Live blog today: Google Chrome OS press conference
November 19, 2009 9:57 AM PST
by Rafe Needleman
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10:31 : Rafe: Matt: We’re trying to make Chrome OS computers like a TV. All devices we’re working on are based on solidstate storage. No moving disks! (Ok, you’re cheating… but this does make sense if you don’t need massive local storage for data)
10:32 : Stephen Shankland: Boot process has been pared down a lot. Custom firmware, lots of background services for apps don’t need to be supported. Firmware + OS + Chrome.
10:33 : Rafe: Matt saying it’s easier and faster for user if you don’t have to start OS and then browser. Chrome OS autostarts. On security: Chrome autoupdates. "Verified boot." Every component in the Chrome OS is cryptographically signed and checked on boot
10:34 : Josh Lowensohn: Automatic updates…this sounds familiar.
10:34 : Rafe: The fact that Chrome autoupdates means there’s no legacy code to support. Unlike MS or Apple — every user will be on the same code
10:34 : Stephen Shankland: More autoupdate, of course, just like Chrome. You don’t get a choice–it just updates with latest patches. I wonder how well this will work in the long term as hardware gets faster and the Chrome or Chrome OS code base moves toward better machines. Does that mean people get autoupgraded to versions that are too slow for practical use in the future?
10:35 : Rafe: Stephen, yeah. I’m wondering how buttoned-down IT departments will like the idea of google remotely updating all users’ computers whenever they want. And if there’s ever a bad update — whoa.
10:36 : Stephen Shankland: Rafe: Chrome OS isn’t for IT departments at this stage IMO.
10:36 : Rafe: No lie, Stephen, but this is how apps get into IT: Personal machines are the vector
10:37 : Rafe: Matt: every web browser assumes a new app is hostile. That helps security. And in Chrome and in Chrome OS, "sandboxing" is even stronger. (However, it’s not perfect: I’ve seen bad sites crash the whole browser. Not often, but it can happen)
10:38 : Stephen Shankland: Some news coming up about the file system. I wonder if we will get some Gdrive action?
10:38 : Rafe: Really interesting comments, guys. We’re having a hard time keeping up with your feedback, but it’s valuable!
10:39 : Rafe: Matt: All your data is encrypted on your machine. If you lose your machine, "you can be assured it’s encrypted"
10:39 : Stephen Shankland: User data is always encrypted. About time we made this move for an operating system. No choice in the matter means people will finally use crypto. Just don’t lose the key.
10:41 : Rafe: Feature they really are pushing: If you get a new machine or borrow a machine, you just log on and all your data is in front of you via the cloud
10:41 : Stephen Shankland: Pichai back on stage to talk about how they’ll bring Chrome OS to market. Short version: through OEMs (aka computer makers)
10:41 : Rafe: I like that feature and many apps I use have sync — Evernote for example. Also I used Sugarsync now for storage, and when I have a new machine I sync it to make it mine.
10:42 : Rafe: Sundar: "We are not supporting hard drives."
10:42 : Rafe: Target timeframe: End of next year, ahead of holidays 2010
10:42 : Stephen Shankland: Pichai: "As a consumer, you can’t go download chrome os. You will have to go and buy a chrome os device"
10:42 : Josh Lowensohn: I’m okay with that plan as long as it drives SSD prices down
10:43 : Stephen Shankland: Fred: It’s different from a small Linux machine in that it runs software *only* on the browser. We’re not talking Firefox running atop Gnome. The software interface is HTML + CSS + JavaScript etc.
10:43 : Rafe: Sundar: We want netbooks to get better: Larger, better touchpads, better keyboards. They are designing some reference hardware.
10:44 : Rafe: IT’s all open source, and "we will be good open source citizens and contribute our code back upstream" Sundar: "If you’re a developer, we really want you to take advantage of the HTML 5 capabilities." No kidding. HTML 5 will be the battle ground here.
