by matt.wall
16. June 2011 23:15
The much anticipated 'ChromeBook,' a laptop running the new Google Chrome OS, has gone on sale on in the United States, hailing a new era of modern, online-based computing.
The premise of the ChromeBook is that current computer systems are still based on a system that was developed before the internet, and has adapted to use the internet. The ChromeBook is more of a new system, designed to work solely with the internet. While the system has been hailed for being faster and simpler, and removing the need for internal storage and anti-virus software, critics have claimed that the ChromeBook doesn't function terrifically well when offline.
For the computer user who spends the majority of their time on the web, this is an ideal solution, with its' almost instant boot-up time, and simple, safe web browsing. For the conventional user who uses a mix of desktop applications, both offline and online, the idea may need some more refining before it's ready.
Related Links:
Google Chrome OS video on YouTube
Article on the BBC
by matt.wall
3. June 2011 13:41
As of the 1st of August, Google will no longer be optimising its' products to work with older web browsers. People using older versions of browsers, such as Internet Explorer, Safari and Mozilla Firefox will find that when they use Gmail, Google Calendar, Docs and some other products, some features may not work.
There are a few reasons for doing this. One is to try and break the trend of people clinging to older browsers, for whatever reason, another may be so that Google's developers can begin to utilise the functions of HTML5 without worrying about affecting some users. Google has stated that they will only do compatability testing and offer support for browsers up to the "third oldest" release version. So, for instance, 'BrowserX' versions 3, 4 and 5 will be catered for, whereas 1 and 2 won't.
This is a breath of fresh air for some web designers, because as Google is now causing a shake-up in browser standards, web developers can start to limit their compatability testing to ensure their websites only work with up-to-date browsers.
