Google Announces Google Chrome Operating System

[DoFoT9]

Oh, god. Won't you read. Read my posts again. "Fitt's Law". The fact that the screen's edge limits where the cursor can go, that means that the corners are the places where it can arrives fastest, then followed by the edges of screens. Not being at the edge of the screen means the mouse might overshoot and have to recorrect the position to arrive at the button/menu.

yup ive gotta side with you on this one, i jut finished a "user interface" subject and Fitt's Law is apparent in OSX, has been since the Finder versions.

in windows its pathetic, some windows dont let you drag to the corners and click, you have to reposition the mouse inside a little bit.

 

[Wikinerd]

Lets say you purchased 30-inch Apple Cinema HD Display and set the resolution to the highest. Is it not true that the higher resolution you go and the bigger screen you get the desktop menu system falls short? I thought this was beautifully rectified with NeXT floating menu system. But last they abandoned that model. At one time MacOS or and add-on allowed for tear-off menus basically pop-up menus to resolve the ever growing displays. But that was abandon as well.

I'd turn up the tracking speed— you've got problems if you cannot get from one corner to the other quickly— unless you work with only a small area of the screen you should turn up the tracking speed; it'll get tiresome if you don't; and if you only work on a small area then you should've bought a small screen... Anyhow Display size will plateau sometime in the near future, as sizes that are not needed will not survive. 20-30 inch is probably the upper limit in which we will be used to.

 

[str1f3]

Sorry if this has been pointed out yet, but I didn't feel like reading the whole thread...

Apple runs its own ecosystem and, AFAIK, has never been slammed by antitrust laws.

Good point but Apple doesn't own 65% (and growing) of the search market which is the way most people get around the web.

 

[chaosconan]

I'd turn up the tracking speed— you've got problems if you cannot get from one corner to the other quickly— unless you work with only a small area of the screen you should turn up the tracking speed; it'll get tiresome if you don't; and if you only work on a small area then you should've bought a small screen... And Display size will plateau sometime in the near future, as sizes that are not needed will not survive. 20-30 inch is probably the upper limit in which we will be used to.

I personally prefer desktop menu on notebooks and desktops over windows menu. But on huge workstations with a large displays I prefer some sort of floating menu either on the window or some sort of dedicated floating window that i can move around. So, I'm in between and it depends on the hardware I'm using.

 

[APPLENEWBIE]

Why would Dell or HP be excited about this? Because it's a cheap alternative?

Well, maybe because they could sell a bu**load of new boxes to people switching to Chrome?

 

[Shake 'n' Bake]

Good point but Apple doesn't own 65% (and growing) of the search market which is the way most people get around the web.

So? Apple still has OS X that only runs on a Mac, the iPhone can only get apps from the app store. I just had a few more, but I forgot them .

 

[Maserati7200]

I would just to point this out: Apple is a Hardware company, not a software company. However, Apple's software is the selling point of their hardware. I'm sure Apple would sell a lot less hardware if Mac OSX was available on every machine.

Quite frankly, I don't see this hurting Apple at all.

 

[str1f3]

So? Apple still has OS X that only runs on a Mac, the iPhone can only get apps from the app store. I just had a few more, but I forgot them .

To sum it up: Yes. Apple doesn't own 89% of the OS market like MS does. As for the app store, it's their rules. It has nothing to do with a monopoly. Also the iPod and iTunes is no longer considered a monopoly threat because the iTunes music you buy is no longer tied to to the iPod due to DRM (that the record companies wanted).

 

[APPLENEWBIE]

let's start a competition on what the working title of this project could be:

-NoPOS (No Privacy OS)

-GiMAYD OS (Give Me All Your Data OS)

-Gestapo OS

Hey, this is fun!

KGbeta?

 

[APPLENEWBIE]

Interesting article from the Washington Post on how the new Google OS may not affect Apple much:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/07/08/AR2009070803070.html

The enemy of my enemy is my friend. (Ancient Arab/Chinese proverb)

 

[jlewis2k1]

so would this be the first cloud computing os?

 

[thulsmans]

A new operating system based on a browser? Isn't that a little like building a new car based on a bucket seat?

oddly enough what is the part of the car you touch and spend the most time in?

