Google debuts its own browser
Cory Bergman September 2nd, 2008
Google is preparing to launch an open-source internet browser, dubbed Chrome, to compete with IE, Firefox, Safari and even Microsoft’s operating system. “Like the classic Google homepage, Google Chrome is clean and fast,” explains the official post announcing Chrome, which is slated to launch sometime today. “We were able to build the foundation of a browser that runs today’s complex web applications much better.” Google says it realized it needed to completely rethink the browser and build it from scratch. “What we really needed was not just a browser, but also a modern platform for web pages and applications, and that’s what we set out to build.”
Says one analyst: “This is the potential threat that Microsoft has been worried about since the 1990s,” he said. “You’ve got web apps running inside isolated processes. It really sounds a lot like Google trying to take the web application model and make it more viable as a replacement for the desktop PC application model. This is Google trying to really push applications to the web and make that the way people do computing.”
ZDNet: Will Google’s Chrome be a death blow to Firefox?
Update: Chrome now available for download here. Have you tried it? Let us know what you think in comments below…
21 Comments Add your own
1. Amanda E. | September 2nd, 2008 at 12:48 pm
For Joe user, maybe if Google starts to advertise it on the front page or forces a download along with the toolbar.
For geeks, its doubtful that Chrome will be a “death blow to Firefox”.
Firefox’s primary appeal is the massive 3rd party extension library, which Chrome doesn’t have.
2. Don Day | September 2nd, 2008 at 1:29 pm
Gave it a quick tour. Everything worked as expected, and all the “big” sites seemed to display properly. I like the pop-up box handling (the box shows up as a tab in the lower right, one click brings it up full).
The browser didn’t work nicely with my company’s proprietary CMS - which is a Java applet… it wouldn’t spawn the log-in box.
The “Most visited” start page is a nice feature.
Being able to do an internal task manager and shut down Flash is a nice plus.
As of this writing, the “help” option takes you to a 404 page (http://www.google.com/support/chrome/?hl=en-US)
The “incognito” function is very cool - it doesn’t record web history or leave behind cookies.
The “Inspect element” feature is nice - very similar to Firebug, but it seems to be even more feature-rich.
Bottom line: it loads fast, displays well and is a nice alternative. Better than Firefox? Jury’s still out.
3. Charles | September 2nd, 2008 at 1:38 pm
Considering Firefox is still slowly eating away at Internet Explorer, with IE still in the lead (click my name), I would guess that Chrome would either eat away at IE, or just tap into a whole new market.
Downloading did not take too long. Just a few minutes of my time.
The one thing that will keep me from using Chrome is the lack of a “home” button. I know that their predictive browser search is supposed to help alleviate that (it’s cute, but not always effective), but I value my home button. A lot. Also missing is the “mini-search box” (real name?) where I can search Wikipedia, eBay, or whatever else, right from where I am. I have gotten very used to having that in Firefox, and Chrome does not have that.
It works fast enough. Can’t say that I’m yet a true tech geek to notice much of a difference at all.
Overall, this browser will probably sit next to Safari and Internet Explorer in my programs menu. It’s nice enough, but, I see no reason to switch.
4. tONY cOURTWRIGHT | September 2nd, 2008 at 1:55 pm
Easy & quick download and import of bookmarks. Added my igoogle homepage (with home button) in options. Loaded my fav’s and admin sites without errors. Miss my FireFox 3rd party theme and apps. Overall I like Chrome - My love / hate relationship with Google continues.
5. Kent Chapline | September 2nd, 2008 at 3:27 pm
It’s fast. Fast, fast, fast on my new-ish XP box. Nearly everything works as it should, although, like Don, I’m having a little trouble with my company-built CMS. But it’s not enough to deter me. It didn’t take long to find a workaround.
Still, there are some goofy errors. When I tried a Google map earlier, it gave me the “no imagery at this level of zoom” error. But I was looking at Dallas, and I know they have that imagery. So I backed out to the whole continent. Same error. Whoops.
