Google Chrome

1,985 'Google Chrome' stories May 2011 - February 2014

Available for Windows, Mac, and Linux, Google Chrome is the most widely used desktop browser in the world. Since its launch in 2008, Chrome has expanded to Android, iOS, and is the basis of a cloud-based operating system.

History
Features

History

Chrome was developed out of frustration at the state of browsers that limited Google’s increasingly complex web apps. In creating its own browser, Google could push the state of the web and build the best experience for its products.

Launched in September for Microsoft Windows, Chrome quickly gained 1% of the total desktop market share by the end of the year. A developer preview in 2009 brought Chrome to Mac OS X and Linux, but a stable version was not available until May 2010. In November 2011, Chrome overtook Firefox in worldwide usage and in September 2012 became the most widely used web browser beating Internet Explorer.

In July 2009, Google announced a project to build an operating system that stored applications and user data in the cloud. The thin client OS was publicly demoed in November, but it was not until 2011 that the first Chromebooks shipped from OEM partners.

A beta version of Google Chrome for Android launched in February 2012, with a stable version ready by June. Google also released an iOS version, but it is limited technically due to security restrictions enforced by Apple.

Features

Chrome shares many of the same features and underlying technology across all platforms. The browser and OS maintain version number parity across all platforms. Every six weeks a major version is released to the Stable Channel and a new developer version is introduced in the Canary Channel. A Beta Channel acts as an intermediary way to access new features without too many bugs.

Security

The automatic Chrome update system downloads updates in the background and insures that users are always on the latest version of Chrome. There are many minor patches between between major updates that delivers security fixes and keeps users secure. Chrome maintains a Safe Browsing blacklist of malicious sites that pop up a bright red warning so users can turn back.

Tabs are sandboxed to make sure processes cannot interacting with critical memory functions and other processes. Besides for security, a multi-process architecture gives each site and plug-in a separate process. As such, a crash will only take down that tab and not the entire application.

Since the first version, Chrome has had a private browsing feature. Incognito mode prevents the browser from storing cookies or history and can be opened alongside regular tabs.

Interface

The main Chrome interface has remained mostly the same over the years. In fact, the ‘Chrome’ name refers to the lack of UI elements and a focus on the browsing experience. An Omnibox acts as both the URL bar and search box. At the time, many browsers had two separate fields right next to each other. The Omnibox has prediction capabilities to help users find what they are looking for and is also present on the mobile apps.

Android apps

Later this year, Android apps and the Play Store will arrive on Chrome OS. Google previously experimented using ARC Welder to virtualize the Android run time and allowed apps to run on all platforms, including Mac, Windows, and Linux. The latest approach is limited to Chrome OS, but provides a much more native and fast experience. Apps open up as windows and can become phone or tablet-sized. Touchscreen Chromebooks will provide the best experience.

Google & VMware bring Windows to enterprise Chromebook users

Jordan Kahn Feb 12 2014 - 9:12 am PT

5 Comments

Google announced a partnership with virtualization software maker VMware today that will bring Chromebook users access to Windows desktops and apps. The deal means enterprise Chromebook users will have access to Windows apps through VMware Horizon DaaS and an upcoming Chrome Web Store app:

Cloud applications allow flexibility, scalability and security and enable a work-anywhere environment, but many of our customers still use traditional desktop applications. Desktop as a Service (DaaS) helps bridge the gap between the cloud and a traditional desktop by allowing you to run your traditional software in the cloud and have applications appear on your Chromebook similarly to how they run today. An example might be your Windows based accounting application.

It might sound a little bit like Google is admitting that enterprise customers need more than just Chrome apps to get the job done, but it’s also embracing the upcoming end of life for Windows XP and encouraging business customers to upgrade to Chromebooks. Giving businesses access to the Windows apps many rely on is certainly a good argument for upgrading to Chromebooks. In a statement in VMware’s press release, Google’s president of enterprise Amit Singh said “Chromebooks can save businesses about $5,000 per computer when compared to traditional PCs.”
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HP announces colorful new Haswell i7-powered Chromeboxes, coming this spring

Chance Miller Feb 6 2014 - 2:53 pm PT

1 Comment

HP previously teased that it would be releasing a Chromebox this spring, but has today announced a few more details about the box, in addition to some images. HP’s Chromebox will come in four colors including white, black, silver, and turquoise. The device will be marketed towards homes and businesses, seeing that it will be more powerful than some of the other Chromeboxes we’ve seen so far this year (via Engadget).

