Google Chrome Operating System

[Jordy]

If you ever go out of wireless range your laptop would be useless. Having locally running apps and local hdd storage definalty has advantages. Wouldnt switch to a browser only o/s until wireless internet becomes universal and hopefully free :p

It'll no doubt use Google Gears which means that you can access most the google services without needing an internet connection as it downloads them all. Google Chrome integrates this feature and there's add-ons to Firefox for this.

[Mentor]

It'll no doubt use Google Gears which means that you can access most the google services without needing an internet connection as it downloads them all. Google Chrome integrates this feature and there's add-ons to Firefox for this.

I dunno, the workoffline stuffs been pretty hit and miss for me. Gears is good but i'd still rather stick to a standard program where possible. Plus gears only limits your pcs ability to a basic office suite so your still pretty limited by the lack of a web connection.

[Tomm]

Also your forgetting that a webservice has outages so you would have no or limited pc functionality during this outage.

[Jordy]

Also your forgetting that a webservice has outages so you would have no or limited pc functionality during this outage.

True but Google's track record is incredibly good, they've had 2 very small outages this year (close together) which are the only one's in Gmail's 5 years so it seems pretty good. They were only for about 1 hour bare in mind, you would still have some processing power without Google anyway, just nothing considerable.

[Mentor]

True but Google's track record is incredibly good, they've had 2 very small outages this year (close together) which are the only one's in Gmail's 5 years so it seems pretty good. They were only for about 1 hour bare in mind, you would still have some processing power without Google anyway, just nothing considerable.

Gotta keep in mind ISP's have outages too, as do all the servers, routers, repeters, hubs and whatever else is involved in the middle.

[The Professor]

Yeah thats true. For this to work we need to get a technology into widespread use pretty quickly (wimax, LTE, HSDPA etc) and make it affordable. That coupled with a web optiised OS and a netbook will be killer. Hopping between wifi hotspots or not having internet at all shouldn't be an option in a day and age where the technology is there.