Dell Confirms Switch to Google's Chrome OS

[exfileme]

Dell will use Google's Chrome OS on upcoming devices.

Dell Confirms Switch to Google's Chrome OS : Read more

 

[fusion_gtx]

Not exactly a surprising announcement seeing as Dell just came out with (sarcasm)astonishing(/sarcasm) news about Linux being more secure than Windows. Obviously there are going to be people who get on board the new OS but it's not like Microsoft is in any jeopardy of losing a huge client base.

 

[Ragnar-Kon]

That is quite the smack down on Microsoft, but not sure if removing the power from Microsoft and giving it to Google will really do any positive in terms of competition... but then again I doubt Dell was trying to improved market competition when they made this decision. Probably just a money saving tactic.

 

[False_Dmitry_II]

Isn't that the cloud-based/only OS? No thanks, if I wanna use not windows I'll stick with real linux.

 

[stromm]

Is linux really more secure than Win7? Or is it just that no one's bothered to target it as much as they do Win7?

 

[zaznet]

and that the relationship would last between two and three years.

The statement he made wasn't about the relationship but rather the state of the marketplace they are trying to tap into which he predicts will more fully emerge in the 2 or 3 year time frame.

 

[digitalrazoe]

@stromm ... yes it is, and yes...

 

[fusion_gtx]

[citation][nom]stromm[/nom]Is linux really more secure than Win7? Or is it just that no one's bothered to target it as much as they do Win7?[/citation]

You basically answered your own question. Linux is more secure, because less people use it. So less people target it.

 

[indian-art]

Google's Chrome OS - Let the excitement begin.

I'm using Google Chrome Browser 6.0.437.3 dev and its awesome.

I feel Google's Chrome OS has a lot of promise and can herald something new and great.

With such a great OS for free, prices of PC's should become even more competitive!

 

[SchizoFrog]

[citation][nom]fusion_gtx[/nom]You basically answered your own question. Linux is more secure, because less people use it. So less people target it.[/citation]
I wouldn't say that it was more secure, just less likely to be attacked. The two are not the same thing. People used to say the same thing about Apple's software but year after year it is been proven at the security conventions that it just isn't true.
Personally, I would rather have more attacks aimed at my machine with very good protection and a very small risk of a successful attack than have a single attack that destroyed my OS, stole my personal info and corrupted my stored data.

But the best security measure is to stop doing stupid things with your computer.

 

[fusion_gtx]

@SchizoFrog I guess that's more so what I meant by Linux being more secure.

In the end it's really up to what the user is doing. If you're going to look at pron and torrent music/videos then you're putting your computer at risk. No one is to blame but the user at that point. A smart user can use the web with minimal protection without getting infected.

 

[Guest]

I'd just like to interject for a moment. What you're referring to as Linux, is in fact, GNU/Linux, or as I've recently taken to calling it, GNU plus Linux. Linux is not an operating system unto itself, but rather another free component of a fully functioning GNU system made useful by the GNU corelibs, shell utilities and vital system components comprising a full OS as defined by POSIX.

Many computer users run a modified version of the GNU system every day, without realizing it. Through a peculiar turn of events, the version of GNU which is widely used today is often called Linux, and many of its users are not aware that it is basically the GNU system, developed by the GNU Project.

There really is a Linux, and these people are using it, but it is just a part of the system they use. Linux is the kernel: the program in the system that allocates the machine's resources to the other programs that you run. The kernel is an essential part of an operating system, but useless by itself; it can only function in the context of a complete operating system. Linux is normally used in combination with the GNU operating system: the whole system is basically GNU with Linux added, or GNU/Linux. All the so-called Linux distributions are really distributions of GNU/Linux.

 

[razercultmember1]

My big question is how exactly do you get a virus? Is it through visiting a virus infected website? or opening an email attachment? Because I have never gotten a single virus, malware, adware on my computer...(let the trolls come I'm waiting) but just an intellectual question :|

 

[erloas]

The question is, are the people that normally purchase from Dell going to be a good target for the Chrome OS? Linux is more of a hobby OS then a consumer OS, not sure how much Google may have managed to change that. The people that buy Dells also tend to be the sort of people that need detailed instructions as to find and use the Start Menu, or do simple tasks like change the resolution display (if they even know it is possible).

Linux has great support, but its not support for Grandma's, its support for other enthusiasts or at very least semi-enthusiasts. Is this going to be like the first line of Netbooks which had something like a 60% return rate because they were running a version of Linux instead of Windows? Its not that there is anything Linux can't do, but there is a lot Linux can't do for a computer illiterate user (and who else buys Dell?)

 

[Guest]

To answer peoples Q's about Linux being more secure...

"Most people use Microsoft Windows, and pirates want to do as much damage (or control) as possible: therefore, they target Windows. But that's not the only reason; the Apache web server (a web server is a program located on a remote computer that sends web pages to your browser when you ask for them), which is open source software, has the biggest market share (against Microsoft's IIS server), but it still suffers from much fewer attacks/flaws than the Microsoft one.
Linux uses smart authorization management. In Windows you (and any program you install) usually have the right to do pretty much anything to the system. If you feel like punishing your PC because it just let your precious work disappear, you can go inside the system folder and delete whatever you want: Windows won't complain. Of course, the next time you reboot, trouble begins. But imagine that if you can delete this system stuff, other programs can, too, or just mess it up. Linux doesn't allow that. Every time you request to do something that has to do with the system, an administrator password is required (and if you're not an administrator on this system, you simply can't do it). Viruses can't just go around and delete or modify what they want in the system; they don't have the authorization for that.
More eyes make fewer security flaws. Linux is Open source software, which means that any programmer in the world can have a look at the code (the "recipe" of any program), and help out, or just tell other developers "Hey, what if blah blah, isn't this a security flaw?"." -- http://www.whylinuxisbetter.net/index.php?lang=

 

[echdskech]

ofcourse regardless of OS, it's only as secure as the weakest link. most popular exploits i see these days target the user like phishing emails. it wont matter if you're on windows or linux if you're gullible enough to give strangers your passwords and personal info just because "my computer told me to".

