Brin: Google's OSes likely to converge
Google co-founder Sergey Brin
(Credit: Stephen Shankland/CNET)MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif.--Google's dual-pronged operating-system strategy will likely produce a single OS down the road, according to Google co-founder Sergey Brin.
Many Google observers were puzzled when the company announced plans for Chrome OS in July, coming amid growing acceptance of the company's Android operating-system project as a smartphone and Netbook OS. After all, why design an open-source operating system with the goal of reinventing the personal computing experience when you're currently developing another open-source operating system with the goal of reinventing the mobile computing experience?
Google executives, including CEO Eric Schmidt, have downplayed the conflict ever since, asking for time to let the projects evolve. And a few days after Chrome OS was revealed, Android chief Andy Rubin said device makers "need different technology for different products," explaining that Android has a lot of unique code that makes it suitable for use in a phone and Chrome has unique benefits of its own.
But Brin, speaking informally to reporters after the company's Chrome OS presentation on Thursday, said "Android and Chrome will likely converge over time," citing among other things the common Linux and Webkit code base present in both projects.
It's not clear when Google thinks it might want to merge the projects, but it seems to be eyeing a future in which the smartphones currently served by Android meld into the Netbooks Google has in mind for Chrome OS. Of course, Brin's vision might not necessarily be shared by all members of the Google management team.
"As Sundar [Pichai, Google's vice president of product management] said in his presentation, we're reaching a perfect storm of converging trends where computers are behaving more like mobile devices, and phones are behaving more like small computers," Google said in a statement in response to questions about how and when the two projects would merge. "Having two open source operating systems from Google provides both users and device manufacturers with more choice and helps contribute a wealth of new code to the open source community."
Any future combination of Chrome OS and Android could be aimed at a new type of device distinct from Android's smartphones or Chrome OS's Netbooks.
(Credit: Screenshot by Josh Lowensohn/CNET)This also allows Google to pick and choose the best ideas to emerge from each project, setting up a bit of friendly internal competition to develop new operating-system technologies. The main difference is that while Android is a shipping product, Chrome OS is still very much in the research stage, with devices not expected until late 2010.
It's way too early to know how that pending convergence will affect development for the different operating systems, as it seems pretty clear Google is spending most of its time at the moment building out each one separately.
But Brin--no idle bystander--believes at some point, Google will emerge with one next-generation operating system.
etc Android and Chrome OS will end up like WIndowze and Windoze Mobile.
The fact they are targeting it on low cost devices which would be targeted in developing markets where Internet Ubiquity is lacking, might make Google a doomed pioneer of the first web centric operating system. Right now I am typing this on a GPRS connection and its slow, I can't use Chrome because its even slower to use and very incompatible with many sites. Firefox is fast and I am able to get by with it. On top of the Internet connection, yesterday, some friends who live in urban area, had to leave town and come to country to use my lame Internet Connection to get work done because their fast speed Internet was down. Now imagine if they were not able to access the other resources of their computer like the Word Processor, because the Internet is down?
Another problem is support for devices, will my GPRS Motorola C350 modem work with Chrome? It works in Windows 98, 2000, XP, Vista and Windows 7. What about my iPod Touch, Printer, Scanner? Yeah, new devices on the market will probably work, but what about what already exist out there? Microsoft announced 9,000 logo'd products for Windows 7? Will Google be able to achieve or create the platform for a breath of applications similar to Windows equal in functionality and user experience?
Google can't even get Chrome for Linux and OS X done. Imagine use Chrome OS, buggy, beta OS for the next 10 years? People, wake up and stay as far away as possible from this. Chrome OS makes Windows 7 Starter look like Windows 7 Ultimate.
I have used gmail and we adopted it for a museum I worked for. It was missing so many common sense features like the ability to have a todo list or manage your contacts. The contact management as it stands just starts throwing emails in there whether you want them to be there or not and it's next to impossible to manage it with the interface provided.
If this is a sign to come of your OS i will take a pass. It all looks well on paper with handwritten notes but in reality - GMAIL nor Google Apps doesn't cut it for every day business purposes.
Note: some ppl think i am bashing apple and MS..I have a Mac Mini, Iphone, 80 Gig Ipod and 2 PC's with Win 7.
My country doesn't have 3G nor WiFi coverage at all.
Already on a Mac, PC, or Linux you can use google cal, docs and gmail offline. That includes creating new documents (spreadsheets and presentations) and accessing all of your existing docs.
I'd be willing to bet that every google built feature has gears built in so that people can access things offline.
And to be honest, how useful is any computer offline?
How can you use "perfect storm" for something that happens over the course of 10 years, and resembles a storm as much as I resemble Angelina Jolie.
He also said "users living in the cloud". Google is becoming worse than Microsoft ever was, that's for sure.
If Goggle guys stick to their guns they will succeed. Just look at how quickly Android has populated the smart phone market, WinMo took a long time to get similar market/mind share.
I still don't understand this obsession with Mis/under informed "Journalists" comparing Android to Chrome OS and wondering "Why the redundancy ?". MS has had Windows Mobile (WinCE) and Windows NT (XP etc) for ages. They address different needs and work under different constraints, and for MS to poke fun at Goggle about this is like the "Pot calling ...".
Hand held platforms and Desktop platforms are different !!! they have different needs and usage patterns. Its like saying "Why do we need a Bus and a Car ? both carry people, why should we make both ? That's Dumb - Duh. ".
I do not think that Chrome OS as a closed - cloud only OS would fly for anything other than a net book. Google currently seems to limit themselves to this. Which is a good clean achievable near term goal. Once they understand the market they would start adding more stuff to make it a true Desktop OS. This approach of setting a realistic expectation and delivering it is better than promising what you can never deliver (WinFS etc ).
You have to remember MS was ridiculed for Windows 1.0-3.0 when it was just a shell to DOS but Win95 changed it all.
Slow and Steady with deep pockets always wins the race.
IT'S FOR NETBOOKS, it should not be for your main computer. It's to surf the web, check email and drink coffee at Starbucks. Some people will just ***** about everything...
- by qooldude November 23, 2009 3:09 AM PST
- Android is a hit. Chrome OS may be a flop. Google are wise to keep them separate for now.
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