Google could well be on its way to dominating the operating system market for Netbooks, the small portable devices we carry around with us for convenient access to the web.
Google Chrome OS is a stripped down lightweight operating system which could turn out to be the perfect partner for Netbooks and here’s why.
Netbooks are web machines; they’re not designed for performing complex processing tasks, more for consuming content on the web.
Devices running Chrome will have all their applications and data files stored on the web so will work perfectly for low processing power machines like Netbooks.
In a recent press conference in California, Google said they wanted to make the Chrome OS work like a TV set where a user turns on his device and is immediately connected to the web. That’s exactly what we want with a Netbook.
Now there are those who claim that Chrome as an operating system will fail. It’s true, there’s a downside to running a computer, laptop or netbook with Chrome and that is you won’t be able to do much if you haven’t got an internet connection as the applications and the data won’t be available.
There’s also the fact that not all applications are going to be available on the web but then again, we want our Netbooks for accessing the Internet and as for other apps and tasks that is why we have a desktop or laptop as well.
Netbooks make great secondary devices just for accessing the web and so an operating system that is also focused on the web would seem like a logical step forward.
Basically I don’t think we can compare Chrome OS and Netbooks to the other operating systems and fully fledged computers or laptops as they’re built for different purposes.
With Windows we can install and run many different applications and control our data without going near an internet connection, with Chrome we can’t. Simple as that!
There is nothing you can do with a Netbook that you can’t do with a desktop computer or a laptop and yet netbooks are incredibly popular, and they’re popular because they’re cheap, light, and allow us quick and ready access to the internet.
Similarly, there is nothing you can do with Chrome that you can’t do with Windows or Linux but Chrome allows you to do on a Netbook what you really want to do on a Netbook, namely access the web and web based applications without any fuss.
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Excuse me, but that’s just bull. Allow me to propose an inverse of your idea: google chrome is a good operating system for a desktop P.C., but not for a laptop or a netbook. The reason? Netbooks are not web machines. They are not designed for easy consuming content on the net, but for doing computing tasks independent of jacks or network access. Chrome might be a good solution for a desktop P.C. that is bought for basic utility only, but it is not a good operating system for a netbook: those stay out of the web for any length of time.
Netbooks are portability machines. They are designed to offer long operating hours and light weight, at the expense of raw computing power and comfort of use. While they come standard with wireless internet, the impact of wireless on their batteries cuts back on their operating hours, and so it only used intermittently in real practice. Put in blunt words: netbooks are not built to just access the net. They are not designed for just consuming the web. They are not bought for surfing, or for youtube, or for facebook, but rather for word, excel and other workhorse programs. They people who buy netbooks want to have word and excel and they want it to work without internet and to keep working without electricity. To them, network access is a required bonus – not a core function.
Yes, you will log on for 5 minutes to search the net for that important piece of data or to send your emails, but in the grand scheme of things, you’ll probably be running your netbook with “all wireless off”, so you can get those 5 hours of operating times on a 6-cell battery.
I love the idea of chrome. It is a perfect solution for people who need a quick and easy operating system for their desktops and don’t need the extra functionality of a fully fledged OS. It is a great solution for web-machine desktops that are always plugged in to the net, and it will make computing more easy and accessible to many people: but it is not for laptops or netbooks.
Chrome is going to open up the OS world. It’s going to get us to a place where there are several operating systems with varying degrees of functionality. This is a great thing from a consumer point of view, and it going to bring the cost of desktops down as windows will no longer be a “required buy”. But on the other hand, I think laptop and netbooks buyers will insist on having a fully fledged OS: or at least one that can work offline.
There’s a downside to running a computer, laptop or netbook with Chrome and that is you won’t be able to do much if you haven’t got an internet connection as the applications and the data won’t be available. So if you intend to use Chrome, you have to ask yourself – are you going to use your netbook somewhere with constant network access? For someone who intends the netbook for usage in Classrooms, parks, café’s and public transportation, the answer is a resounding no.
The writer of this article says that we want our Netbooks for accessing the Internet and as for other apps and tasks that is why we have a desktop or laptop as well. I question this logic: would I rather be squinting to read web-pages on a 10 inch netbook screen, or having an easy read on the 21 inch high definition screen my desktop packs? If I need a computer for surfing the net, I’d go with a desktop any day of the week. Netbooks are for going outside, not for jacking in.
Could Google be on its way to dominating the operating system market for Netbooks? To me, the answer is no. Most people don’t buy Netbooks so they can have convenient access to the web. For people who need a real computer rather than a web machine, which is what most netbook buyers are, chrome just won’t cut it.