This week saw the release of Google Chrome, Google’s new feature-rich browser based on WebKit and Firefox components. It has been met with a mixed response and has also raised some interesting thoughts/issues/discussions…
See for example the outcry about the extreme licensing “liberties” (http://www.readwriteweb.com/archives/does_google_have_rights_to_all.php) that Google is taking in their terms and conditions for Chrome (incidentally the same terms and conditions for Google Docs)
Basically, whatever content you put through the browser, they own it.
Also see they “abandon Firefox” article (http://gigaom.com/2008/09/02/why-did-google-abandon-firefox/) The guys who are trying chrome will be predominantly Firefox users (IE users are slower to change/experiment). So the “we are taking on Microsoft” sentiment does not really roll in this case. Interesting to see how Firefox responds.
I am not that excited about it for web:
- It uses the same WebKit based renderer as Safari (and an inferior version at that http://mac.blogdig.net/archives/articles/September2008/02/Google_Chrome_vs_Safari_31_Rendering_Comparison.html)
- It doesn’t have some vital features that other browsers have (e.g. ad blockers) in order to serve Google’s other business objective (e.g. “making money through ads”)
- It doesn’t (yet) work with a number of Google’s own products: http://www.techcrunch.com/2008/09/03/google-chrome-not-so-lively/
- They do admit that they are “far from done”: http://googleblog.blogspot.com/2008/09/fresh-take-on-browser.html
Firefox has the head start on the web browser market when competing with Microsoft and Chrome will have to do much to beat them now.
An interesting aside, people are also raising concerns that these browsers with richer capabilities may cause a “split in internets”: http://www.informationweek.com/blog/main/archives/2008/09/googles_chromey.html
The most exciting prospect around Chrome seems to be the mobile version. Chrome is mostly likely to become the de facto standard on Android and thus mobile browser: http://blogs.zdnet.com/mobile-gadgeteer/?p=1410
Of course, it is a Google product and so I am sure it will ultimately be successful
Let’s see how it pans out…
I still think in terms of technology it’s a culmination of a number of great ideas like better JavaScript execution, memory management, etc. which are a huge hinderance to making web apps work right. In web development we’re mostly limited by what we can support, instead of what we can design.
Additionally, WebKit has been far ahead of Firefox in terms of rendering performance and standards implementation, although obviously the market share doesn’t reflect this. As far as I can see, only a handful of minor features have been turned off vs. the mainstream build, and they’re mostly non-standard experimental additions (and marked as such by WebKit).
Basically, I think anything to give web standards a kick start is a positive, and Google might just have the ‘clout’ that Mozilla & Co. haven’t quite been able to summon. I’ve actually seen Google Toolbar (for example) installed on many average joe PCs that Firefox is not.
Currently the web is being held back so much that I think a ’split in internets’ may actually be a blessing in disguise.
Or Yet Another Browser To Support
Time will tell
IE is going to offer users a chance to set IE to “private”, which will block Google’s Adwords advertising then Google Chrome born. Google Chrome is clean and fast. But I love Firefox.
Interesting….it looks like Firefox is also upgrading their JavaScript engine:
http://arstechnica.com/journals/linux.ars/2008/09/03/new-firefox-javascript-engine-is-faster-than-chromes-v8
Update - looks like Google may be retracting: http://valleywag.com/5045054/google-backtracks-on-chromes-copyright-clause