HP’s Chromebox features an HDMI port and DisplayPort, in addition to four USB 3.0 ports. The device will be powered by a fourth-generation Haswell-based Intel Core i7 processor.

Missing from the details announced today is pricing. ASUS’ new box will come in at $179, although it is less powerful. Either way, HP will certainly have some tough competition in the Chromebox space. The company’s box is set to be released in spring.

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Google Chrome

Google disrupts the videoconferencing market with $1000 Chromebox for Meetings

Jordan Kahn Feb 6 2014 - 11:17 am PT

1 Comment

Google announced today that ASUS is releasing a new “Chromebox for meetings” that comes bundled with a camera, microphone, and speaker as an all-in-one meeting room solution for using Google+ Hangouts and accessing Google Apps:

Chromebox for meetings comes with a blazing-fast Intel Core i7-based Chromebox, a high-definition camera, a combined microphone and speaker unit and a remote control. Set up your entire room in minutes and easily manage all meeting rooms from a web-based management console. All you need is the display in your room, and you’re good to go.

Walk into the room, click the remote once and you’re instantly in the meeting. No more complex dial-in codes, passcodes or leader PINs. Share your laptop screen wirelessly, no need for any cords and adaptors. Integration with Google Apps makes it easy to invite others and add rooms to video meetings, directly from Google Calendar.

Google says the new Chromebox for meetings will allow businesses to outfit 10 or more rooms “for the same price that companies have typically paid for one meeting room.”

The new Chromebox for meetings from ASUS (pictured above) is available in the U.S. starting today for $999 and other Chromebox for meetings products from HP and Dell will be released in the months to come. It’s also planning to launch the products in other countries later this year including Australia, Canada, France, Japan, New Zealand, Spain and the U.K. Some of Google’s partners are also releasing new tools to make it easy for existing meeting room solutions to access Google+ Hangouts.
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ASUS announces smallest-ever Chromebox, available in March from $179

Ben Lovejoy Feb 4 2014 - 1:04 pm PT

3 Comments

ASUS has announced that the new Chromebox it promised last year will go on sale next month, priced from $179. The device – looking rather like Intel’s NUC ultra-compact desktop PC – is both the smallest and most powerful Chromebox to date, with a choice of three processors.

$179 will get you the base model, powered by a Celeron 2955U. Next model up is a Haswell Core i3 model, capable of driving a 4K monitor – and there will be an i7 version sold only outside North America. No pricing has yet been announced for the more powerful models.

“The Asus Chromebox offers the simplicity, security, and speed of Chrome OS in the most compact and powerful Chrome device to date,” said Felix Lin, director of product management at Google. “Perfect for home, the classroom or the office, Chromebox is designed for the way we use computers today” …
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Google Chrome

Google rolling out Google Now notifications to Chrome beta for desktop users

Jordan Kahn Feb 3 2014 - 9:21 am PT

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After appearing in a developer build of Chrome last month, Google announced today that this week it will be rolling out Google Now notifications to the desktop through the latest beta version of Chrome. Google Now notifications were previously available to Android and iOS users, but can now be accessed through the Chrome notification center on Mac as well as through Chrome on Windows and Chromebooks. Google notes that Chrome will show a a subset of the cards that appear on iOS and Android including “weather, sports scores, commute traffic, and event reminders cards.” Here’s how to enable it:
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Google Play for Education gets new 10.1 Samsung Galaxy Tab & Chromebooks from Lenovo & Toshiba

Jordan Kahn Jan 29 2014 - 8:50 am PT

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[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FXDTlJ3j9eo]

Google today announced some updates to its Google Play for Education program that launched back in November. The program gets Android and Chromebook devices into classrooms and offers a special curated version of Google Play as well as tools for teachers to distribute apps and manage devices. It originally launched with support for just three tablets, but Google announced today that its partners will soon be launching new devices for students. The devices include a new Galaxy Tab just announced by Samsung and a couple of new Chromebooks from Lenovo and Toshiba.
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Google releases tool to let devs bring Chrome apps to iOS & Android

Jordan Kahn Jan 28 2014 - 10:06 am PT

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Google-Apache Cordova-Chrome

After letting us know last month that it was getting ready to release a toolkit to let developers easily bring their Chrome web apps to iOS and Android, today Google released a developer preview of the tool. In its blog post, Google explains the tool is based on open-source framework Apache Cordova, which allows devs to build native apps for iOS and Android using CSS, HTML, and Javascript. It’s also making a lot of its own core Chrome APIs available to developers through the preview. It essentially means devs will be able to bring their Chrome web apps to the App Store and Google Play, but it will also let them build new cross platform apps in CSS, HTML, and Javascript. Google explained how it works:
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Google’s Build With Chrome is a Minecraft-like virtual LEGO builder in the browser

