Barney's Blog

Blog archive

Chrome OS Gains Open Source Home

Google has executed nearly everything to perfection -- except when it comes to Chrome. I first learned of Chrome when I downloaded a beta of the browser. It worked fine, but lacked the features and familiarity of Firefox and IE (which I find pretty interchangeable).

But there is another Chrome, and this puppy is a full-fledged operating system. To reduce the confusion, the browser is simply called Chrome while the OS is called (you guessed it) Chrome OS.

But enough about names. Let's talk about the OS, which, while unfinished, has already been released as open source. Chrome OS is a near-total departure from Windows or Mac OS in that it relies almost entirely on the Internet. Sure, it's a local OS, but after it boots, apps and data reside in the cloud, an approach promulgated by Larry Ellison and Scott McNealy a decade ago.

I like this approach, and I hate it. Given how often Internet connections fail (less so since I bailed on DSL) and how often I'm away from a free wireless hotspot, I can't depend on the 'net. Having said that, I love the idea of all my files being in one location and accessible from whatever device I happen to have.

What I want to see is a hybrid, where my apps are local, the system automatically saves data locally and in the cloud, and the data is synchronized in real-time, not just a backup. What's your optimal system? Send requirements to [email protected]. And if you've already got data synchronization nailed, send your answers to the same [email protected] address.

Posted by Doug Barney on November 30, 2009


Featured

  • Microsoft Appoints Althoff as New CEO for Commercial Business

    Microsoft CEO and chairman Satya Nadella on Wednesday announced the promotion of Judson Althoff to CEO of the company's commercial business, presenting the move as a response to the dramatic industrywide shifts caused by AI.

  • Broadcom Revamps VMware Partner Program Again

    Broadcom recently announced a significant update regarding its VMware Cloud Service Provider (VCSP) program, coinciding with the release of VMware Cloud Foundation (VCF) 9.0, a key component in Broadcom’s private cloud strategy.

  • Closeup of the new Copilot keyboard key

    Microsoft Updates Copilot To Add Context-Sensitive Agents to Teams, SharePoint

    Microsoft has rolled out a new public preview for collaborative "always on" agents in Microsoft 365 Copilot, bringing enhanced, context-aware tools into Teams channels, meetings, SharePoint sites, Planner workstreams and Viva Engage communities.

  • Windows 365 Cloud Apps Now Available for Public Preview

    Microsoft announced this week that Windows 365 Cloud Apps are now available for public preview. This aims to allow IT administrators to stream individual Windows applications from the cloud, removing the need to assign Cloud PCs to every user.