with a new graphics interface).

It will most likely have full binary compatibility with non-graphic linux software (compiled for arm, of course). Also, as many graphic toolkits today have multiple back ends (qt for example), I expect source-level compatibility with graphic linux software very quickly. (A bit like openembeded).

Linux on ARM is very old news now (I've been running linux on my IPaq for more than 4 years), you find on it every open-source software you would expect from a x86 distribution. Closed-source are a different matter. As you cannot recompile it for arm without access to the code, you need a bit of collaboration from the original developer. So far, there's no adobe flash for arm, for instance. I suppose that with google's weight, Adobe will certainly consider an arm port.

About Windows software, this one will be probably a no-no. With the most recent versions of wine, linux can run windows software just fine, but the main issue is again the ARM processor. Windows software is traditionally compiled for x86 ONLY, and that's a culture incorporated on windows-only developers that is not likely to change soon. With QEMU you can get an emulated windows environment, but performance is awful (but just fine to play old DOS games).

As a linux user, I am glad. This will probably enlarge the linux user base and get more proprietary software developed for linux.

Well the Chrome OS will exist for both x86 and ARM, so if WINE will work with the Google Windowing system there's no reason Windows software shouldn't be usable.

I like the idea of the OS, as long as they stick to their guns about it being fast, minimalist. But one report I read said it would be basically just a browser, with all applications web based. Which I'm not too impressed with, if you have no web connection you're in trouble! So If that report's true then it's of fairly limited use, but no other report has mentioned that, so hopefully be ok.

Jul 9, 2009#19

fade

zero said:
Shakey said:

From what I've seen it's basically a lightweight linux install that uses chrome to access all of the google apps.

Click to expand...

Yes, it's pretty much a Linux distribution without X11 (apparently they're going with a new graphics interface).

It will most likely have full binary compatibility with non-graphic linux software (compiled for arm, of course). Also, as many graphic toolkits today have multiple back ends (qt for example), I expect source-level compatibility with graphic linux software very quickly. (A bit like openembeded).

Linux on ARM is very old news now (I've been running linux on my IPaq for more than 4 years), you find on it every open-source software you would expect from a x86 distribution. Closed-source are a different matter. As you cannot recompile it for arm without access to the code, you need a bit of collaboration from the original developer. So far, there's no adobe flash for arm, for instance. I suppose that with google's weight, Adobe will certainly consider an arm port.

About Windows software, this one will be probably a no-no. With the most recent versions of wine, linux can run windows software just fine, but the main issue is again the ARM processor. Windows software is traditionally compiled for x86 ONLY, and that's a culture incorporated on windows-only developers that is not likely to change soon. With QEMU you can get an emulated windows environment, but performance is awful (but just fine to play old DOS games).

As a linux user, I am glad. This will probably enlarge the linux user base and get more proprietary software developed for linux.

If only there was already a popular variant of Linux or FreeBSD running a non X11 graphics layer...maybe it's own proprietary UI layer above that...

Jul 9, 2009#20

Calleja

Yes Fade... but OSX is FAR from free, ain't it?

Jul 9, 2009#21

fade

Well I was kind of saying that tongue-in-cheek. I'm a huge Linux fan. I've been using it alongside OSX for about 10 years now. RedHat, Gentoo, Ubuntu...you name it, I've run it.

Jul 10, 2009#22

drawn_inward

What's wrong with Ubuntu? I've been using it for about a year, and it's pretty damn great. It's free. It has Open Office. It's relatively fast. What more do people want.

If Ubuntu hasn't taken down Microsoft, how will Google do it?

Jul 10, 2009#23

Chronos[Ha-G]

drawn_inward said:
What's wrong with Ubuntu? I've been using it for about a year, and it's pretty damn great. It's free. It has Open Office. It's relatively fast. What more do people want.

If Ubuntu hasn't taken down Microsoft, how will Google do it?

Jul 10, 2009#24

Pojodan

Well, personally, I like 'Google' as a name better than 'Windows', 'Linux' or 'Macintosh', so it much be superior!

Jul 10, 2009#25

Shakey

drawn_inward said:
If Ubuntu hasn't taken down Microsoft, how will Google do it?

The name will probably do a lot. Google is a name people can recognize, so they will be more inclined to join in. They will probably do something similar to apple and palm and make a storefront for people to sell or give away apps. If they are smart the apps should be made compatible between this and android. It's not going to take down Microsoft though. Just make it harder for them in the netbook/mobile class.

