Do You Think It's Too Early for Chrome OS?

Garret Rogers over at ZDNet.com asks "is [the] imminent Chrome OS launch reckless?" He points out that early adopters of the operating system might be disappointed with what they find. Rogers predicts the initial Chrome OS release will be "barebones, bordering on useless".

You might have seen this coming, but we have to respectfully disagree with Mr. Rogers. It has been 4 months since Google announced Chrome OS. And we doubt they have been sitting on their hands. Google has legions of programmers (they did develop Android somehow, right?) that come to work everyday to do Google's Chrome OS bidding.

Four months is a long time to get an operating system together, especially one based on Linux. Just look at Ubuntu. They release a new version every 6 months. Rogers says "releasing 'early' is asking for dissatisfied early adopters". Should Google take a page from Microsoft's book? Wait 5 years like MS did before releasing Windows Vista? Not sure if you've noticed, Mr. Rogers, but that didn't turn out too well for Microsoft...

So we think an early "alpha" build is indicative of a great OS. Let the masses (or the nerds that know how to install OS's) test Chrome OS and tell Google what is wrong with it. Then they can fix it, toss it to some OEMs and get it to the market at large. Then everyone will be happy! So what do you think? Will the first release of Chrome OS disappoint users? Tell us in the comments!

[Read the ZDNet.com post in its entirety here]

Chrome Browser Shows File Managing Skills in Time for Chrome OS

Word comes from Downloadsquad.com that there have been some interesting changes to Chrome for Chrome OS's source code. The recently discovered browser is now showing even more signs of the power it will have in Google's operating system.

Now you can examine your files and directories in Chrome (just as you do with Windows Explorer). To check this out just type these into Chrome: "C:\" (for Windows), "/Users/your_username" (for Mac) or "home/your_username" (for Linux). Now this isn't exactly groundbreaking, since Firefox will do the same thing.

However, Download Squad also points out that the source code now contains a "mount library". This reveals plans to have the Chrome browser mount drives in Chrome OS. So get ready to really do "everything" through your browser in Chrome OS!

[Via Download Squad]

Google's Chrome OS to Launch Next Week, Sources Say

News comes screeching over the internet that Google's operating system, Chrome OS, will be available for download within a week. The tech scene's golden boy, Michael Arrington of Techrunch.com (sorry Topolsky!), says reliable sources have provided him with this bit of wondrous news.

This version of Chrome OS is most likely the source code that was slated to be "released before the end of year" according to Google's blog. It might not be completely baked and will probably carry the trusty Google "beta" label, or perhaps even an "alpha" label. But how else can a great operating system become fully stable without a band of great community supporters like us?

So get your downloading pants hitched up and break out those OS installation skills because it's getting close. I mean a week? That's like 7 days! Let's just keep our fingers crossed that Chrome OS will work on a large range of hardware, or at least one of our beasts!

Google Increases Paid Storage, Readying for Chrome OS?

Remember the days when you would often get close to running out of room for your email? Maybe you had to choose which beloved correspondance to keep and which one to trash. Well, it looks like those times are even farther behind us, especially if you use Gmail or other Google services.

The news is spreading across the Internet that Google has revamped its online storage plans. The search giant announced the move in its blog ("Twice the storage for a quarter of the price") and now provides an impressive 20 GB of online storage for $5 a year. Google's blog justifies the increase (it was 10 GB for $5) as a remedy for our ever-growing collections of data.

The company points out that, in addition to wanting to save more emails, it is "easier and cheaper than ever before to take lots of pictures" thanks to digital cameras. The storage will be split between a user's Gmail account and his or her Picasa account, which is Google's photo storage service. There are also larger storage options available from Google, ranging from the aforementioned 20 GB to a massive 16 TB (which would cost you $4,096 per year).

I think this bump in Google's storage seems to point in the direction many companies are going: to the cloud. Google will soon be releasing their own operating system, Chrome OS, which you can read more about here: Google to Make a Computer Operating System. Google has said that Chrome OS will rely heavily on cloud computing. This means that instead of using the power and storage of your computer, the operating system will use Google's own server computers to complete tasks. In other words, a lower-powered, less expensive computer  on your end will get everyday tasks done just as well as high-powered system.

So an increase in Google's online storage now will ensure it is ready for prime time when Chrome OS is released. This will give the company a chance to see how its computers can handle the weight of the cloud. I think it's a great thing that they are doing this now. At least they are not waiting to see what disaster could strike an untested online storage service when millions of users are relying on it.

Chrome Browser for Chrome OS (.deb package)

This Chrome version for Chrome OS was discovered a few weeks ago, but we found that it was somewhat difficult to obtain the actual Chrome for Chrome OS installation package (the .deb file). So we thought we would post up a screenshot of the browser in action (with our chosen theme on it).

Notice the small "x" beside the question mark in the top right-hand corner. This tells you "no networks available" if you hover on it. Just another sign of the power that will be given to the Chrome web browser in Chrome OS. It really will be your go to guy for all interaction with Chrome OS.

Speaking of this being a .deb file, we wonder if Chrome OS will be Debian based (Debian uses .deb files for installing programs, like .exe for Windows and .dmg for Mac) ... We've seen some pretty awesome things done with Debian-based GNU/Linux distributions (like Ubuntu and xPUD). With all the distros that are based on it, we know that Debian can be a very flexible base to Chrome OS. And Chrome OS's completely "new windowing system" will insure that this isn't "just another Linux OS" like many people are predicting.

Here's the .deb file for you Linux users out there: Chrome Browser for Chrome OS .deb package

Techradar: 10 Things to Know About Google Chrome OS

Techradar.com has an interesting piece about Chrome OS. It covers 10 things that they think you should know about the upcoming operating system. We thought the question "So Microsoft need not worry about competition for Windows 7 then?" was interesting. We would say that MS most definitely does need to worry about Chrome OS. Techradar says "On the plus side for Microsoft, it will have at least 9 months to get market share and persuade people that they don't need an alternative to Windows 7." And they're going to need those 9 months.

Judging from our experience with Windows 7 (which you can read about here), in 9 months people are going to be clawing to get away from Microsoft's prettied-up Vista. It may sound cynical and like we hate Microsoft and Windows, but it's true. We're betting there will be plenty of users looking to Chrome OS to end their buggy, virus-ridden OS days. So check it out, and leave us a comment of anything other predictions about Chrome OS: 10 Things to Know About Google Chrome OS