The Way I See It

I’m stoked!

Why?

Because Google has just launched an open source web browser. It’s something like Mozilla’s Firefox 3 (which is supported by Google) which I’ve been using but from the looks of it, Google Chrome appears to be far more advance and could be better.

Google says the Chrome is build on the best programming elements out there and it is perfectly adapted to add value for users who use the web for nearly everything.

I like the way Google pre-launched the browser with a comic drawn by none other then Scott MccLoud. Makes the advanced stuff behind the the development of the browser somewhat easier to understand.

It’s 38 pages long, if you don’t have the time you can check out a shorter version here

Google Chrome was build based on the the fact that the internet has changed so much from where it began. In the early days it was just simple text pages and then we had pictures and flash, multimedia came into the picture soon after with videos and music. After that the floodgates open and we see interactive applications running on web browsers.

The thing is, web browsers haven’t changed that much. That’s were Google Chrome comes in. It’s not just a web browser but rather a modern platform for web pages, applications and more.

Google says the Chrome interface is going to be something that we’ve become very comfortable and expect from Google. It’s going to be clean, easy to use and fast.

Here are some features I’m looking forward to try out on the Google Chrome:

1. The new way tabs are being used where each tab is its own process
2. The Omnibox: where the address bar functions as a search as a search box. It’s something like on Firefox 3 but more enhanced. With the Omnibox you can search within sites as well – see page 20 on the comic and you’ll know what I’m talking about.
3. Opening a new tab on Chrome: Google has designed Chrome to display a grid of the sites you’ve visited the most everytime you open a new tab. It may sound weird at first but take a look at page 21 on the comic and you’ll see how it makes so much sense!
4. The Incognito mode is cool too. As it allows you to log in a do your thing (bank online, buy stuff, check your email bla bla bla) but erases all the data after the session has been terminated.

All this is very useful to a user like me who surfs the web, opens multiple browser windows and then opens multiple tabs within the multiple windows and eventually gets lost in the clutter or has his browser eventually crash due to prolonged use.

Google Chrome is available in 100 countries today. You can download your version here.

By the way, did any of you noticed the mysterious dot in GMail that was visible about a month back? That could be a clue for this! Smart.

And in other web browser news:

1. Mozilla with the help of the citizens of the world made Firefox 3 a Guiness Book of World Record entrant by being the most downloaded software in 24hrs with over 8 million downloads in that time period.
2. Last week, Microsoft launched Internet Explorer 8 Beta 2 (*yawn).