10:45 : Stephen Shankland: Google is "looking forward to feedback from the open-source community." It’s hard to share, though. Google has to walk a fine line between releasing something done and staying in control and sharing with the outside world. At least they’re sharing design docs this time.
10:45 : Rafe: Now we’re seeing a video. "What is Google Chrome OS?" This is how they’re going to roll the message out to the People.
10:46 : Rafe: Jakez: Multimonitors: Get a netbook, a table, and a smartphone, and put them next to each other?
10:46 : Stephen Shankland: I see a little IE icon in the animation. A little IE dissing soon–the video shows it crawling toward 2000, when the Net got interesting.
10:47 : Rafe: THis video is really good. My Mom would understand it. We’re trying to find a link for this vid.
10:48 : Rafe: Ok, wait, now the video is talking about how a browser app is "stateless." Now Mom will lose it.
10:48 : Rafe: Q&A time….
10:48 : Josh Lowensohn: Rafe, you could just tell your mom "Hey, it’s a computer with just a browser on it."
10:49 : Rafe: Thanks folks! HEre’s the vid: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0QRO3gKj3qw
10:51 : Rafe: Our own Tom Krazit asks: What will a Chrome OS netbook cost??
Sundar: No, you will hear the messaging from our partners. We expect to have prices in the range people are used to today. But we can’t predict what prices will be in a year. But they will be bigger than current netbooks.
Tom: Do you have a price target?
Sundar: No.
10:52 : Rafe: Question: What is the process to be considered to be a Chrome OS manufacturer partner?
Sundar: We are reaching out to all the top vendors. The info is already going out. We will also have plenty of docs for everyone.
10:54 : Stephen Shankland: CurtisB: Except that everybody uses the browser already, and Sun and Oracle with Java-based network computers had an even higher bar to go over to encourage application support.
10:55 : Stephen Shankland: Jason Johnson: Anybody could build their own distro, but I’ll bet Google wouldn’t let you use the Chrome OS trademark
10:55 : Rafe:
Question: Will you have an app store (like apple or android store)? And what about drive certificiation?
Sundar: We’ll have more details later. I showed an app discovery process. On the Web, there are hundreds of millions of apps… we’ll be working hard on solving the problem.
Matt: On drivers, "we’re working closely with hardware vendors." And we are working on a testing plan.
10:55 : Stephen Shankland: Sundar acknowledges there are apps today not available on the Web. But they expect people to have another machine at home. Chrome OS is a "companion device."
10:57 : Stephen Shankland: Hugo: Right. Though in fairness there is a Photoshop.com site. And Google is working on Native Client, O3D, and WebGL for faster browser app performance.
10:57 : Stephen Shankland: Hugo: Right. Though in fairness there is a Photoshop.com site. And Google is working on Native Client, O3D, and WebGL for faster browser app performance.
10:57 : Rafe: Andrew, you gotta start somewhere.
10:58 : Rafe: If you want to see an amazing collection of image editing apps that run in browser (Flash), check out Aviary
10:59 : Rafe: Will it support Silverlight? Sundar: "We are working hard to integrate plugins closely." But he won’t comment on "You’re working with Microsoft to support Silverllight?" Innnnnteresting.
11:00 : Stephen Shankland: Sean: No comment on whether Google is working with Microsoft to support Silverlight.
11:00 : Josh Lowensohn: Things like OnLive and Spawn Labs should work just fine as long as the plugins run well.
11:00 : Stephen Shankland: Silverlight is a standard browser plug-in, so I imagine support won’t be hard. Whether it’s shipped is another matter.
11:01 : Stephen Shankland: Sushant: Azure is a version of Windows available over the cloud, and not very consumer-friendly. It’s more like Amazon Web Services. I don’t see Chrome OS as in the same area.
11:01 : Rafe: Question: Is this only for netbooks? And can you reveal hardware partners?
Sundar: It’s a scope issue. Initial focus is on "netbook-like form factors." But we aren’t constraining the system. We’ll announce the partners middle of next year.
11:02 : Rafe: Question: How big is the program/OS?