Jordan Kahn Jan 28 2014 - 9:04 am PT

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[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r4TIkhm2tWc]

Google announced today that it’s opening a new Build With Chrome website to the public that originally started as a Chrome Experiment. In collaboration with LEGO, Build With Chrome uses WebGL 3D graphics technology to let users build any creation they can think of using virtual LEGO in an extremely slick web-based interface. The site also features the ability to explore creations by others and share your own through Google+ as well as “Build Academy” that features charcaters from the upcoming The LEGO Movie film.

The Build With Chrome site is already featuring a number of creations from the community and is now open for all to play with.
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Google does U-turn on magazine-style web layouts in favor of faster browsing

Ben Lovejoy Jan 27 2014 - 7:37 am PT

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Google has changed its mind about supporting an Adobe tool to allow magazine-style layout on web pages after deciding that the technology would have too great an impact on browsing speeds, reports CNET.

The technology, known as CSS Regions, allows text to flow around irregularly-shaped objects, as in the example above. Google had initially supported the project, part of a move by Adobe to bring Flash-style capabilities into native web standards, intending to incorporate the code into its Blink browser engine.

Google Chrome programmer Eric Seidel says that Adobe’s current approach has too great a performance hit.

I believe Blink’s focus this year must be on mobile and specifically mobile performance…I have come to understand that Regions both does not play well with existing performance optimizations [and] impedes ongoing simplification and optimization work to our core rendering code,” Seidel said about his reversal of opinion on CSS Regions. “Regions addresses some very real deficiencies of the Web platform. But I believe Blink (hopefully with Adobe’s help) will need to find other simpler/smaller ways to address these deficiencies.”

Another Google Chrome programmer echoed this view, stating that while magazine-style layouts were appealing, Google’s priority is maximising browser performance with web apps in mind.

Google offering more than $2.7 million to people that can successfully exploit Chrome OS

Chance Miller Jan 23 2014 - 2:53 pm PT

3 Comments

HP Chromebook 11

Since its release, Google has touted that Chrome OS is incredibly secure and can be used for any type of use case. In a blog post on the Chromium Blog, the company announced today that it is offering a total of $2.71 million USD to anyone that exploit Chrome OS. In order to compete for a portion of that pot, developers have travel to the CanSecWest security conference in Vancouver, which takes place in March.

The criteria for this Pwnium contest, which Google has been holding for years, is pretty specific. Developers and hackers won’t get money for exploiting any portion of the operating system. Instead, Google has guidelines for how much they will be paid, depending on how deep the exploit is.

$110,000 USD: browser or system-level compromise in guest mode or as a logged-in user, delivered via a web page.
$150,000 USD: compromise with device persistence: guest to guest with interim reboot, delivered via a web page.

Google will also consider cash bonuses for demonstrating a particularly impressive or surprising exploit. Hackers will be able to choose between the Haswell-based Acer C720 and the ARM-based HP Chromebook 11.

If this sounds like something you want to try, Google requires that interested parties register ahead of the even by emailing security@chromium.org. Registration will close at 5:00 P.M PST on March 10th.

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‘Ok Google’ voice search arrives as native Chromium feature without browser extension

Jordan Kahn Jan 23 2014 - 8:30 am PT

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Google’s open-source Chromium evangelist François Beaufort shared some interesting details today about new voice search integration in the latest Chromium build— Google’s open source browser project that is often used to develop and test features coming soon to its Chrome browser. While users have been able to download a browser extension for Chrome since November that allows them to activate a voice search with the “Ok Google” voice command (just like on Android), it appears Google is testing the command as a native feature without the need of the extension. Beaufort notes that the latest Chromium code shows the ability to toggle the feature through settings:
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Chrome 33 beta brings Custom Elements, speech synthesis API, & web payments on Mac

Jordan Kahn Jan 17 2014 - 8:10 am PT

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Following the release of Chrome 32 on Google’s stable release channel, today Chrome 33 has moved into beta bringing access to Custom Elements, a Web Speech API for speech recognition and synthesis, and more. The new Custom Elements will allow developers to add new HTML elements in web applications in “much cleaner ways” as highlighted by Google in the sample code for a chat app above. With the spec developers will able to:

Define new HTML/DOM elements
Create elements that extend from other elements
Logically bundle together custom functionality into a single tag
Extend the API of existing DOM elements