 

[MShock]

Y'know, I think the OS as a web browser is not the description Google is going for. I think it's more like Google Wave taking out the server as a hub for email. Chrome OS will remove the server from the internet if you will, meaning an HD may be required, but the CLOUD will be used a lot more and the computer will behave more like a server than an individual machine. I expect a look like Moblin, with GUI focused on function and all the apps built on Chrome's web engine to work on the web instantly like Wave when one types or sends photos, but with the needed components to prevent some mishap. That attacks the average joe user and small businesses that don't need perfect security or customized software away from MS. That probably won't affect Apple, who generally targets a different audience that needs more. Apple will also adapt their OS (Mac OS X 7) in their own way using ZFS to be similar, or at least customizable to be similar in a few years. The way files are handled by the file manager and the entire filesystem will need to be new, I bet ZFS like. With Google's backing open source, we may finally kill MS domination! Social networking and certain types of communication will be a lot easier to do, but at the cost of making powerpoint presentations harder and word processing look crappy. But who really uses that stuff anyway? (I'm being sarcastic with the rhetorical question)

 

[NAG]

So? Apple still has OS X that only runs on a Mac, the iPhone can only get apps from the app store. I just had a few more, but I forgot them .

Thats like saying the Xbox is a monopoly because you can only download games from the Xbox Live Marketplace. The whole Apple owns 100% of the mac marketshare is lazy reasoning so I'm not surprised you forgot the rest of your reasons.

so would this be the first cloud computing os?

No, Sun tried this back in the 90s. Didn't work out so well for them.

 

[at&t]

Yea, yea, bla bla.

Another pathetic OS release that will take its righteous place in the Wall of Shame.

 

[Wikinerd]

Yea, yea, bla bla.

Another pathetic OS release that will take its righteous place in the Wall of Shame.

You mean along with AT&T Unix? (jk. I hold the first unix with high regard, even though it wasn't anything like it is now..)

yup ive gotta side with you on this one, i jut finished a "user interface" subject and Fitt's Law is apparent in OSX, has been since the Finder versions.

in windows its pathetic, some windows dont let you drag to the corners and click, you have to reposition the mouse inside a little bit.

Should I mention the lack of a good GUI guideline that all developers follow?
(slightly improved with Vista but still really bad...)

So? Apple still has OS X that only runs on a Mac, the iPhone can only get apps from the app store. I just had a few more, but I forgot them .

Hey. I just said it a few posts ago. Monopolistic competition. Substitutes with product differentiation. Apple isn't stopping people from buying other phones...

(But yeah, the iPhone is just like Windows—going to reach it's critical mass soon...)

 

[MattInOz]

Y'know, I think the OS as a web browser is not the description Google is going for. I think it's more like Google Wave taking out the server as a hub for email. Chrome OS will remove the server from the internet if you will, meaning an HD may be required, but the CLOUD will be used a lot more and the computer will behave more like a server than an individual machine. I expect a look like Moblin, with GUI focused on function and all the apps built on Chrome's web engine to work on the web instantly like Wave when one types or sends photos, but with the needed components to prevent some mishap. That attacks the average joe user and small businesses that don't need perfect security or customized software away from MS. That probably won't affect Apple, who generally targets a different audience that needs more. Apple will also adapt their OS (Mac OS X 7) in their own way using ZFS to be similar, or at least customizable to be similar in a few years. The way files are handled by the file manager and the entire filesystem will need to be new, I bet ZFS like. With Google's backing open source, we may finally kill MS domination! Social networking and certain types of communication will be a lot easier to do, but at the cost of making powerpoint presentations harder and word processing look crappy. But who really uses that stuff anyway? (I'm being sarcastic with the rhetorical question)

I think Wave will be a big part this device. It could well have a wave server built in as the finder system, Handling all the network connections, dealing with the hardware. Loading webpages treated as "wavelets". Wave is meant to peer to peer and auto syncing with other wave server.

Which would be cool in a number of ways.
If the server is true open source you could set up your own free of googles eyes unless you explicably allow.

Could establish adhoc networks when people are close by with no need for internet connection or limited internet connection, good for building sites type situation.

 

[SPUY767]

No arguments with that-- but when it comes to typing symbols, hell breaks loose when you have to navigate an insert a symbol that's not within the usual 26 alphabets, 10 numbers and 10 symbols...

Are you saying that access to those symbols is difficult on a Mac? Are you kidding? You'd rather type and have to remember the rather cryptic Alt-0201 to get "É" than simply typing Option-E and having the OS place the accent over any compatible letter, upper or lowercase that you type afterward?

 

[DoFoT9]

Should I mention the lack of a good GUI guideline that all developers follow?
(slightly improved with Vista but still really bad...)

yea mention it, it puts the icing on the cake

(But yeah, the iPhone is just like Windows—going to reach it's critical mass soon...)

well i sure hope that it can maintain it once it gets to that status, and that it leaves room for Nokia because i want my E63 soon!

 

[OrganMusic]

Remember those WebTV things from about 10 years ago?

