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This makes sense but I think the same comment could have been applied to Firefox. But instead of improving Firefox(or in addition to) Google created Chrome. Do

This makes sense but I think the same comment could have been applied to Firefox. But instead of improving Firefox(or in addition to) Google created Chrome. Does Google typically improve open source projects or do they just rewrite them from scratch?

hiby007 12y ago
In case of Chrome, they wanted to capture the market share for their business interests.
dkopi 12y ago
Google created their own browser in order to embed Google search as your default search engine and homepage. Not because of an altruistic quest to make the web faster.
- Someone1234 12y ago
  Since Firefox already shipped with Google as the default search engine and homepage that argument has flaws.
  - ksherlock 12y ago
    Google pays for that. What happens if Bing or DuckDuckGo write an even bigger check? What happens if Firefox gets stagnant and users switch to IE?
    - Someone1234 12y ago
      Right but Google also pays for Chrome development. It isn't free either way.
    - dkopi 12y ago
      What happens if firefox starts shipping with yahoo as it's default search engine? http://mashable.com/2014/11/19/firefox-default-yahoo-search/?utm_cid=mash-com-Tw-main-link http://mashable.com/2014/11/19/firefox-default-yahoo-search/...
- dragonwriter 12y ago
  > Google created their own browser in order to embed Google search as your default search engine and homepage. Not because of an altruistic quest to make the web faster. That's overly simplistic (even the idea that that's the only reason they pay for search placement on Firefox, though that's the direct exchange, is overly simplistic.) For funding Firefox and sponsoring Chrome, their goals included: (1) avoiding a desktop browser monopoly by MS that could be leveraged to favor the favor certain online properties or extract rents from them (e.g., to prevent Google's core business from being "taxed" by MS), and (2) (for Chrome more than Firefox) Drive the shape of browsers (both directly by implementing these features in a browser that would gain substantial use, and indirectly by creating pressure on other browser vendors to do the same) toward capabilities to more fully replace desktop/native apps, and thereby commoditize native platforms so that Google's core competence in the web space would have more reach. Making the web faster was part of this, though altruism isn't necessary to explain it.
dragonwriter 12y ago
> Does Google typically improve open source projects or do they just rewrite them from scratch? Google typically takes multi-pronged approaches to similar problem spaces when they have sufficient resources (which, given the size of the cash hoard they have lying around, they usually do) and their is some uncertainty as to which approach will pay off best (as there quite often is.) So its not really inconsistent with Google's general behavior to see them doing both -- improving the existing product and doing a parallel replacement -- for the same product at the same time.

hiby007 12y ago

In case of Chrome, they wanted to capture the market share for their business interests.

dkopi 12y ago

Google created their own browser in order to embed Google search as your default search engine and homepage. Not because of an altruistic quest to make the web faster.

Someone1234 12y ago
Since Firefox already shipped with Google as the default search engine and homepage that argument has flaws.
- ksherlock 12y ago
  Google pays for that. What happens if Bing or DuckDuckGo write an even bigger check? What happens if Firefox gets stagnant and users switch to IE?
  - Someone1234 12y ago
    Right but Google also pays for Chrome development. It isn't free either way.
  - dkopi 12y ago
    What happens if firefox starts shipping with yahoo as it's default search engine? http://mashable.com/2014/11/19/firefox-default-yahoo-search/?utm_cid=mash-com-Tw-main-link http://mashable.com/2014/11/19/firefox-default-yahoo-search/...
dragonwriter 12y ago
> Google created their own browser in order to embed Google search as your default search engine and homepage. Not because of an altruistic quest to make the web faster. That's overly simplistic (even the idea that that's the only reason they pay for search placement on Firefox, though that's the direct exchange, is overly simplistic.) For funding Firefox and sponsoring Chrome, their goals included: (1) avoiding a desktop browser monopoly by MS that could be leveraged to favor the favor certain online properties or extract rents from them (e.g., to prevent Google's core business from being "taxed" by MS), and (2) (for Chrome more than Firefox) Drive the shape of browsers (both directly by implementing these features in a browser that would gain substantial use, and indirectly by creating pressure on other browser vendors to do the same) toward capabilities to more fully replace desktop/native apps, and thereby commoditize native platforms so that Google's core competence in the web space would have more reach. Making the web faster was part of this, though altruism isn't necessary to explain it.

dragonwriter 12y ago

> Does Google typically improve open source projects or do they just rewrite them from scratch? Google typically takes multi-pronged approaches to similar problem spaces when they have sufficient resources (which, given the size of the cash hoard they have lying around, they usually do) and their is some uncertainty as to which approach will pay off best (as there quite often is.) So its not really inconsistent with Google's general behavior to see them doing both -- improving the existing product and doing a parallel replacement -- for the same product at the same time.