The release also includes access to the Web Speech API for adding speech recognition and synthesis features to web pages. Google gives the example of dictations being “synthesized to play back in a different language.” Google described some of the other updates in the release including the availability of the requestAutocomplete API for easily implementing web payments on Mac:

Other web platform changes in this release

The requestAutocomplete API for easy web payments is now available on Mac.
The Page Visibility API has been unprefixed.
WebFont downloading has been optimized so that fonts (at the median) are available before Blink layout is done, meaning that the net latency impact of using a webfont is usually zero.
The Blink CSS Animations and Transitions implementations are now powered by the newWeb Animations model. This change should not affect developers or sites; let us know if it does.
Chrome now supports the latest version of the Web Notification API. We’ll be deprecating support for the legacy API down the road, so please update your websites if they’re using it.

Google developing “Chromoting” remote desktop management app for iOS

Mike Beasley Jan 16 2014 - 8:27 pm PT

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Google been working on a remote desktop management app for Android devices called “Chromoting” since last year, but today an entry in the Chromium issue tracker has revealed that an iOS version is also under developement. The issue, which was opened on Wednesday, indicates that the iOS version is still very much in the design stage, while its counterpart on Android is much further along in its development.

According to the post, the iOS version is is expected to be released much later than the Android client. The features of the app have mostly been kept under wraps, but it looks like a fairly straightforward piece of software that allows you to access and manipulate remote machines using Chrome as a condiut for the connection. The biggest advantage Chromoting would have over similiar solutions would be the low, low price of $0.00.

Latest Chrome Canary build brings Google Now to the desktop

Benjamin Mayo Jan 16 2014 - 5:27 am PT

1 Comment

There have been indications for a long time that Google Now was eventually coming to the Chrome browser on the desktop. Via the Google Operating System Blog, the service has finally surfaced in the most recent release of Chrome Canary (Google’s name for the app’s ‘alpha’ channel builds).

As expected, Google Now in Chrome closely mirrors Google Now on Android. The contextually-relevant cards (which show information such as weather, news or upcoming flights) appear in Chrome’s Notification Center on the desktop. This area be found in the Window’s taskbar or the Mac’s menubar, represented by a bell icon.

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Chrome for mobile updated w/ data compression, Safe Browsing, application shortcuts, & more

Jordan Kahn Jan 15 2014 - 8:34 am PT

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Google just announced it’s releasing a new version of Chrome for mobile devices that introduces a new data compression feature alongside Safe Browsing malware protection:

In the U.S. alone, more than a fifth of adult smartphone users now do most of their online browsing on their mobile device.¹Around the world, we’re seeing a similar trend towards more mobile browsing. That’s why we’ll be rolling out a new feature on Chrome for Mobile to help you reduce data usage and save money on your mobile plan. When enabled, Chrome’s data compression and bandwidth management can reduce data usage by up to 50% while browsing the web on Chrome for Android and iOS.

Google noted the update will also enable the Safe Browsing technology it uses in the desktop version of Chrome to protect users from malicious websites. You’ll be able to turn on the new data compression feature and track usage from Settings” > “Bandwidth management” > “Reduce data usage in the updated app.

For Android users, the update also introduces an “Add to homescreen” toolbar item for quickly saving shortcuts to your homescreen, while iOS users will finally get access to Google Translate:

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HP’s LTE Chromebook 11 to skip on 3G hardware, says chip supplier Altair

Ben Lovejoy Jan 15 2014 - 7:16 am PT

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Update: Best Buy is already listing the new model online for $379 (via Liliputing).

Reuters is reporting a claim by Israel’s Altair Semiconductor that HP will be launching a LTE-only Chromebook 11, with connectivity provided by the company’s chips.

“Our solution equips the Chromebook with a dependable and incredibly fast Internet connection,” said Eran Eshed, vice president of marketing and business development at Altair. “By focusing on 100 percent LTE and eliminating costly 3G components, we were able to help our partners lower the cost of this critical LTE connectivity feature” …

Google’s high end Chromebook Pixel is also LTE-only but the move for a more bargain-centric product has some folks scratching their heads….
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Acer adds Moonstone White C720P Chromebook to its touchscreen lineup

Zac Hall Jan 3 2014 - 10:57 am PT

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In addition to its new low cost tablets and Android-powered All-in-one computers, Acer announced a new color option to its Chromebook lineup ahead of CES next week.

The Acer C720P that debuted last November will soon be available in Moonstone White and debut next week at CES. The Acer C720P retails at $299 and features 32GB of storage, 2GB of RAM, and an HD touch screen at 1366×768 resolution. Like the existing models, the C720P features USB 2/3 ports as well as HDMI for display-output and runs Chrome OS.

