3 Reminders, As Chrome OS Approaches

by Sam Dean - Aug. 11, 2010Comments (1)

In only a matter of weeks, Google is slated to deliver Chrome OS, the company's first operating system aimed squarely at computers. We've written about the many misconceptions that people have about the operating system before. Now, with its delivery imminent, it's worth remembering what Chrome OS is intended to be and what it is not intended to be.

It's For Netbooks. Is Chrome OS a server operating system that will do direct battle with Windows Server, or, for that matter, open source operating systems that reside on servers? Absolutely not. It's aimed squarely at netbooks, a fast-growing part of the hardware market--but only part.

Can I Use All My Favorite Local Apps On It? Don't plan on it. Google started out, in announcing the OS, by positioning at as exclusively a cloud OS. The idea is that people will use cloud apps with Chrome OS, work with data exclusively in the cloud, and eschew local data and apps. There may be some workarounds delivered to change this, but Google still appears to have a pretty absolutist cloud model.

Will Google Be Ready To Support Chrome OS? Google just bailed on its Nexus One smartphone effort, and it's not clear how ready the company is to support a computer-centric operating system. An OS aimed at computers is different from an OS like Android, targeted at smartphones. There are issues of hardware compatibility that apply, and many more issues. Look for this to be a big area of focus for Google as the OS rolls out.

Without a doubt, Chrome OS will be one of the biggest software stories of the year. There are many positives about it. It has, for example, a potentially revolutionary security model, and that could compare favorably to Microsoft's operating systems. But Chrome OS also faces challenges--ones worth remembering.

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