Sundar: Since it’s open source there’s a lot (of crap) in the code so far for debugging. We are working very very very hard to have a simplified code stack
11:03 : Rafe: Question: How to provide for offline access
Sundar: YOu can cache media locally – videos, books, games. And HTML 5 apps that implement offline capability will work
11:04 : Stephen Shankland: Offline support: "You can cache media locally. Play games, read books."
Pichai says. WiFi–802.11n but not cellular networking.
11:04 : Rafe:
Question: Can it be run in a VM now?
Matt: You can build it now and run it in a VM. We do that here.
11:08 : Rafe:
Question: Will we see Chrome OS on ARM or what?
Sundar: Chrome OS will function on X86 and ARM.
11:09 : Rafe:
Question from our Stephen Shankland: What kind of timeframe until Chrome OS runs on other machines? And is there a business model for this?
Sundar: So far we’re just trying to build an OS. As for the busienss, as the Web gets better, it benefits us more. there are no plans for ads in the OS itself.
11:10 : Rafe: This, people, is why Google is doing this: The more that apps run in the browser, the more ads Google can deliver. Everyone remember: Google as a business is not a search company, it’s an advertising network.
11:13 : Rafe:
Question: How well you get people to trust the reliability and security of this service?
Sundar: I think the cloud will compare favorably. But it’s important that users have choice.
(Very unsatisfying answer)
11:14 : Stephen Shankland: Sergey Brin just walked in
11:15 : Rafe: Here he comes for the Q&A…
11:17 : Stephen Shankland: Good question from Jon "Hannibal" Stokes from Ars Technica: will this be a fast-boot OS for regular PCs? Pichai: nope.
11:17 : Rafe:
Question: Do you have plans to be a second OS on a full-features laptop (like spashtop)?
Matt: No, we’re not spending effort on dual boot or multiple types of processors in a computer.
11:18 : Rafe:
Question: Will you support printers?
Sundar: Yes, Chrome OS will print. We’ll have an innovative solution.
(So… What? A cloud-based repository for printer drivers? What about networked
11:20 : Rafe:
Question: What about real-time notifications on every Web page?
Sergey: We need it. Hopefully we can introduce it into the browser.
Matt: The Notification API is in the W3C now and we want to incorporate it.
11:21 : Rafe:
Question: What’s the business?
Sergey: We focus on user needs. There’s a real need to be able to use computers easily. Netbooks are easy to buy, but there’s no easy way to manage them. Stateless machines are easier. It’s an important need in the market now.
11:22 Rafe: And that’s the end of the conference! Important stuff. My take is that we really are overdue for a rethink of the personal computing model, and Google is in the right position to push it and deliver it.
11:23 : Rafe: But it won’t be easy, and every little failure will be seen as a reason to stick with the old comfortable model. Not that I like the old model all that well to begin with, but we’ve all learned to deal with it.
11:23 : Stephen Shankland: I watch browsers a lot, so I wasn’t stunned. The most interesting part was Google said it’s it’s a companion device, not a primary device. Modest ambitions in one way. Makes it a lot easier to declare victory
11:25 : Rafe: Sergey’s right to say that cheap computers are too hard to manage. It’s a mismatch. You pay $300 for a netbook and you just want it to work. That’s a good first front for this OS. Although, obviously, the ultimate battleground is the standard computing platform.
11:26 : Rafe: But, man, it scares me to put all my data and stuff in the cloud. Even if it is, strictly speaking, more reliable than storing it on my home computer.
11:26 : Rafe: Ok, that’s the end of this show. Thanks for watching and engaging!
11:28 : Rafe: And thanks JOSH for managing the community!
11:28 : Josh Lowensohn: Sure thing–they manage themselves quite well actually.
11:28 : Rafe: Closing this out… Bye everyone!
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Thanks to Rafe Needleman
Wrapped up by Agile_Cat
Part_2: http://agilecat.wordpress.com/2009/11/20/google-chrome-os-press-conference-part_1/
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