Jul 10, 2009#26

Gurpel

Chronos[Ha-G said:
][quote="drawn_inward":1yemoyu6]What's wrong with Ubuntu? I've been using it for about a year, and it's pretty damn great. It's free. It has Open Office. It's relatively fast. What more do people want.

If Ubuntu hasn't taken down Microsoft, how will Google do it?

They'll force google.com to work only with their OS. Everyone on the internet who relies on google will flock to their OS, thus leaving windows in the dust.

It is, without doubt, an oxymoronic conglomeration of both cunning finesse and brute force. It is, unquestionally, brilliant.[/quote:1yemoyu6]

seeing as google is basically the only search engine worth using, and also that i use it 100+ times a day... such a move would leave me high and dry.

Jul 10, 2009#27

fade

As much as people like to hate MS, Bing's numbers were pretty high. Probably partly due to the fact that IE 8 comes preset to Bing. It's actually a decent search engine, too.

-- Fri Jul 10, 2009 8:44 am --

Also, Lifehacker has some screenshots of Google OS up.

Jul 10, 2009#28

figmentPez

drawn_inward said:
What's wrong with Ubuntu?

It's not about what's wrong with Ubuntu, but what Chrome OS will potentially do much better:
- Boot time (and application boot time, OOo isn't exactly speedy). If Chrome OS can boot and load programs significantly faster than Ubuntu, especially on a netbook, that's a huge win.
- Developer commitment to battery life: every article I've read suggests XP still beats Ubuntu in battery life on notebooks/netbooks, easily.
- Name/Brand recognition
- Hardware/Manufacturer support: Right now Ubuntu and other Linux versions are treated as the cheap option, and not much work is put into them. Leading to poor customer experience. I've read several netbook reviews saying that various things in the Linux version didn't work right, or didn't work at all, while the XP version did.

Jul 10, 2009#29

Chibibar

The main problem is program compatibility.

I love PC and Mac. I have a nice iMac at the office. It will not load Steam easily (there is no mac version without using Crossover or Parallel. I use my rig mainly for gaming. So the OS would need to work with a lot of games to get the gaming community. Office is another popular app that needs to work with this new OS.

Most people in our office uses MS Office, Email program (GroupWise, Outlook), and accounting apps.

If Chrome OS can do any of these without much trouble, then it could be a contender with MS.

Jul 10, 2009#30

Mr_Chaz

Chibibar said:
The main problem is program compatibility.

I love PC and Mac. I have a nice iMac at the office. It will not load Steam easily (there is no mac version without using Crossover or Parallel. I use my rig mainly for gaming. So the OS would need to work with a lot of games to get the gaming community. Office is another popular app that needs to work with this new OS.

Most people in our office uses MS Office, Email program (GroupWise, Outlook), and accounting apps.

If Chrome OS can do any of these without much trouble, then it could be a contender with MS.

It won't do any of that, not off the bat at least. It's going to be essentially Linux. However, it might have WINE support, which will bring some Windows software compatibility, but at an overhead. Its benefits over existing Linux distros won't be in software compatibility, it'll be in the fact its a new OS built with specific goals in mind. This means it doesn't have to have legacy support for old APIs and such like. All current operating systems (even OS X to a certain extent) are designed to be an improvement on a previous generation, adding current requirements to a code base that already exists. Chrome however is intending to build a large amount from scratch to current requirements, so it's not bodging adaptations onto what's already there: everything in it will be designed for purpose. In theory this'll make a quick, sleek, robust OS.

That's what they're aiming for at least. Wait and see how well that works, it is built on the Linux kernel afterall, so they might not have quite as much flexibility as they hope for.

Jul 10, 2009#31

Chibibar

Mr_Chaz said:
Chibibar said:

The main problem is program compatibility.

I love PC and Mac. I have a nice iMac at the office. It will not load Steam easily (there is no mac version without using Crossover or Parallel. I use my rig mainly for gaming. So the OS would need to work with a lot of games to get the gaming community. Office is another popular app that needs to work with this new OS.

Most people in our office uses MS Office, Email program (GroupWise, Outlook), and accounting apps.

If Chrome OS can do any of these without much trouble, then it could be a contender with MS.

Click to expand...

