Google just announced it is launching its own operating system: Chrome OS. Someone described this as dropping a nuclear bomb on Microsoft, and it kind of feels that way. There's no question a war has been brewing, and the object of that war -market dominance of the Web- is now moving into Microsoft's core territory.
As Google put it, existing OSs were designed before the web -that is, they are computer-centered, to run local applications. It has been clear for a while that the computer world is moving from the local PC to the web. So not only is Google threatening the Windows OS, it is threatening MS Office, or pretty much ninety percent Microsoft's revenue.
This reminds me of the first web war: the battle between the Netscape and Internet Explorer (see browser wars) -of course, back then Microsoft used to bundle IE with Windows in new PCs while Netscape couldn't do much but watch helplessly. Google plans shipping its OS with new netbooks and later full laptops and desktops, so Microsoft will get a taste of its own medicine. Also, unlike on the first Web war, both rivals are evenly matched, so this will be a long battle, and hopefully we'll see a lot of innovation on both sides.
I am wondering if we will finally see the public at large adopting web based office apps -especially, I wonder about the one advantage of MS near-monopoly: the ability to send a Word document or a PowerPoint and not have to worry if the recipient can open it. So this is really about whether small carry-everywhere netbooks and ubiquitous wireless broadband will complete the change that started with laptops and smartphones.
As Google put it, existing OSs were designed before the web -that is, they are computer-centered, to run local applications. It has been clear for a while that the computer world is moving from the local PC to the web. So not only is Google threatening the Windows OS, it is threatening MS Office, or pretty much ninety percent Microsoft's revenue.
This reminds me of the first web war: the battle between the Netscape and Internet Explorer (see browser wars) -of course, back then Microsoft used to bundle IE with Windows in new PCs while Netscape couldn't do much but watch helplessly. Google plans shipping its OS with new netbooks and later full laptops and desktops, so Microsoft will get a taste of its own medicine. Also, unlike on the first Web war, both rivals are evenly matched, so this will be a long battle, and hopefully we'll see a lot of innovation on both sides.I am wondering if we will finally see the public at large adopting web based office apps -especially, I wonder about the one advantage of MS near-monopoly: the ability to send a Word document or a PowerPoint and not have to worry if the recipient can open it. So this is really about whether small carry-everywhere netbooks and ubiquitous wireless broadband will complete the change that started with laptops and smartphones.
Either way, I think this will ultimately be a win for users worldwide -not to mention, fun to watch ;-)
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