Software Development should be as simple as possible. In fact, it should be designed and developed under the assumption it is disposable!
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Google Gears |
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Written by Brian Houser
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Wednesday, 30 May 2007 16:19 |
Relating to my previous post about a possible Google OS, I just did a quick web search and found that today Google announced Google Gears, a new open source API browser extension to enable offline storage and retrieval for web apps. That's one of the puzzle pieces I mentioned, so I think that increases the chances a Google OS is in the works.
How's that for timing? |
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Last Updated on Saturday, 26 July 2008 18:58 |
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Will we see a Google OS? |
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Written by Brian Houser
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Wednesday, 30 May 2007 16:10 |
I’ve had this hunch for a while that Google will eventually perform an end run around Microsoft and suddenly release a personal computer operating system of their own to compete with Windows. Compared to Windows, it would be very simplified and small, and would be centered around web applications. I would welcome such a product.
It’s interesting to speculate how a Google OS would work. It would obviously rely on access to the web and would presumably use Google apps like gmail, Google Docs & Sheets, and Picasa. I speculate Google would use either a brand new written-from-the-ground-up operating system or a modified variant of Linux. It would boot very quickly right into a web browser. The web browser would be like the “desktop” on Windows machines. All Google PCs would come with network access built-in.
The big question is whether the device would provide an offline mode. Especially for portable models, it seems like users might want to access their documents and emails even when they’re not connected to the Internet. But eliminating local caching would greatly simplify things and would even eliminate the need for a hard drive (the minimal local storage needed could be served with flash memory).
Here’s the really interesting part: the operating system would be free. Google would provide the OS without charge because it will be supported by advertising. While you’re using your applications, non-obtrusive ads will be displayed that are relevant to what you’re doing. The hardware would be very inexpensive. Because the OS is lightweight and most of the processing occurs on Internet servers, a minimal amount of processing power and memory is required. The typical low-end personal computer being sold today would be more than enough power. It could give back a purpose to all those older computers that today are feeling sluggish under Windows. |
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Windows XP as the last great OS from Microsoft |
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Written by Brian Houser
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Sunday, 06 May 2007 04:04 |
There's been plenty of negative sentiment about Windows Vista on the web, not to mention from people I come into contact with from day to day. I installed a beta version and found it unusable. I later installed the final version on my laptop soon after it was released. That lasted a few weeks, before I uninstalled it in frustration and went back to XP. I was strongly pressured into installing it at work and have been using it there for a couple of months now.
But I don't like it. I have tried to keep an open mind about Vista. But I am just not warming up to it.
There are plenty of compatibility issues. Vista supporters around me quickly remind me how it's still early and that those problems will be solved soon enough. OK, that's probably true, but I don't remember it ever being this bad with previous versions of the OS. I get the sense that a lot of vendors just don't believe in Vista, at least not yet. Or is it that Microsoft has forgotten how important the real user experience is in the end? When a user's device doesn't work, he doesn't care that it's really the device manufacturer's fault; to him, Vista is broken. And I basically agree.
But the bigger problem for me is that I just don't see Vista as giving me anything really useful. XP has been working wonderfully for me. What would I want to give that up? What compelling features does Vista provide that make me feel like I have to "upgrade"? I haven't found them yet.
And I'm left wondering if we'll ever see another operating system from Microsoft as good as XP.
Microsoft seems to be in decline. There are signs they are collapsing from the weight of their own bureaucracy. It's become increasingly difficult for them to release anything of great quality, let alone doing it on time. Many of their products no longer work together right out of the gate. And there's just so much bloat.
I predict the next great operating system will come from some other company. I think there's an opportunity here for someone to come out with a lightweight, superfast, rock-solid, Windows-compatible operating system that just does what we want. Just the basics. Let the developer community build add-ons. Sounds like a job for Google. Are they working on an operating system?
In the meantime, I find myself continuing to resist Vista. I do not intend to install it just because it's there. Why should I let Microsoft pressure me into "upgrading" when I have something now that works perfectly fine? |
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