Google to release PC without Windows

[MacBytes]

http://www.macbytes.com/images/bytessig.gif (http://www.macbytes.com)

Category: 3rd Party Hardware
Link: Google to release PC without Windows (http://www.macbytes.com/link.php?sid=20060103142231)

Posted on MacBytes.com (http://www.macbytes.com)
Approved by Mudbug

[zap2]

I'd buy one just to Have some google hardware


And i'm sure all cool Google software would work with it

iTunes for Google's OS

FireFox for Google's OS



What are the possiblities!:eek:

[vniow]

This would Kick. Ass.

[dornoforpyros]

crazy, although I gotta wonder what another os (with googles name attached) would do to apple's market share.

[mdavey]

Particularly interesting given that Apple and Google have been working together recently. Google was rumored to be offering iTunes somehow (http://www.macrumors.com/pages/2005/08/20050815090608.shtml).

[Gasu E.]

I can't see any reason why Google would want to come out with a general-purpose computer. More likely, this is an appliance optimized just to run a few web-centric applications cheaply, quickly, and securely. It could be perfect for the 30% or so of PC users who don't really need a computer. I don't see too much overlap with the traditional Mac market, but it could compete for "switchers."

[Fiveos22]

The title is misleading. Google releasing a PC sans Microsoft is admittedly speculative and not the brunt of the article. The authors are saying that the waves that Google is making is shaking up the industry, but not directly strengthening Google.

I found the rest of the article much more interesting. Good post submitter.

[Peace]

I'd be willing to wager Google is going to introduce a mediacentric device with a simple (but effective) GUI at CES in 3 days..

[mduser63]

I guess I'm alone in not being all that impressed with Google. Sure their search engine is great, but at the end of the day, it's still just a search engine. They act like they're this skunkworks with all these really great, innovative projects that no one has ever thought of before, but what have they got? They've bought a lot of other companies' stuff (Picasa, Keyhole, Blogger, etc), which is not innovative. Most of their stuff is Windows only including Gtalk client, Google Desktop, Picasa, Blogger for Word and Google Earth (so far). GMail Notifier is only available for the Mac because a single employee decided to port it on his own. Besides that, I can't see them doing a better job with an OS than Apple. GTalk is reasonably nice looking, but I don't find the Picasa and Google Earth interfaces appealing at all. I find it highly unlikely that they would write their own OS as that's a HUGE job. Much more likely is that they come out with their own Linux distro as if there aren't already enough of those. Then they pair it with some barebones cheap PC and stick a Google logo on it, and everybody wets their pants with excitement.

[nuckinfutz]

crazy, although I gotta wonder what another os (with googles name attached) would do to apple's market share.


Google has 0 percent chance of unseating Microsoft, Apple or Linux in the OS space. Come on ...folks are drinking the koolaid a bit much here.

Google's golden egg is their advertising. Hell I know I could get the same results from searching on yahoo or MSN but I like Googles mini web apps and the like. However that's a far cry from developing on Operating System and maintaining hardware.

Looking forward to seeing what Google has to offer in 2006 but Google OS isn't something I'm holding my breath for.

[Sunrunner]

http://www.macbytes.com/images/bytessig.gif (http://www.macbytes.com)

Category: 3rd Party Hardware
Link: Google to release PC without Windows (http://www.macbytes.com/link.php?sid=20060103142231)

Posted on MacBytes.com (http://www.macbytes.com)
Approved by Mudbug

I wouldnt be suprised at all if Google pulled something like this out of its grab bag.

[GregUofMN]

This is, in my opinion, just another reason why I feel that the MacMini is too expensive. (The article a few days back saying that companies would not use macs for secretaries simply because they are too expensive also helps this arguement.) I feel that the MacMini's purpose is to compete with those people that flip open the weekly big-box-computer/appliance advertisements in the Sunday newspaper and buy the absolute least expensive computer regardless of what it has or does.

This is the exact market for the new so-called Google PC. I think that it's a good move... for Google. How successful it will be since Google isn't a hardware manufacturer is still questionable.

[mkrishnan]

Google has 0 percent chance of unseating Microsoft, Apple or Linux in the OS space. Come on ...folks are drinking the koolaid a bit much here.

Agreed, but even if Google does release an OS, isn't it pretty likely that it would run either a variant of FreeBSD or of Linux?

BTW, does anyone know what the nature of the operating system used on the Google Mini (http://www.google.com/enterprise/mini/) is? They don't seem to say anywhere....

[ahunter3]

I guess I'm alone in not being all that impressed with Google. Sure their search engine is great, but at the end of the day, it's still just a search engine.

Actually, their search engine really sucks. AltaVista, back in the day, had a good search engine, with a true boolean search field that worked. And rocked.

What Google has is a very good data set to search, but the searchtools it provides are mediocre.

[Nermal]

BTW, does anyone know what the nature of the operating system used on the Google Mini (http://www.google.com/enterprise/mini/) is? They don't seem to say anywhere....

I'm pretty sure it's GooOS, which in turn I'm pretty sure is a customised version of Linux.

[greatdevourer]

If they do release it with Goose (GOogle Operating SystEm :p), I can imagine it not having any folders - just search or use labels (tags) :D

[mkrishnan]

I'm pretty sure it's GooOS, which in turn I'm pretty sure is a customised version of Linux.