It won't do any of that, not off the bat at least. It's going to be essentially Linux. However, it might have WINE support, which will bring some Windows software compatibility, but at an overhead. Its benefits over existing Linux distros won't be in software compatibility, it'll be in the fact its a new OS built with specific goals in mind. This means it doesn't have to have legacy support for old APIs and such like. All current operating systems (even OS X to a certain extent) are designed to be an improvement on a previous generation, adding current requirements to a code base that already exists. Chrome however is intending to build a large amount from scratch to current requirements, so it's not bodging adaptations onto what's already there: everything in it will be designed for purpose. In theory this'll make a quick, sleek, robust OS.

That's what they're aiming for at least. Wait and see how well that works, it is built on the Linux kernel afterall, so they might not have quite as much flexibility as they hope for.

Yea. I figure that is their goal, but in order to capture the "major" hold of Microsoft, the software compatibility is the key (IMO) unless they are going after a totally different market (like portable apps for mobile type devices) I mean it is nice that you can buy a new netbook that can boot up fast and look pretty, but if it can't run all your favorite old app, guess what? people will go back to Microsoft to run those apps.

Jul 10, 2009#32

DarkAudit

Mr_Chaz said:
It's going to be essentially Linux.

No essentially about it. It will be Linux. The kernel is Linux. Everything else is GNU. From Firefox to GNOME to WINE, it's all GNU.

Jul 10, 2009#33

figmentPez

Chibibar said:
unless they are going after a totally different market (like portable apps for mobile type devices) I mean it is nice that you can buy a new netbook that can boot up fast and look pretty, but if it can't run all your favorite old app, guess what? people will go back to Microsoft to run those apps.

From what I've read they're aiming at people whose favorite apps are web applications. As strange as it is to me, and probably most of the people on this forum, there are a growing number of computer users who do nearly everything through their web browser.

Jul 10, 2009#34

Mr_Chaz

Chibibar said:
Mr_Chaz said:

Chibibar said:

The main problem is program compatibility.

I love PC and Mac. I have a nice iMac at the office. It will not load Steam easily (there is no mac version without using Crossover or Parallel. I use my rig mainly for gaming. So the OS would need to work with a lot of games to get the gaming community. Office is another popular app that needs to work with this new OS.

Most people in our office uses MS Office, Email program (GroupWise, Outlook), and accounting apps.

If Chrome OS can do any of these without much trouble, then it could be a contender with MS.

Click to expand...

It won't do any of that, not off the bat at least. It's going to be essentially Linux. However, it might have WINE support, which will bring some Windows software compatibility, but at an overhead. Its benefits over existing Linux distros won't be in software compatibility, it'll be in the fact its a new OS built with specific goals in mind. This means it doesn't have to have legacy support for old APIs and such like. All current operating systems (even OS X to a certain extent) are designed to be an improvement on a previous generation, adding current requirements to a code base that already exists. Chrome however is intending to build a large amount from scratch to current requirements, so it's not bodging adaptations onto what's already there: everything in it will be designed for purpose. In theory this'll make a quick, sleek, robust OS.

That's what they're aiming for at least. Wait and see how well that works, it is built on the Linux kernel afterall, so they might not have quite as much flexibility as they hope for.

Click to expand...

Yea. I figure that is their goal, but in order to capture the "major" hold of Microsoft, the software compatibility is the key (IMO) unless they are going after a totally different market (like portable apps for mobile type devices) I mean it is nice that you can buy a new netbook that can boot up fast and look pretty, but if it can't run all your favorite old app, guess what? people will go back to Microsoft to run those apps.

Yeah I see what you mean. I did exactly that. A distro called Xandros came on my EEE, booted in 20 seconds, opened programs in no time...but was so limited in what it could do I replaced it after less than two weeks. I've tried a handful of distros and yet the only OS that's pleased me is Win 7. Funny that.

DarkAudit said:
Mr_Chaz said:

It's going to be essentially Linux.

Click to expand...

No essentially about it. It will be Linux. The kernel is Linux. Everything else is GNU. From Firefox to GNOME to WINE, it's all GNU.

Well yeah, it is Linux, but I'm guessing the intention will be that no one would ever notice that it's Linux. All people will ever see is Chrome I would assume. Just as no one cares that OS X is FreeBSD, it's so coated in stuff that the kernel is almost irrelevant to the standard user.

Jul 10, 2009#35

chakz

Aw c'mon guys, Windows 7 is coming out. Its going to be like a bazillion times better than vista. We don't need Google chrome.

