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As a web developer, I consider Chrome to be the beginning of a new era of online computing. We'll look back at this day and say this was the defining moment.

As a web developer, I consider Chrome to be the beginning of a new era of online computing. We'll look back at this day and say this was the defining moment. Not that it takes anything away from Firefox at all, but having Google put its stamp on a browser is highly significant.

DenisM 18y ago
As a mobile developer I feel the same way about Apple - iPhone (with bugs and all) is the dawn of new era, similar to how PC+modem was the dawn of the connected world as we know it today. These are the most exciting times in recent memory as three new platforms are being born before our eyes: the mobile PC, the cloud and the "web browser 2.0".
- froo 18y ago
  web browser 2.0? There has easily been more than 2 major revisions in browser technology (I'm not talking just version changes, I'm talking fundamental changes in ideas) If I had to quickly disassemble it, it would have been something like. - Pre-mosaic times (the internet was a dark and lonely place) = browser 1.0 - Mosaic, the browser that "popularised" the web = browser 2.0 - The introduction of Netscape and Microsoft IE and the "browser wars" that followed in which microsoft "won" = browser 3.0 - Introduction of a major competitor to IE that championed open source movement (Firefox) would have been 4.0 So if my rough timeline is correct, that would make Chrome browser generation 5.0 and to be honest, while it is a great browser so far - it is just too early to call. Remember Active Desktop for IE4 and how revolutionary that was for it's time? It introduced the idea that the web is more than just your browser, It's not even around anymore that's how revolutionary it is. One could even argue that Safari for iphone should be 5.0 because it took the true web (not the mobile web, and I dont want to argue about flash) into the palm of your hands. At the end of the day, the market will decide; so while Google does have a strong brand and lots of successes, it also has it's fair share of "failures". This isn't Google hate, I love their stuff, it's just reality. (EDIT - put in a few additional things)
  - smanek 18y ago
    Of course active desktop is still around. It lives on in mac widgets, the vista sidebar, and so on.
    - froo 18y ago
      Ya, but the point is that it got actively taken out of MS's base browser product (I'm guessing because of their antitrust issues at the time, but I really dont know to be honest). The core idea however had so much potential, even if the implementation wasn't the best. It was among the first true implementations of taking the web outside the browser, it was certainly the first I'd ever experienced.
  - johns 18y ago
    Browser 1.0 = designed to render web pages Browser 2.0 = designed to run web applications
    - froo 18y ago
      Well then by that definition, Google chrome is still not the first "Browser 2.0" because other development teams have included technologies like Javascript and especially ActiveX controls into their browsers, effectively making them application platforms. I just would like to reiterate that I'm not a Google hater, nor do I think Google Chrome will fail. I think it's a great addition to the web. I just don't like all this inane hype that's going around and believe me, tech enthusiasts are about as bad as teenage girls when it comes to gossiping and echo chambers. Remember when Plurk was the Twitter killer because of Twitter always being down? I think we're still waiting on that one. EDIT - (fixing 5am grammar errors, I'm sure I missed some)
      - johns 18y ago
        I used the word "designed" intentionally. The 1.0s were not designed for web apps. They work, but that wasn't their intent. This is the first browser conceived for the purpose of running apps. It just happens to be backwards compatible.
- dejb 18y ago
  > iPhone (with bugs and all) is the dawn of new era The iPhone is the dawn of the US waking up to the fact that mobile phones can be cool and used as general computing devices. Much of the rest of the world had known this and been using cool, general purpose mobiles for years.
wheels 18y ago
I, for one, welcome our new brushed metal overlords.

DenisM 18y ago

As a mobile developer I feel the same way about Apple - iPhone (with bugs and all) is the dawn of new era, similar to how PC+modem was the dawn of the connected world as we know it today. These are the most exciting times in recent memory as three new platforms are being born before our eyes: the mobile PC, the cloud and the "web browser 2.0".

froo 18y ago
web browser 2.0? There has easily been more than 2 major revisions in browser technology (I'm not talking just version changes, I'm talking fundamental changes in ideas) If I had to quickly disassemble it, it would have been something like. - Pre-mosaic times (the internet was a dark and lonely place) = browser 1.0 - Mosaic, the browser that "popularised" the web = browser 2.0 - The introduction of Netscape and Microsoft IE and the "browser wars" that followed in which microsoft "won" = browser 3.0 - Introduction of a major competitor to IE that championed open source movement (Firefox) would have been 4.0 So if my rough timeline is correct, that would make Chrome browser generation 5.0 and to be honest, while it is a great browser so far - it is just too early to call. Remember Active Desktop for IE4 and how revolutionary that was for it's time? It introduced the idea that the web is more than just your browser, It's not even around anymore that's how revolutionary it is. One could even argue that Safari for iphone should be 5.0 because it took the true web (not the mobile web, and I dont want to argue about flash) into the palm of your hands. At the end of the day, the market will decide; so while Google does have a strong brand and lots of successes, it also has it's fair share of "failures". This isn't Google hate, I love their stuff, it's just reality. (EDIT - put in a few additional things)
- smanek 18y ago
  Of course active desktop is still around. It lives on in mac widgets, the vista sidebar, and so on.
  - froo 18y ago
    Ya, but the point is that it got actively taken out of MS's base browser product (I'm guessing because of their antitrust issues at the time, but I really dont know to be honest). The core idea however had so much potential, even if the implementation wasn't the best. It was among the first true implementations of taking the web outside the browser, it was certainly the first I'd ever experienced.
- johns 18y ago
  Browser 1.0 = designed to render web pages Browser 2.0 = designed to run web applications
  - froo 18y ago
    Well then by that definition, Google chrome is still not the first "Browser 2.0" because other development teams have included technologies like Javascript and especially ActiveX controls into their browsers, effectively making them application platforms. I just would like to reiterate that I'm not a Google hater, nor do I think Google Chrome will fail. I think it's a great addition to the web. I just don't like all this inane hype that's going around and believe me, tech enthusiasts are about as bad as teenage girls when it comes to gossiping and echo chambers. Remember when Plurk was the Twitter killer because of Twitter always being down? I think we're still waiting on that one. EDIT - (fixing 5am grammar errors, I'm sure I missed some)
    - johns 18y ago
      I used the word "designed" intentionally. The 1.0s were not designed for web apps. They work, but that wasn't their intent. This is the first browser conceived for the purpose of running apps. It just happens to be backwards compatible.
dejb 18y ago
> iPhone (with bugs and all) is the dawn of new era The iPhone is the dawn of the US waking up to the fact that mobile phones can be cool and used as general computing devices. Much of the rest of the world had known this and been using cool, general purpose mobiles for years.

wheels 18y ago

I, for one, welcome our new brushed metal overlords.