Browser long missing from Mac platform

Google will finally release a public Mac beta of Chrome in early December, says a product manager for the browser, Neil Baum. A Google spokesman has meanwhile declined to offer a specific date, but does note that Baum's timeframe is consistent with promises to release beta software before the end of the year. Developer channel versions have been available since June, but are not recommended for most people due to stability problems.

A Windows edition of Chrome has been publicly available since September 2008, but quickly raised questions about the creation of a Mac version, given the existence of Mac ports of Firefox and other browsers. It was initially expected in the first half of 2009, but has progressed slowly next to its Windows counterpart. An official, post-beta client of the Windows software has been available for two months. The software is also steadily gaining in marketshare, now expected to reach a target of 5 percent in March, ahead of an original Google prediction which called for the figure in September 2010. A 10 percent goal has been set for 2011.

by MacNN Staff