 

[applecultvictim]

Unless Google add windows program compatibility out of the box, their system will fail. If it's based on Linux, grats to them, but for ease of use for customers, I doubt that it will be wanted - their used to the Windows ways of things.

yeah google are waiting for your three lines thought in three minutes to tell them what to do after years and mountains of work an manpower to make this os....

anyway,


these are the best news in a long time...

man have I wanted a third commercial player a long, long time.

The time is ripe for ms to get to the 20% marketshare they deserve.

 

[applecultvictim]

I would just to point this out: Apple is a Hardware company, not a software company. However, Apple's software is the selling point of their hardware. I'm sure Apple would sell a lot less hardware if Mac OSX was available on every machine.

Quite frankly, I don't see this hurting Apple at all.

Apple is a software company, according to Steve Jobs himself.

 

[Anuba]

Yep. You have to memorize the numbers...

On macs you press option/shift/option-and-shift + an alphabet/symbol/etc

That way you can have a better way for organizing them:

such as option-r for ®, option-f for ƒ, option-p for π (pi), option-o for ø, opt-t for †, opt-y for ¥, opt-c for c

then most of the shift-option keys are alternate punctuation keys....

Oh, and for accents on letters it's opt+accent - letter, for example the acute accent (accent "aigu" in french) with e it's opt+e, then release, then type e again. for the acute accent with a it's opt+e - a...

PS. if you're on a mac, you can choose in the international>languages menu to open the keyboard viewer...

PPS.  is option-shift-k

Speaking of keyboard shortcuts and systemwide commands... OS X doesn't have a standard for input devices when it comes to back/forward (browsers, Finder etc), right? I mean, if I plug a mouse with back/forward buttons into a Windows PC those buttons will just work in IE, Explorer etc without installing a driver.

I've been trying to get back/forward on my Logitech mouse to work in Safari, but apparently the only way to do it is to map the mouse buttons to key commands. The problem is, I'm using US English as the main UI language, but I have a Scandinavian keyboard. The key commands for back/forward in Safari are Command+bracket (L/R), but on a Scandinavian keyboard there are no dedicated bracket keys, you get those characters by pressing Alt+8 and Alt+9. However, Safari doesn't register Command+Alt+8 and Command+Alt+9 at all. When I use Swedish as the UI language, Safari has different key commands for back/forward (Alt+Command+Ö and Alt+Command+Ä), and I can map those to the mouse but they stop working when I switch back to English.

Apple is a software company, according to Steve Jobs himself.

Yes, Jobs said so in a WSJ interview in 2007.

""The big secret about Apple, of course, is that Apple views itself as a software company ........ Apple's fundamentally a software company, and there's not a lot of us left and Microsoft's one of them."

I think it works like this: If someone criticizes Apple's software, the response is that Apple is primarily a hardware company. If someone criticizes Apple's hardware, the response is that Apple is primarily a software company. If someone criticizes both, the response is...

?SYNTAX ERROR
READY.

 

[applecultvictim]

Speaking of keyboard shortcuts and systemwide commands... OS X doesn't have a standard for input devices when it comes to back/forward (browsers, Finder etc), right? I mean, if I plug a mouse with back/forward buttons into a Windows PC those buttons will just work in IE, Explorer etc without installing a driver.

I've been trying to get back/forward on my Logitech mouse to work in Safari, but apparently the only way to do it is to map the mouse buttons to key commands. The problem is, I'm using US English as the main UI language, but I have a Scandinavian keyboard. The key commands for back/forward in Safari are Command+bracket (L/R), but on a Scandinavian keyboard there are no dedicated bracket keys, you get those characters by pressing Alt+8 and Alt+9. However, Safari doesn't register Command+Alt+8 and Command+Alt+9 at all. When I use Swedish as the UI language, Safari has different key commands for back/forward (Alt+Command+Ö and Alt+Command+Ä), and I can map those to the mouse but they stop working when I switch back to English.


Yes, Jobs said so in a WSJ interview in 2007.

""The big secret about Apple, of course, is that Apple views itself as a software company ........ Apple's fundamentally a software company, and there's not a lot of us left and Microsoft's one of them."

I think it works like this: If someone criticizes Apple's software, the response is that Apple is primarily a hardware company. If someone criticizes Apple's hardware, the response is that Apple is primarily a software company. If someone criticizes both, the response is...

?SYNTAX ERROR
READY.

I was looking for that Steve Quote, thanks!

Yeah, they play it both ways, you are right, which is a smart move, or a a deceitful one depends on the way you see it...

btw, Sweden must be lovely this time of year...ahhhh...

 

[NAG]

As far as mice you usually have to buy another program to fully program the buttons. The software that comes with the mice is usually pretty bad. Make sure you have downloaded the most up to date drivers and configuration program from the website before you go buy something though. Logitech has been improving slightly (they used to install a haxxie on your machine without telling you...nice logitech).