Heh, thank you! Can anyone confirm that it is in fact Linux at the core? Out of curiosity? If they already have experiencing supporting a Linux core, then I could see them releasing a killer distro (sort of in the sense that MacOS is the killer distro of FreeBSD! :D ) ... hmmm, if they made that available to users of other hardware, I could really see it helping out Linux hugely. :)

(EDIT: If it's a Linux core, doesn't Google have to have a site somewhere that releases the relevant portions of the code in order to comply with the Linux GPLs?)

[mdavey]

Google has 0 percent chance of unseating Microsoft, Apple or Linux in the OS space.

I doubt that it will be a traditional computer. Much more likely it will be a cross between a media center and a network computer. They were talking to Wyse (the thin client people) and Sun Microsystems at about the same time they were talking to Apple.

Heck, I wouldn't put it past those crazy people at Google to try to do network-computing-over-the-Internet - they already have most of the server-side apps to attempt to pull this off. Also, Sun were supposed to be working on a web-based version of OpenOffice.

[mdavey]

(EDIT: If it's a Linux core, doesn't Google have to have a site somewhere that releases the relevant portions of the code in order to comply with the Linux GPLs?)

Only if they have modified the source. If they have simply built their own apps to run on a standard Linux OS, then hidden the command-line interface from the Administrator (perhaps by providing a web interface), they would be compying with the standard GPL.

The only other thing they would need to do is provide the customer with the source to the OS. They might do that by including it in a directory on the CD, or by providing details in the documentation of how the customer can request a copy of the source.

[autrefois]

I think we Mac users/lovers would have to be worried if Google did come out with a PC with their own OS. Apple definitely has coolness on its side, not to mention the iPod Halo effect (and of course the current superiority of our OS!), but Google looks unstoppable and in general have a very positive image with the public. They've become a verb, for goodness sakes! :)

Now if Google came out with a computer using OS X, that would be cool. Others have mentioned their discussions about iTunes. If Google decided to go ahead with OS X, then that would be a major announcement for a certain upcoming Apple keynote, wouldn't it? :p

[IJ Reilly]

I guess I'm alone in not being all that impressed with Google. Sure their search engine is great, but at the end of the day, it's still just a search engine. They act like they're this skunkworks with all these really great, innovative projects that no one has ever thought of before, but what have they got? They've bought a lot of other companies' stuff (Picasa, Keyhole, Blogger, etc), which is not innovative. Most of their stuff is Windows only including Gtalk client, Google Desktop, Picasa, Blogger for Word and Google Earth (so far). GMail Notifier is only available for the Mac because a single employee decided to port it on his own. Besides that, I can't see them doing a better job with an OS than Apple. GTalk is reasonably nice looking, but I don't find the Picasa and Google Earth interfaces appealing at all. I find it highly unlikely that they would write their own OS as that's a HUGE job. Much more likely is that they come out with their own Linux distro as if there aren't already enough of those. Then they pair it with some barebones cheap PC and stick a Google logo on it, and everybody wets their pants with excitement.

I'm with you on the skepticism. The road to internet appliances is littered with bleached bones. I remember more than five years ago when Gateway teamed with AOL to produce linux-based internet appliances. I happened to be at the press conference when they announced the product and even held a mockup in my hands. They product never shipped. Who knows if it was even designed beyond the mockups.

People are now expecting miracles from Google, but they could easily break their sword on this effort, assuming it comes to pass. It will take a tremendous investment for them to get into the low margin world of computer hardware, and I'd wager that once they run the numbers they'll see it as a waste of resources and abandon the plans.

[mkrishnan]

Only if they have modified the source.

Okay, thank you very much for clarifying this. :)

[greatdevourer]

Heh, thank you! Can anyone confirm that it is in fact Linux at the core? Out of curiosity? If they already have experiencing supporting a Linux core, then I could see them releasing a killer distro (sort of in the sense that MacOS is the killer distro of FreeBSD! :D ) ... hmmm, if they made that available to users of other hardware, I could really see it helping out Linux hugely. :)

(EDIT: If it's a Linux core, doesn't Google have to have a site somewhere that releases the relevant portions of the code in order to comply with the Linux GPLs?) 1) OSX is a distro of Darwin, not FreeBSD. They were once the same thing, but since Darwin 6, it broke away too far to still be a true member of the BSD family
2) It depends what they do. If they create a new GUI with some apps, then they're done. They can quite easily keep their code safe and tell you to go find the rest at kernel.org. It's pretty much what Lindows (now Linspire) did

[hob]

1) OSX is a distro of Darwin, not FreeBSD. They were once the same thing, but since Darwin 6, it broke away too far to still be a true member of the BSD family
2) It depends what they do. If they create a new GUI with some apps, then they're done. They can quite easily keep their code safe and tell you to go find the rest at kernel.org. It's pretty much what Lindows (now Linspire) did
I just googled Linspire...

I watched their little Flash demo of Linspire Five-O, as they're calling it, and... it does everything I always wanted an OS to do... Except Mac OS X was doing it 5 years ago. Which is why I switched.

Honestly, why would you wanted an OS from a company that looks as crummy as that, when Mac OS does it all so much better.

I think it'll be interesting to see what Google comes up with, but I very much doubt it'll kill off anything...

[mkrishnan]

1) OSX is a distro of Darwin, not FreeBSD. They were once the same thing, but since Darwin 6, it broke away too far to still be a true member of the BSD family

I know. I was taking poetic license. :eek: Sorry for my liberties. :o

[redAPPLE]

They've become a verb, for goodness sakes! :)



but we got the iPod generation. ;)

[mdavey]

Google deny they are to launch a low-cost PC, analysts suspect Google will announce a computing device at CES on Friday:

http://www.macworld.co.uk/news/index.cfm?home&NewsID=13488