by Mark Standland

Created on: June 26, 2010   Last Updated: July 11, 2010

Google Chrome OS is one of the newer projects coming out of Google in recent time and it is also one of the bigger projects. With the Chrome OS Google is suddenly a contender for Microsoft when it comes to delivering software to small laptops, netbooks and tablets.

Chrome OS is an open source operating system (the source code is open for all to see and can even be changed and added to) built on a Linux kernel that in comparison to its Windows and Mac OS counterparts is more lightweight. The way Chrome OS is built up it lowers the demands to the specs of the computer running it, which gives it both a faster boot time and makes it very use-able on netbooks and tablets.

When Google presented the idea of the Chrome OS the idea was to make a simple, lightweight and fast operating system that would allow the user to access the web in a matter of seconds.

What Google’s research showed was that most people do not really need a full-fledged operating system since all they really needed access to were a browser and the Internet. So basically Google’s project is about creating an operating system that is a browser. Nothing is stored on the computer as it is all contained on the web. Checking your email, creating documents, listening to music and chatting with your friends can all be done via the browser so nothing more is needed to perform these basic tasks. The user interface is very similar to the one used in the Google Chrome browser, very simple and sleek.

Security seems to be the biggest issue for many when it comes to Google’s new OS. Google is known to collect a lot of private data both in their search engine but also when it comes to some of their other products so putting your whole operating system in Google’s hands might be scary for many.

Summing up

The positives:

Fast booting – The Chrome operating system does not have to go through all the slow steps that other operating systems does which gives it at very fast start up time.

Simple – There are no heavy graphics to clutter your screen. Everything is kept simple and you will only find what you need. Because there is nothing stored on your computer, with all being on the Internet, the operating system can be kept running smooth and fast.

Open and free – Unlike both Mac OS and Windows the Chrome OS is open source and a free download. That the OS is open source means that anyone can add to the code and that way add features, correct problems and share all this with the world without Google ever being involved. This makes for a much faster development process than the closed operating systems.

The negatives:

Questionable security – Since it is basically just a browser it will be interesting to see how Google handles the security concerns that many are having.

Limited user group – As it was seen with Linux based netbooks earlier a similar pattern might play out with the Chrome OS. Most people are more comfortable with Windows and it will be hard to win a lot of people over.

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