Polishing the Chrome

On Tuesday, Sept 2, 2008 Google introduced into the world it’s secretly developed Web browser called Chrome. Its currently only available for Windows with Linux and Mac versions coming in the next few months (hearing November).

Google’s reasoning behind this release was that they “realized that the Web had evolved from mainly simple text pages to rich, interactive applications and that (they) needed to completely rethink the browser”. One really can’t argue with that vision nor how Google has implemented it so far. I say so far because they have labeled Chrome as beta indicating additional changes will be forthcoming but it is a promising modern, ultra-streamlined, nonbloated (5.8MB?!), fast, secure alternative browser that you should try out and keep your eye on.

Why take a look?

It is fast. It is very fast. There is no status bar, no menu bar and only a single toolbar for bookmarks. There is an anonymous browsing mode called incognito. There is only a simple, single ‘white box’ to type in whether for searches or web addresses. Chrome does not currently ask or want to become your default browser but does ask to import your bookmarks, history and stored passwords from your existing browsers. There are also some time saving features such as mini-web pages of your most frequently visited sites and most recent sites and searches. It is also open-source meaning the code is available for inspection or improvement.

Downsides:

No toolbar support, no central server bookmark storage (real missed opportunity) or organizing, no email page to, no full-screen mode (though the minimilist design almost negates this need), no RSS reader. In short be warned, though much of this is by design and a result of the beta status, the list of whats not there can be quite long. From a corporate adoption standpoint it will require application testing, possible rewriting of applications, and additional feature/functionality in order to be centrally managed (such as with Active Directory Group Policy Objects) in enterprise environments.

Bottom Line

After many hours spent browsing to numerous sites it didnt crash once. Various web metrics providers indicate that Chrome grabbed 1% of the browser market in its first 24hrs in public- Google’s typical fresh approach may possibly dominate its larger competitors. Expect the next iteration of the browser to be more fully featured. Try this beta today and get set for the future.