Google held a Chrome OS event this morning, unveiling some more details about their browser-turned-operating system. The event confirmed a few features already being speculated about and drove home the goals of turning the web into a platform.
Google Chrome OS, which is aimed squarely at netbooks and cloud computing, is built on top of a Linux kernal, but don't expect it to run Linux applications. Google confirmed that the operating system would not run stand-alone applications. But that doesn't mean you'll have to be online to use it. While every application running on Chrome OS will be a web application, Google is pushing to make sure web apps are available offline as well as when you are connected to the Internet.
Google is also working with the other browser vendors in order to push up HTML 5's arrival date and make sure it contains key technologies and standards. Chief among these is the ability for browsers to access system resources directly, such as accessing the Graphics Processor Unit (GPU) in order to obtain better performance and make audio/video playback even smoother.
Google is also pushing for speed. Right now, it takes about 7 seconds to go from powered down to the log-in screen. After that, it takes about 3 seconds to be up and running. That's quite a bit faster than those of us with Windows 7 (and much, much faster than Vista), but Google is working to tune this even more.
The goal? With cloud computing coming on strong and HTML 5 inching towards standardization, web applications are quickly becoming as powerful as desktop applications. Combine a sleek, free and open operating system like Chrome OS with the inexpensive hardware of a netbook and you have a virtual workstation capable of doing much more than just browsing the news and checking email.
Chrome OS is expected to arrive sometime around the holiday season of 2010.