Google Lifts the Curtain on Chrome OS

[JMcEntegart]

Google has finally revealed details about its highly anticipated netbook operating system, Chrome OS.

Google Lifts the Curtain on Chrome OS : Read more

 

[tommysch]

Just another Linux GUI

 

[Guest]

you know, i think this has potential and all, but there is no way so many people would change over from windows to make this truly successful.

 

[tipoo]

Meh. Its like a souped up Instant-On OS.

 

[xc0mmiex]

but will it run crysis?

 

[sublifer]

I'd like to know what its doing for file management... grabbing pics off a camera and putting them in picasa or whereever is one thing but what about if you want to keep it on the PC? I've had tons of ideas on file management and I just want to see if they're gonna stick to a simple file explorer or if they're going to make it an EXPERIENCE.

 

[farrell4g]

It'll be interesting to see if it will catch on. It is free after all, and might not need the learning curve of linux.....

 

[David the Gnome]

It seems like you should be able to run this on a system with very minimal specs. If nothing is really stored on the computer then you don't need more than a couple GB's of space on the computer. If you purpose built a machine to run on this OS you could probably have a fully functional computer for well under $100.

 

[apache_lives]

(Inter)net-book simplicity - couldnt have made it any easier, the title explains it all, SIMPLE.

 

[Guest]

I’m not sure about storing confidential information (banks/account details etc) on Google servers; for sure it will get hacked. I think Google OS should have options to choose between storing data online or disk.

The simplicity approach of Goggle Chrome Os is good and should have been implemented by major Linux distributors (RedHat, SUSE, Manadrake etc) many years ago.

They should change the name to: Google Ads Bombardier 2010

 

[ytoledano]

Would be great if it could connect to a remote computer running Windows using RDP.

Unlikely!

 

[tayb]

There will be no mass market appeal of this OS except for system builders using it as a glorified "instant on" OS on top of the Windows install.

 

[the_one111]

[citation][nom]farrell4g[/nom]It'll be interesting to see if it will catch on. It is free after all, and might not need the learning curve of linux.....[/citation]
Linux doesn't have that big a learning curb. Ubuntu would probably be easier to navigate than Chrome simply because it is very much like MS's UI.

All in all I think it will get downloaded because it is made by "Google" even though Ubuntu/Windows can do everything this can and more.

 

[tortnotes]

So wait.
If everything is stored in the cloud... what does that mean for photos, videos, music files? Whenever I access these things, am I downloading the file or am I streaming it through a browser?
What does that mean for any kind of serious editing or manipulation? Or for transferring 10GB of stuff to my mp3 player? I wouldn't want to throw all of that across my network connection. It would be agonizingly slow. :/

Sounds cool for the netbook crowd, but I can't see using this all the time. I like the near instant on feature, but unless I'm in a hurry I'll want Windows so I can actually, you know, do something other than look at stuff.

 

[kingssman]

SO...... Is this thing gonna be like OSX? where there will be an EFI and only a specific set of supported hardware but a read only OS drive, and apps run either on the web or in a DOS like environment?

 

[donaldduck]

As it is now, it is definitely interesting in terms of plain usability. After all most of Google' software (Chrome, the browser, in primis) aims towards simplicity (as-in user-friendly).

My geek-question about this is: since Chrome OS is based on Linux's kernel, when will we see a native and stable release of Chrome browser on other Linux distro (ok, slightly off-topic, sorry)?

[UPDATE] Have added the entire presentation in case you have nearly an hour and a half to spare. It is Friday . . .

I always like this laid-back approach to work

 

[counselmancl]

In Google we trust...

 

[zak_mckraken]

But, even if you're working offline, remember all of your data is stored in the cloud

Like tortnotes asked, what about multimedia files? Surely I can and will have local files? Besides that, I think Chrome could be a great way to put some life back in my old Celeron notebook.

 

[Guest]

If everything is stored in the cloud, what is the true cost of the OS once ISP's start charging per GB downloaded? That could get pricey!

 

[matt2k]

i really like the idea, all i ask for is local storage as well, so i can watch movies/listyen to music while out of range of wi-fi (airplane, car etc)
i mean, who really does intense computational tasks with a NETBOOK?

 

[Raid3r]

Either the OS encrypts all pertinent items before ant type of data exchange or its a good time for a third party to take advantage of that and do it for the os before upload. Or obviously local storage.

 

[jrharbort]

At about 37 minutes into the main presentation video, they clearly say that chrome will not be downloadable, or available to install on any machine, it simply doesn't work like that.

If you want to use Chrome OS, you need to buy a Chrome OS machine.

So for all of you hoping to install it on an old system, or on another partition... you can't, sorry to say.

 

[jrharbort]

[citation][nom]jrharbort[/nom]At about 37 minutes into the main presentation video, they clearly say that chrome will not be downloadable, or available to install on any machine, it simply doesn't work like that.If you want to use Chrome OS, you need to buy a Chrome OS machine.So for all of you hoping to install it on an old system, or on another partition... you can't, sorry to say.[/citation]
Gah... I meant to say that's it's not downloadable for just any machine. =_="

It's designed to work with only very specific, and few kinds of hardware, only found in netbooks currently.

 

[phexac]

Sounds like a stupid gimmick.

 

[wildwell]

As others have stated, I have concerns regarding ALL my data being in the cloud. A lot of business users are now using netbooks for simple tasks on the go as well as consumers. What will Google do to assure their customers that private/confidential data will stay that way?