Chrome Detailing: Previewing Google’s New Operating System
Last week, Google open-sourced its Chromium OS project, more than a year before the operating system is scheduled for release. In doing so, Google hopes a variety of developers and companies will become involved in the project, and has pledged to release regular updates as well as a comprehensive log of bug reports and fixes. We’ve spent a few days playing with Chromium and exploring its design and come away impressed—but not without questions.
This article should not be considered a review of Chromium in any way—at most, it’s a very early preview. We won’t be discussing performance or spending too much time on the operating system’s “look and feel.” Google has stated up front that a number of UI changes are in the pipeline.
What we are going to talk about is Google’s design vision for Chromium, the unique benefits it offers, and a bit of why Google is throwing its hat into this particular ring in the first place. Chromium, after all, is a Linux-based OS entering the smartbook/netbook market at a time when said product segment is already being served by a variety of Linux distros (some customized to the hardware, some not), XP, and Windows 7. In the midst of all these options, do we need another operating system?
We just might.
Understanding Chromium
Google has put together a 3.5 minute video that does a pretty good job of explaining Chrome’s design philosophy. For those of you who don’t feel like watching, we’ll discuss it after the jump.
Chromium is designed around the premise that computers have largely evolved into boxes from which we access the Internet. If you’ve ever lost Internet service (but not electricity) for a protracted period of time, you’ve probably seen the company’s point. Evaluated in terms of what a modern system is capable of doing, getting online is but one, minor feature. From a user perspective, however, Internet connectivity is a matter of tremendous importance—lose the net, and your system transforms from a communications platform/multimedia hub into a box for writing papers, gaming alone… or something.
Google’s view, although the company doesn’t say it in so many words, is that the lot of us—Linux, Mac, and Microsoft users alike—are using a device initialization and access platform designed nearly thirty years ago to access the cutting-edge capability of today. Imagine, for a moment, that we were shipping 1080P content on VCR tapes at 50 tapes per movie, and you get the picture.
