Robert Vamosi
For years, people have speculated about whether Google would ever release its own operating system. And now, it has -- well, kind of. Chrome is an open-source attempt by the search giant to bring Internet browsers in line with how we use the Web today -- streaming videos, chatting online and using Web-only applications.
Chrome rethinks traditional browser architecture, borrowing from Microsoft Internet Explorer, Mozilla Firefox, Apple Safari and even Opera. But it also introduces several innovative new features of its own that cross over into the OS realm.
Text: Robert Vamosi
As with Firefox 3 and Microsoft IE8 beta 2, Chrome autocompletes URLs you type based, in part, on your browser history. Google goes one step further, combining Internet search with browser history. They call it their 'Omnibox'.
When you open a new tab in Chrome, you are presented with up to nine of the most popular sites you visit. There's also a list of your recent search history and your most recent bookmarks. As with the Omnibox, recent Web sites visited are presented at the top level domain. So you would see www.cnet.co.uk, not an individual story, within the site.
One of the cool interface changes within Chrome is the idea that each tab is fully independent. Not only are the processes within each tab independent (allowing tabs within the browser to crash without crashing the entire browser), but tabs are detachable. You can drag and drop them anywhere on the desktop. Thus the terms 'tabs' and 'windows' are interchangeable within Google Chrome.
When a tab does freeze but doesn't crash, Google provides a task manager, allowing you to shut down a stalled Flash or Shockwave app without necessarily closing the tab or the browser.
Within Chrome you can view the page source, but Google goes all out. In multiple colours, the 'inspector' displays the code used on a page in great detail.
As with 'InPrivate' browsing, a feature in IE8 beta 2, Chrome's 'Incognito' browsing feature allows you to surf the Web without leaving any history behind. Uses include sharing a computer at home and shopping for a family member who might also use the same computer. This feature is also well known as 'porn mode' browsing.
As with IE8, Chrome displays the server domain in boldface, giving you an indication of sites that might be fraudulent. For example, eBay should be highlighted if you are doing an online auction through that site.
As with competing browsers, Chrome will import tabs. In our test, it imported tabs from Mozilla Firefox 3, but not from Internet Explorer.
The 'add new bookmark' feature in Chrome should look familiar -- it's borrowed from Mozilla Firefox. Unlike Firefox 3, Chrome does not include an option to tag your bookmarks.
To see the bookmarks you have, you need to look on the right-hand side of the browser. This might take some getting used to.
Chrome also includes a rudimentary bookmark manager, allowing you to create new folders and move items around, but not to search.
Google has a variety of useful Web-only applications. Before, you needed the browser up and running to get access to them. With Chrome, you can create shortcuts for these applications.
With Chrome, frequently used Web applications such as Gmail and Google Calendar can be accessed directly from the desktop as though they were installed applications.
Again borrowing from Mozilla Firefox, Chrome includes a familiar 'clear browser history' dialogue, allowing you to make quick decisions of what you want deleted and kept.
Chrome uses a strict policy to keep pop-ups and dialogues contained within each tab, in part so that the tabs can be dragged and dropped on the desktop independent of the browser. Thus, downloaded applications appear at the bottom of the tab frame and not, as is common, as a separate pop-up.
Remember, Google Chrome is still in beta, so some sites may not load properly.
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