Sounds great, right? Well not really. My first major issue with Chrome OS is that it's open source and that Google is using the same business ethic with Google Wave. Generally speaking, an open source product with huge developer support works well if it doesn't give people the tools to plant viruses. By making the whole operating system open source, Google is practically inviting people to send viruses to everyone.
Putting that major flaw aside, however, leaves us with an interesting prospect. Google will probably release Chrome OS to manufacturers first, just like Microsoft. They will probably target netbooks which means by 2010 we should be able to buy a fully working netbook for about £150. At least, that would be the logical place for Chrome OS. It is essentially a pretty version of Linux with Google's Logo on it, it wasn't built from the ground up. Google Chrome itself wasn't even built from the ground up by Google, it was built using WebKit, an existing browser format.
So, who should Google be aiming for? Well they definitely shouldn't be aiming for me. I play lots of games and use lots of different applications, therefore I am not going to risk huge compatability and performance issues until Chrome OS is fully established. The same goes with Windows 7 really, until that has its first inevitable service pack, I'm not touching it with a barge pole.
Final Thought Byte : Google is starting to play a very dangerous game. It will never take the market away from Microsoft, which has decades of experience and decades of being a fully established and trusted brand. Google is still a search engine to many people, not a software development company. Until Google Chrome and Google Wave make it big, Chrome OS will be a huge mistake.
Tags : Google, Chrome, Windows 7, Microsoft, WebKit, Linux
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