[posted on linux]

 

[False_Dmitry_II]

[citation][nom]erloas[/nom]The question is, are the people that normally purchase from Dell going to be a good target for the Chrome OS? Linux is more of a hobby OS then a consumer OS, not sure how much Google may have managed to change that. The people that buy Dells also tend to be the sort of people that need detailed instructions as to find and use the Start Menu, or do simple tasks like change the resolution display (if they even know it is possible).Linux has great support, but its not support for Grandma's, its support for other enthusiasts or at very least semi-enthusiasts. Is this going to be like the first line of Netbooks which had something like a 60% return rate because they were running a version of Linux instead of Windows? Its not that there is anything Linux can't do, but there is a lot Linux can't do for a computer illiterate user (and who else buys Dell?)[/citation]

Dude, laptops. Still can't build those.

 

[leemathews]

Wow, that title is a complete failure.

A top-3 PC OEM is not going to "switch" to a niche OS. Adding Chrome OS option? Yes.

Switch -- which implies dropping current offerings in favor of a new option? Not bloody likely.

 

[JonnyDough]

As long as Chrome does everything it needs to (Office applications, Internet browsing, music and video) then for the majority of people who want a new PC it will work fine - provided it is user friendly.

 

[lauxenburg]

So are they still using Ubuntu? Screw Google. I want Ubuntu.

 

[thejerk]

Ubuntu's still free. And, you're still free to install it.

 

[ordcestus]

[citation][nom]SchizoFrog[/nom]I wouldn't say that it was more secure, just less likely to be attacked. The two are not the same thing. People used to say the same thing about Apple's software but year after year it is been proven at the security conventions that it just isn't true.Personally, I would rather have more attacks aimed at my machine with very good protection and a very small risk of a successful attack than have a single attack that destroyed my OS, stole my personal info and corrupted my stored data.But the best security measure is to stop doing stupid things with your computer.[/citation]
Take a look at some of the information on that. linux is designed to be more secure, while of course if linux was the top OS right now there would be more malware designed for it but the situation would be better than windows is now

 

[pirateboy]

non windows + free = win win situation

 

[dEAne]

Yeah my other browser is mozilla, I never like IE.

 

[palladin9479]

[citation][nom]QJT[/nom]To answer peoples Q's about Linux being more secure..."Most people use Microsoft Windows, and pirates want to do as much damage (or control) as possible: therefore, they target Windows. But that's not the only reason; the Apache web server (a web server is a program located on a remote computer that sends web pages to your browser when you ask for them), which is open source software, has the biggest market share (against Microsoft's IIS server), but it still suffers from much fewer attacks/flaws than the Microsoft one.Linux uses smart authorization management. In Windows you (and any program you install) usually have the right to do pretty much anything to the system. If you feel like punishing your PC because it just let your precious work disappear, you can go inside the system folder and delete whatever you want: Windows won't complain. Of course, the next time you reboot, trouble begins. But imagine that if you can delete this system stuff, other programs can, too, or just mess it up. Linux doesn't allow that. Every time you request to do something that has to do with the system, an administrator password is required (and if you're not an administrator on this system, you simply can't do it). Viruses can't just go around and delete or modify what they want in the system; they don't have the authorization for that.More eyes make fewer security flaws. Linux is Open source software, which means that any programmer in the world can have a look at the code (the "recipe" of any program), and help out, or just tell other developers "Hey, what if blah blah, isn't this a security flaw?"." -- http://www.whylinuxisbetter.net/index.php?lang=[/citation]

Not true. And NT based Windows kernel (NT 4.0 / 5.0 / 6.0) has the exact same user rights management as any POSIX based system (Unix / Linux). A user logged into a Windows machine can not delete anything in \windows folder or any other folder with user read only rights. In any POSIX system if your logged in as root you can nuke /usr/sbin, /usr/bin, /bin, /sbin, /boot, and /var with wild abandon, upon which your system will destroy itself in short order.

The difference is that company's like Dell / HP have the default first user set as administrator. To avoid the ~EVIL~ "login screen" the OEM's like to have auto-login setup with the user being in the administrators group if not just a renamed administrator account. This is the functional equivalent of logging into a Linux machine as root and doing everything that way. Everything just seems "to work" but its a good way to blow your system up or get a virus. It got so bad that MS had to directly limit the power of the administrator account using UAC to prevent people from blowing their own system up while being logged in as administrator. And the latest NT 6 kernel actually has no "administrator" account just an elevated rights user account. The system goes through great lengths to prevent the user from doing anything dangerous, hence all the guides telling people to turn off UAC to get programs working.

Apache is more secure because its an awesome piece of software. And BTW it runs on windows too, so you can build a secure webserver using MS 2003 / 2008 + Apache and just uninstall IIS.