9to5Google readers, what do you want to see from Google in 2014?

David Beren Dec 30 2013 - 7:17 am PT

16 Comments

As Google’s Chairman Eric Schmidt makes his own predictions for 2014, I’m turning the subject over to you…the 9to5Google reader. There’s absolutely no shortage of topics to cover or “what ifs” for Google in 2014. Given the various branch directions that Android, Chrome OS and the company itself can go, it’s a loaded question. With recent reports indicating Chrome OS is on the rise, could we see Microsoft running scared in 2014 against the impending threat of low-cost hardware with an operating system that costs manufacturers absolutely nothing?

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Google-powered Chromebooks account for 21% of all notebook sales in 2013

Mike Beasley Dec 28 2013 - 5:11 pm PT

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Editor’s note: As noted in the graph above, the numbers in this article refer only to the commercial channel, as NPD does not measure direct sales. Some of the language below has been updated to clarify this point.

A new release from the NPD Group indicates that notebooks running Google’s Chrome OS have gained significant ground in the past year. According to the statistics, over one-fifth of all laptops sold in 2013 were running the free software. Of course, it should be noted that the numbers presented don’t take built-to-order machines or direct sales into account, instead relying on sales of pre-configured options, but even so, this impressive figure is still very good news for Google.

In fact, when considering all computer sales, including desktop and notebook form factors, Chromebooks have still gained a pretty sizeable chunk of the market. Last year Chromebooks took home a measly 0.2%. This year, however, the number comes in closer to one-tenth of the market at 9.6%.

While that may not seem like much next to the 34.1% of all computer sales held by Windows-powered notebooks, it’s over five times better than Apple’s sales for its entire MacBook lineup combined. It now seems that Google—not Apple—is in the best position to someday knock Microsoft from the top of the notebook computer market.

Amazon’s ‘record-setting’ holiday season shows Kindle Fire, Chromecast and Chromebooks dominate

David Beren Dec 26 2013 - 9:18 am PT

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Amazon has never been a company to provide specific sales numbers, but their just-issued press release shows us that Android, Kindle and Chromebooks dominated their holiday shopping season. Surprisingly, or perhaps not surprising at all is the Chromecast, which is the best seller in the Computers and Accessories category outselling the company’s own Kindle Fire lineup as well as Apple TV and the Roku 3 Streaming Media player.

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What did you get for Christmas? The Google, Android, Chrome edition

David Beren Dec 26 2013 - 5:25 am PT

3 Comments

Oh the weather outside may still be frightful, but inside the morning after Christmas is definitely delightful. Now that Christmas music is put back onto the shelf for next year, what Android, Chrome, Google-related goodies did you get for your holidays?

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The 9to5Google top Chrome, Chrome OS stories of 2013

David Beren Dec 24 2013 - 10:27 am PT

5 Comments

Google’s Chrome browser and Chrome OS had another banner year in 2013 and with the Chromebook continuing to grow in popularity, 2014 looks to be even better. There’s little question that along with the growth of the Chromebook, Chrome as a web-browser continues to delight users the world over. With a bevy of new features and improvements in 2013, Google has its work cut out to improve on it next year. So without further delay, let’s take a look at the year’s top Chrome and Chrome OS stories of 2013 as determined by the number of pageviews each story incurred:

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Google kicking toolbars, “multipurpose extensions” out of the Chrome Web Store

David Beren Dec 20 2013 - 5:38 am PT

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Google’s Chromium Blog just announced intentions of the search engine giant to knock out toolbars and “multipurpose extensions” out of the Chrome Web Store. The update to the policy is basically summed up as: “extensions in the Chrome Web Store must have a single purpose that is narrow and easy-to-understand.” That sounds simple enough, no?

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LG announces the Chromebase, the first all-in-one Chrome OS desktop

Chance Miller Dec 17 2013 - 4:57 pm PT

4 Comments

Chrome OS-powered desktops have not caught on in the past, to say the least, but it looks like that won’t stop LG from trying. The company has just sent out a press release announcing a new Chromebase, that it will officially unveil at CES 2014. The Chromebase is an all-in-one computer, much like the iMac, but powered by Chrome OS. The Chromebase will feature a 21.5 inch 1080p display, as well as 2GB of RAM, 16GB of solid state storage, and an unspecified Intel Celeron processor.

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Google Chrome

Table of contents

History

Features

Security

Interface

Android apps