Eventually like all things Mocrosoft will be a thing of the past. Something to think about. I don't think Google can do it but sooner or later someone will.

Hi Havent been around forever, but I'm back - and looking forward to continue being creative

Google have been successful with many things, and so have Microsoft. They have both created things that everybody use on an everyday basis. In my mind, can't it be kept that way? By creating a new operating system, Google are (possibly) making things complicated in that standards would have to change if everybody liked the new OS.

But by all means, I can't wwait to see Google's Chrome OS. Would like to see if they stick to their word about being clean, streamlined, and easy to use.

And best of all, it's free!

Yeah, but... so is linux. They basically took linux, and stripped out the meat. I guess it will be lightweight, but I can't see it being much more than that.

True - but then again, they haven't said much about the system itself, so we'll have to wait and see.

nothing is really free, you'll have to register with google and supply them with some personal information and you'll have to agree to their terms and conditions. devil will be in the details. Microsoft is the same is a sense, they have that validation process to ensure that my copy of windows is genuine. the information they collect along with that includes other ms product information which includes browser preference. personally, it's all about marketing and there is not much difference in the two in that respect.

That's true, it is all about marketing.

I don't know much about Open Source, but surely such projects would not require you to register. In fact, is this OS even OpenSource at all?

With Linux you do not register with anyone nor sign any terms and conditions. Some things are free.

I'm curious about this. Sounds interesting. I have always liked Google's UI  [Google Search / and Chrome] So i can't wait if and when they show some screenshots of the new OS.

my wife and I had a discussion about the free linux open source, she works for a company that uses open source on their end user product. What I was told is that the free open source OS requires a little more than superficial knowledge about computers. correct me if I'm incorrect but this is not some *.exe file but a zip file that further needs to be configured, compiled and installed.

my lack of skills would make this an unreasonable consideration.

I don't understand the question.

There is a difference between posting something on the internet and putting something in a folder that can be read/seen by an OS that phones home.  As things stand, Google has to wait for you to go on-line before it can data mine/track your movements, but with its own 'phone home' OS its ability to snoop it infinitely multiplied.  And placing trust in Google's privacy policy is foolhardy to say the least... it does NOT give away 'so-called' free stuff out of the goodness of its heart. 

Google is in the business of amassing as much advertising revenue as it can, and yours and everyone else's data is used to compile demographic charts, etc, to target the general public with what it wants to sell rather than what the public may otherwise want.

I do NOT give Google personal information... nor the consent to use it, yet Google has pages of data on me, as a recent forum thread here revealed.  Shit, they even know my real name... and I certainly didn't give it to them.  So much for their privacy policy!!

Furthermore, I am NOT giving Google information when I visit WC, DA or any other site, yet google analytics is there watching, data mining at every page load.  That is my personal business... my relationship with those particular sites, yet google analytics knows my IP address, location and what I'm looking at.  So tell me, if you can, how that is respecting my privacy? 

I did NOT send Google an open invitation to pry into my surfing habits... so yes, they DO need a warrant/court order to "look around".  Do they have one?  No, they do not!!!  So yes, my argument does fly.

Furthermore, I get targetted with specific 'localised' ads whenever I'm not signed in here at WC.  For example, I made mention of being bitten by a spider in a thread started by Karmagirl (as I recall), and for some time after that, if I got signed out for some reason or other, I'd get pest control ads for Australian pest control companies on just about every page.  There are other examples, but that one comes to mind particularly because I made mention of it and jokingly wanted to know who at Stardock had shares in Aussie pest control.

And while on the subject of unwanted ads, when I did use Google products and services way back when, my email boxes were constantly being inundated with advertising spam/junk mails wanting to sell me shit I didn't want or need.  Now being that I hate advertising with a passion and was told Google was the likely source, I uninstalled the 'phone home' google bar and other products, stopped using google search entirely, and now I rarely get unsoloicited emails.  I still get the occasional fly-by spam that millions of others get also, but for the most part I'm spam free and not deleting 20 - 30 spam-mails a day.

I don't want or need advertising - which is why I rarely watch TV, with constant ads and reality shows aimed at selling you stuff - if I want or need something I go into stores and open my peepers, ask questions and research products/companies at my own volition when I'm ready to buy... I don't need some jumped-up advertising exec telling me what I want and giving me only so many days to purchase it a X-amount.

Linux might be but Google apps are not. No doubt Google will have terms and conditions link to the use of their own programs or services.

I think that Google will probably not require terms and conditions for their OS, but possible for the apps that are used within the OS, perhaps.

For example, Google may have an auto-install manager that looks for programs on the web (like Firefox Addons), provides you with the details, and then asks you to click "I have read the terms and conditions", before installing the app automatically.

I was reading an RSS feed from Betanews.com last night, and saw some very relevant information in an article, entitled, "Google Chrome: Too little, Too Early".

Carmi Levy has this to say:

"The cynic in me believes Google pre-announced its upcoming OS to steal a little bit of Microsoft's thunder and tweak its arch enemy in the months leading up to what some are calling the most crucial product release in the Redmond vendor's history. That same cynic in me believes Google doesn't have anything approaching alpha code at this point, but couldn't resist the urge to rain on Microsoft's parade."

The cynic in me believes him, after-all Google have always wanted competition with somebody.

REDstyler, please stop screwing with the fonts. Not only does it make your posts basically unreadable, it can sometimes break pages in IE (assuming you are copy/pasting from word instead of doing that manually here).

On topic, how fucked up does your company need to be to be LESS trustworthy than Microsoft? Yet Google does it effortlessly.

All ASUS computers come installed with a flashrom chip that has a version of "splashtop" in it..

I have no need for the Chrome browser OS.