Microsoft or Firefox or Chrome ?

In July, Google Inc. had announced that it was working on an operating system for netbooks called Chrome operating system (OS) and it is reported that it is set to have a publicly available “stable release” by the second half of 2010. The new browser based operating system can be a competitive product for the software giant, Microsoft Corp, who needs to respond.

Recently, the company has demonstrated an early version of Chrome OS that features tabs for frequently used web-based apps and a 7 second boot up time. Further, Google has released the source code under open source licensing as Chromium OS. Now, various analysts suggest that the new Chrome OS will start a race to develop browser based operating systems like Internet Explorer OS, Firefox OS or even Opera OS.

Google Chrome Operating System

The company has stated that the Google Chrome Operating System project will be an open source by the end of 2009. Although, it is based on the Linux kernel, it will use “a new windowing system”. The Chrome Operating System is being targeted at users who spend most of their time on the Internet and is designed to run on computers ranging from netbooks to desktop computers.

Chrome Operating System concept

Various developers said that the concept behind browser based operating is simple, use enough Linux under the browser to run on modest hardware and you have a hit formula for the success. It is assumed that if Google can develop its Chrome OS in about two years, Microsoft, Firefox, etc, would be able to develop their own “browser based operating system” at the time when Google’s version arrives next year.

It seems that there are various customers for Chrome OS out in the market, which include Hewlett-Packard, Acer, Lenovo and Asus. Therefore, Microsoft, needs to respond, who holds the world’s operating system market with more than 90 percent share. Further, Firefox and Opera could also release their versions to retain their future market share and stand with the competition.

It is assumed that such browser based OS would support its parent’s own web-based productivity applications, but Firefox could be a spoiler as Microsoft and Google will head in proprietary directions. Developers said that if these browser based OSs have similar specifications like Google than users can have interchangeable operating systems in future, which can be carried on memory cards.

Mr. Sundar Pichai, Google’s VP of Product Management said that if any other browser maker wants to build their own version of the OS using their own browser, they can. It is assumed that Chrome OS is going to make computers cheaper. Analysts predict that there can be a drop of 0 per PC. Since the operating system will not involve any licensing fees and up gradation charges.

Conclusion

In spite of recent breakdown in Google services, the company has convinced people that their data is safe in the cloud, as their personal information is already up there. However, the company has not detailed that what apps can be run on the operating system. Can we run Photoshop on it and what are the applications changes to make Chrome OS a better choice than Windows? But we can say that only for self-defense, Redmond giant needs an alternative to Chrome OS to offer its customers.