Google provided its first public details of Chrome OS at a special event today. Electronista supplied coverage of the just-ended even; all updates are listed in reverse chronological order. Among the news unveiled are the first public view of the OS, that there will be no beta today and that the platform is being open-sourced early as Chromium OS a year ahead of its planned late 2010 release.
Google's rumored Chrome OS release should primarily center on its first public demo of the platform, a notice tonight. An event is said due on Thursday that should include a "complete overview" of the web-centric OS, including its technical underpinnings as well as demos. It's now thought by TechCrunch that a code release is possible but that a more formal release isn't coming until 2010.
Google's Chrome OS could be available to try in as little as a week's time if a rumor proves true. A promised early version is now said by TechCrunch to be arriving sometime next week. Few details are available, though it's presumed that a lack of broad driver support will limit it to certain computers or environments.
A rumor today hints that Google may be on the verge of launching its own music service. More than one source claims to TechCrunch that a service dubbed Google Audio is "imminent" and that it has involved securing rights from music labels over the course of the past few weeks. At least a US release is supposedly confirmed.
Intending to take control of its phone experience, Google may be readying its own Android phone and a computer to go with it, multiple sources said on Tuesday. Analyst Ashok Kumar of Northeast Securities claims in a research note that it's expected Google will launch a self-branded phone before the end of the year and could follow that up with a netbook in early 2010. Both would use Android 2.0, but the smartphone would use a regular Qualcomm cellular chipset while the netbook would use Qualcomm's high-speed Snapdragon processor.
Apple has stealthily bought an online map firm in what could represent an aid to the iPhone but a split with Google, a search has discovered. A startup company, Placebase, was bought by Apple in July but provided so little attention about the takeover that it wasn't until a check on former CEO Jaron Waldman's LinkedIn profile confirmed the move. Waldman is now part of a "Geo Team" at Apple performing in an unspecified role.
An NVIDIA executive on Thursday confirmed the company is working with Google to introduce a netbook containing Chrome OS and NVIDIA's Tegra mobile device platform. This is in addition to systems based on Windows Mobile, Windows CE and Google Android, all of which have been appearing. Quoted in a Wednesday JkOnTheRun report, NVIDIA GM of Mobile Business Mike Rayfield said his company is working closely with Google in developing such a product.
The resignation of Eric Schmidt from Apple's board of directors will not put to rest a Federal Trade Commission investigation, says the group's Bureau of Competition director, Richard Feinstein. Apple announced Schmidt's departure early Monday morning, citing the existence of Chrome OS as a potential conflict of interest. It is illegal for two US companies to share directors when they are also nominally competing in the same field.
Apple today revealed that Google chief Eric Schmidt has resigned from Apple's Board of Directors. The executive had held a position for three years but is leaving due to a conflict of interest triggered by the unveiling of Chrome OS, which now puts Google in direct competition with Mac OS X. Apple CEO Steve Jobs characterized the departure as unwanted but necessary given how often it would force Schmidt to leave Apple meetings discussing strategy.
Microsoft chief Steve Ballmer today told those gathered at his company's financial analyst meeting that he fully anticipates stiffer competition, particularly from incumbent rivals like Apple, Linux and evetually Chrome OS. He contended that it was only natural for an OS as dominant as Windows to face a threat and maintained that Microsoft "deserves competition" to remain healthy. In spite of particular inroads by Apple, Microsoft's devotion to improving its OS for Windows 7 would keep it afloat.
Google may be considering bringing a version of its upcoming, web-based Chrome OS or another variant of a web-based platform to cellphones, if a speech by the company's VP of engineering, Vic Gundotra, is any indication. Gundotra, speaking at the Mobilebeat 2009 Conference on July 16th, said web applications will be closely linked to successful cellphone operating systems.
In a rare move, Argus Research analyst Jackson Turner today reversed his recommendations and urged investors to sell Microsoft stock. He cautions that the market has "shrugged off" real threats to its operating system business and that neither investors nor Microsoft have fully realized that the iPhone, as well as Google platforms like Android and Chrome OS, are shrinking Microsoft's influence. Some effects may not be felt until later in 2010, when Chrome OS is released, but Microsoft now faces a slow "ebbing tide" over the next few years as it loses share.
Dell via its blog on Wednesday announced it will evaluate the cloud-based Chrome OS for use in its products, possibly tying it in with the Android OS, also from Google. At the same time, the company said it is also likely to integrate the Linux-based Moblin operating system into its ultra portable computing devices, or netbooks. Either OS has its advantages, Dell claims, with the former not only offering what Dell calls an experience-targeted platform, but is also cost effective compared to the traditional Windows operating systems.
Microsoft chief Steve Ballmer at the Windows Partners Conference today downplayed a possible threat to Windows from Google's Chrome OS. The executive admitted that the web app-focused platform was "highly interesting" to him but questioned its true role and said it could invoke unnecessary confusion given possible overlap with Android, which in a few cases may target the same ultra mobile notebook space.
Google CEO Eric Schmidt as part of his presentation at the Allen & Co. conference later on Thursday revealed that he had initially resisted both Chrome the web browser and eventually Chrome OS. In addition to discussing the possible conflict of interest with Apple after the unveiling of the full operating system, Schmidt told those gathered that he had originally wanted to avoid Chrome, and the OS as a result, after being soured by the early browser competition that eventually gave Microsoft's Internet Explorer the lead. It wasn't until company founders Sergey Brin and Larry Page showed a promising demo of Chrome that the chief executive eventually agreed to move ahead.
Google chief Eric Schmidt last evening said he would talk to Apple to determine whether or not he should recuse himself from the Mac maker's board of directors following the unveiling of Chrome OS. The executive told those at Allen & Co's technology conference that there is currently "no issue" with his remaining on the board but that he will ask Apple if it sees a conflict of interest to have another desktop operating system developer involved in its decisions. Apple itself hasn't commented on any possible change in relationship.
(Update: proven fake) Google's just-announced Chrome OS may have already been spotted courtesy of a leak from a staffer for a part supplier for Acer, which is already confirmed as one of those producing netbooks using the new platform. Installed on an older notebook to prove it doesn't require a new PC, the private beta is extremely minimal and has a Windows 7-like taskbar with a program launch menu and running apps showing on the bar as icons. A search field can be added to the bar.
Microsoft is planning a "big" announcement on Monday that may have forced Google's hand in launching Chrome OS, tech pundit and Rackspace blogger Robert Scoble claimed today. While a non-disclosure agreement prevents him from providing further details, he implies that the news will have something to do with web apps, which will be the way software can run in Google's upcoming platform.
Google's launch of Chrome OS today could create a conflict of interest that forces its chief Eric Schmidt off of Apple's board of directors. Although the two companies continue to collaborate on the iPhone, iLife and other projects, the creation of an operating system intended for full-fledged computers now means Google has products that can compete directly with two out of three of Apple's key businesses, as Android and now Chrome OS both give it a vested interest against the iPhone and Mac OS X.
Google early today staked out its claim in full computer operating systems with word that it would launch its own. Chrome OS is meant "initially" for netbooks and relies solely on web apps; while Linux underneath, all software is just an instance of the Chrome web browser running in a custom windowing system. The approach not only keeps a small app footprint but sandboxes any content to prevent malware attacks from spreading. Importantly, nearly any Chrome OS app should also work in a truly standards-based web browser regardless of platform.
