There was once a time when the de facto
operating system choice was plain and simple: Windows. It wasn’t just the only
game in town, for its time it was a trend setter, defining how we interacted
with PCs. But over the years the company swelled and their product began to
stagnate. All of sudden Apple resurged on the scene and people, at long last,
had a viable choice. Then along came Linux and things became even more diverse.
But in recent years one incorrigible little search-engine company started
churning out things not entirely search-engine related. Like maps. And
calendars. But an OS?
Yes, Google has officially announced they
are entering the highly competitive realm of operating systems, offering a
light-weight option that is supposedly quite versatile. However, Google OS
doesn’t quite have that definitive ring to it so users will be cordially asked
to refer to it as Google Chrome OS. Yes, the metallic motif from their browser
is now representative of an entire operating system. But what’s Google’s
ambitions for this foray:
“Google Chrome OS is an open source,
lightweight operating system that will initially be targeted at netbooks. Later
this year we will open-source its code, and netbooks running Google Chrome OS
will be available for consumers in the second half of 2010. Because we’re
already talking to partners about the project, and we’ll soon be working with
the open source community, we wanted to share our vision now so everyone
understands what we are trying to achieve.”
“Speed, simplicity and security are the key
aspects of Google Chrome OS” says Google. And likely Apple and Microsoft as
well. But here’s the kicker: we’ve yet to see Google try and succinctly fall
flat on their backsides. They don’t do things half-assed. You only have to look
to Google Android, the search-giants portable OS that runs on smartphones and
other low-level devices, to see their operating system acumen.
Google has only divulged a few details via
their official blog, however speculation across the web is mounting. What
exactly will a Chrome OS entail? Some speculate that it may be a beefed-up
browser experience. After all, Google has long since been trying to collect all
your daily activities onto web-based programs (Gmail, Google Calendar, Google
Maps, Google Groups, etc). It’s not out of the realm of possibility to produce
an entirely web-based OS experience.
However, one thing remains certain. When
Google dives into the water, they tend to make a big splash. We’ll keep you
posted!