Also, Charles, it does have a home button. You just have to activate it: (wrench button)–>Basics–>”show home button on the toolbar” checkbox.
The import from FF works well, and I really like the ability to drag a tab out of the window and launch a separate instance of the browser.
The ability to drag and resize form fields is also cool. That eliminates one FF addon right there.
And I agree with Don–the internal task manager is excellent.
6. Safran | September 2nd, 2008 at 3:42 pm
NMC (Not Mac Compatible.) Argh.
(Yeah, they say it’s coming. But why not launch with all platforms at once?)
7. Rick Ellis | September 2nd, 2008 at 3:53 pm
Chrome is an overall nice effort. But like a lot of Google products, I do have some problems with their privacy policy.
Google states in the Chrome privacy policy that it will log the IP addresses of people who download the browser. It also says that all URLs or other queries typed into Chrome’s address bar will be sent to Google, which will use that information to make suggestions to users.
The policy doesn’t state whether the data is retained, or for how long. Which is a crucial omission, given how easy it is to match an IP address and someone’s identity.
8. Tony Courtwright | September 2nd, 2008 at 3:57 pm
Spoke too soon - WebTrends and Central Desktop choked on Chrome.
9. Tony Courtwright | September 2nd, 2008 at 3:58 pm
Spoke too soon - WebTrends and CentralDesktop choked on Chrome.
10. Charles | September 2nd, 2008 at 4:32 pm
Kent,
I have to ADD basic features? That’s stupid.
11. tdc | September 2nd, 2008 at 5:33 pm
safran,
loved your “hockey mom” twitter so much i passed a swig of coffee through my nasal passages.
12. Anonymous | September 2nd, 2008 at 6:44 pm
I’m using it now. It is fast, but that’s about all I can report so far. It could use some plugins. I suspect, though, that before it takes on IE it will take on FF. The same sort of people who are into FF (and Opera and Safari) will be downloading Chrome.
13. Anonymous | September 2nd, 2008 at 6:47 pm
One feature I like is that the status bar only appears when needed (loading a page, hovering over a link) and only takes up as much space as necessary.
I’m not into the orange highlight of active areas — Safari’s blue is better. And there’s a lot of light gray text on white and light blue backgrounds that is more difficult to read than necessary.
14. tim bogus | September 2nd, 2008 at 6:54 pm
@ Safran - I concur. I’d love to be a part of a Google launch and have release something - anything for all platforms. I guess they don’t want to seriously court the mac audience.
I did try it at work - slick - but I don’t know if I want Google to server up ads along side by browsing history - which according to Webware.com they reserve the right to do so…
15. Kent Chapline | September 2nd, 2008 at 8:19 pm
Charles,
I didn’t say it wasn’t stupid. I just said it’s in there. But really, it only takes about three seconds to activate it. I can’t speak for everyone, but that’s not a deal-breaker for me.
16. Amanda E. | September 3rd, 2008 at 2:21 am
Sure hope you don’t use this new Google service with your respective CMS’s
Read section 11 in the EULA
17. Amanda E. | September 3rd, 2008 at 2:30 am
Click my name for a lawyer’s opinion on the Chrome EULA
18. Z | September 3rd, 2008 at 9:10 am
Not to worry. My CMS works on nothing but IE. Grrrr.
19. cjn | September 3rd, 2008 at 1:48 pm
@Amanda E. - That’s exactly why I removed Chrome about 10 minutes into my first browsing session. While it is slick and quick, it’s not usable for any media professional creating original content. Like many, I love and use most of the services that Google offers. But this is just too ‘Ministry of Information’ for me.
20. cjn | September 3rd, 2008 at 2:04 pm
UPDATE: Google just announced it’s revising Chrome’s EULA.
“My bad,” said Google.
Click on my name to read more.
21. Anonymous | September 8th, 2008 at 7:59 pm
My home button is set to about:blank…for a good reason.
It’s the 2008 version of “BREAK”.
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