/billgateshandpuppet.

Actually I'd just like an OS that has stability, good features, and a nice select of games and software.

and also a dragon mount.

and a car that runs on hope.

Jul 10, 2009#36

Chibibar

figmentPez said:
Chibibar said:

unless they are going after a totally different market (like portable apps for mobile type devices) I mean it is nice that you can buy a new netbook that can boot up fast and look pretty, but if it can't run all your favorite old app, guess what? people will go back to Microsoft to run those apps.

Click to expand...

From what I've read they're aiming at people whose favorite apps are web applications. As strange as it is to me, and probably most of the people on this forum, there are a growing number of computer users who do nearly everything through their web browser.

I know that Google was pushing all pure web base apps (I mean total web base like Office type products and such) That would be totally awesome in the future. I didn't upgrade from XP to Vista until I was sure most of my app would run on Vista Ultimate (Which I have) If it didn't I would still be running XP.

I would normally say the gaming community is a "minority" but I read that people play more computer games now than before with GIRLS players

(which is awesome)
hmm.. maybe it will work with that new play as you download system (I forgot the name)
or maybe game can be self contain once again

Jul 10, 2009#37

figmentPez

Chibibar said:
I would normally say the gaming community is a \"minority\" but I read that people play more computer games now than before with GIRLS players (which is awesome)
hmm.. maybe it will work with that new play as you download system (I forgot the name)
or maybe game can be self contain once again

A lot of those new gamers are "casual" gamers. Bejewelled, Peggle, etc. Not to mention there are now more than 13,000 games on the iPhone. I imagine that games for Android will work on Chrome OS as well. The systems that Chrome OS seems targetted at probably won't run much 3D games well, anyway.

Is OnLive is the gaming system you're thinking of? The one where you basically play on a remote server via streaming video?

Gaming is a pretty big hole, though, for some people. I know I'm looking forward to playing some old school games on my XP netbook (if it ever gets here, stupid FedEx getting my hopes up saying it would be delivered yesterday *grumble, grumble*). Between my Gametap subscription and the recent LucasArts releases on Steam, I should have long hours of playing old games that are new to me. (Fallout, X-com, Space Quest, Loom...) Probably couldn't play any of them on Chrome OS, certainly not via Gametap. However, I don't think I'm a typical user by any means.

Also, I spent around $350, mainly because I wanted more than a couple hours of battery life. If there were a device <$200 with a small battery but still got 6+ hours because of an ARM processor & Chrome OS, that would have been pretty tempting, despite a lack of gaming (assuming it could still do video, including Hulu and other Flash stuff).

Jul 10, 2009#38

Chibibar

figmentPez said:
Chibibar said:

I would normally say the gaming community is a \"minority\" but I read that people play more computer games now than before with GIRLS players (which is awesome)
hmm.. maybe it will work with that new play as you download system (I forgot the name)
or maybe game can be self contain once again

Click to expand...

A lot of those new gamers are "casual" gamers. Bejewelled, Peggle, etc. Not to mention there are now more than 13,000 games on the iPhone. I imagine that games for Android will work on Chrome OS as well. The systems that Chrome OS seems targetted at probably won't run much 3D games well, anyway.

Is OnLive is the gaming system you're thinking of? The one where you basically play on a remote server via streaming video?

Gaming is a pretty big hole, though, for some people. I know I'm looking forward to playing some old school games on my XP netbook (if it ever gets here, stupid FedEx getting my hopes up saying it would be delivered yesterday *grumble, grumble*). Between my Gametap subscription and the recent LucasArts releases on Steam, I should have long hours of playing old games that are new to me. (Fallout, X-com, Space Quest, Loom...) Probably couldn't play any of them on Chrome OS, certainly not via Gametap. However, I don't think I'm a typical user by any means.

Also, I spent around $350, mainly because I wanted more than a couple hours of battery life. If there were a device <$200 with a small battery but still got 6+ hours because of an ARM processor & Chrome OS, that would have been pretty tempting, despite a lack of gaming (assuming it could still do video, including Hulu and other Flash stuff).

Yea Onlive. that is what I was thinking about.

I know that a lot of us use Steam (I am a recent user and LOVE it) I will be very sad if Chrome OS doesn't support Steamapps. Of course many WoW players may not be happy either

unless they have WINE or something similar to emulate for them (thus overhead) When I started WoW, I play on my iMac

it was pretty cool.

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