Google Chrome OS - 7 seconds to internet - doesn't look for floppy - promotes the Cloud

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Google Chrome OS - 7 seconds to internet - doesn't look for floppy - promotes the Cloud

I've been watching the presentation of Google Chrome OS (Operating System) recently and I must admit I have mixed feelings. On one hand, the idea of bringing the user to the Internet as quick as possible is great... on the other, my macbook air wakes up from sleep in 2-3 seconds (counting the time I'm writing my password) and I'm already online! So what's the big deal? Well, ...

The Google Chrome OS doesn't look for floppy

This is good. The idea that current computers are still looking for floppies during system boot made me laugh. But I can believe it might still be possible... on PCs :-)

Floppies belong in the museums, this is where the PCs should be looking for them :-)

Google Chrome boots in 7 seconds

Great... but who boots a computer anyway? I'm not booting my Macbook Air at all.. once every two-three weeks or so. And it boots in 30 seconds. Big deal.

But I'm a geek, I've watched my friends using laptops (and most of the people are buying laptops now anyway) and they still shut them down and boot them up. So this might be a good selling point. Actually I'm happy Google revealed the "sick path" of system boot and decided to make it easy... maybe finally PC makers will get the idea.

Chrome is the browser and the system

This is actually a valid point... For me my browser is also kind of my central app for computing... and I'm using Opera as my main browser, Safari as additional one... and Firefox for web development. I have Camino and Chrome installed because I'm a web app developer... and I've got IE 6,7,8 running on my Windows machine.

OK, back to the point - my point was is that while the browser is my central app.... it's not my only app. I actually like Gmail... but I also like the mail.app from Apple (this one I'm using now to write this blog post). And there are other cool native apps on the mac which I really like....

But being a web app developer I know where it's going... it's going into the cloud... and there's no turning back.

Google Chrome OS is a good thing - it will make the cloud more like-able.

Nozbe is a cloud based service. The app I'm working on right now is a cloud-based service too. Posterous (which is hosting this blog) is a cloud-based service.

People are still afraid of the cloud... but thanks to the apps like Twitter, Facebook... and now Google Chrome OS... I'm sure many skeptical folks will embrace the cloud too.

Conclusion? The Cloud is king... or queen?

While I like that Google Chrome OS boots so fast, doesn't look for floppy and all... the idea that it makes cloud services like their own and the ones like my Nozbe more approachable also by the skeptics. Cloud is here and it's not going anywhere. Cloud is standard. Cloud is your world. Embrace it.

What do you think?

I'm Michael Sliwinski and I'm an entrepreneur who's also the...
.. Founder of Nozbe.com - a time and project management web application
.. Editor of Productive! Magazine - a global PDF publication on productivity
.. and a blogger as well as a producer of a weekly 2-minute Productive! show.

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Posted 3 months ago (Monday, 23 Nov 09)

2 comments

Nov 23, 2009

@Kristine said...

I have to disagree that it is a good thing.

While the cloud is good for some things such as Twitter an OS built on cloud only apps means things like Tweetdeck, the most popular app for Twitter, would be unusable. Then where does the cloud go. When you no longer own your apps, when you are merely renting them from EVERY APP you use, what happens when software companies start charging for those apps? Can you afford to pay 5-10$ a month for every app you use? (I am being conservative here) Most cannot and relying on the benevolence of software makers in a capitalistic economy is a fool's bet.

The cloud as a sole device OS is NOT a good thing. It is a very bad thing that takes away your freedom to use your computer as you want to use it. It is like the Bush administration. Give us your freedom for a modicum of increased security. So for me this does not make the cloud more likable AND for the first time since they came on board, it tarnishes Google's image for me as well.

While the cloud has its benefits for certain things, like all things, when done in the extreme it takes away from any benefit it had. All computers becoming a slave to the web (ie corporate America) people should be afraid of that IMO, not touting it.

(Saying that respectfully btw)

Thanks for listening and thanks for your well thought out post !
Kristine

Nov 23, 2009

Michael Sliwinski said...

Wow, Kristine, thanks for your great comment!

The thing is, that I agree with you to a certain very high degree :-)

I think the good thing is the fact that Google Chrome OS will make cloud services more likable, will get people to trust them more.

However I don't want (as a web app founder) be associated with the Bush administration in any way! :-)

I'm a Mac user (only a year now, previously PC user for many many years) and I love my native apps, they work and look great on my Mac. Don't want to see them gone.

Just look at the iPhone... it wasn't all that cool with web-apps only. Native apps had to go there... and I like my Nozbe web app + native iPhone app combo...

I'm not looking at Google Chrome as a one-stop shop... the point I was trying to make is that the Chrome OS will bring more awareness:

- to make computers faster-bootable

- to make cloud services more-likable

- to foster even more innovation on the browser front

... but I'm still not really sure I'd trust with all my data to Google... it's kinda spooky that they know so much about us, isn't it?

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Google Chrome OS - 7 seconds to internet - doesn't look for floppy - promotes the Cloud

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