[Moejoe]

Originally Posted by Jaime_Astorga

Some people have already installed it by using the source code. Behold, Chromium OS!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JASlXyJt-ZA
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pTjFeUtCvLo

Underwhelming, isn't it? The only program in the OS is a browser! No other programs may be installed. No user created files may be saved or read from the local memory. The OS is completely dependent on the internet for functionality. Want to play a game? You need to go to a game website. Want to work on a document? You need to use an online office suite and save the document to some remote server when you are done.

Not only that, but Chromium OS has a stifling list of restrictions on hardware. For starters, no hard drive are allowed; flash storage only. That is to ensure fast booting times. It only gets worse from there. As I've said elsewhere, this kind of fascist control over the user experience by keeping a tight grip on hardware and software is more of Apple's shtick, and I have no idea what possessed Google to dip into it.

http://www.engadget.com/2009/11/19/l...-announcement/
http://www.maximumpc.com/article/fea...bout_chrome_os
http://arstechnica.com/open-source/n...nouncement.ars

Exciting and yet worrying at the same time. Exciting because it's Open Sourced, so you can bet all the annoyances are squashed in a non-Google version. Worrying because the vast majority of computer users won't be savvy enough to use that 'free' version and will gladly give Google all their data in exchange for convenience.

Interesting times....