Google's Chrome Browser

Thursday, November 27, 2008

Google’s Chrome gets control over Bookmarks

After getting so much of criticism, Google has decided to make chrome a better browser to surf the web. It has already launched a new version of Chrome 0.3.154.9 and now it launched a new version on Monday night. The new updated version 0.4.154.25 of chrome, with the new bookmark manager.

The bookmark manager appeared in Chrome 0.4.154.18, a less tested developer-oriented version released less than two weeks ago. It has other new features as well like a refigured pop-up blocker, consolidated settings for privacy options and security features as well. It was mentioned by Mark Larson, the Program Manager, in an e-mail announcement.

In addition, the built-in version of Gears, a collection of Google browser extensions for features such as offline browsing and geolocation, has been updated from 0.4.24.0 to version 0.5.4.0, and the V8 JavaScript engine has been updated from 0.3.5.0 to 0.3.9.2, Larson said.

Google typically posts further details at its Chrome release notes page, though it's not yet updated for the latest version. Hopefully …it would be done soon.

Friday, November 14, 2008

Google's Chrome will change how we surf the net

Browsers matter because we all use the internet, at work and at home. We know that not all browsers are equal: some are slow, some are selective about which websites they work with and some just don't look as nice as others. Google's new browser aims to start again, quietly manipulating code in different ways so that it works at speed, with stability and reliability.

It uses your computer's memory in a different way so that when you close a page, the memory saved is more efficient, keeping the whole thing moving faster and preventing inefficient freezes or crashes. If one page does crash, it shouldn't affect the others.

So should you switch? After all, it looks different from other browsers – there's no toolbar and URL address bar at the top because the page tabs are there instead. Text entry happens in a box that is both address bar and search tool. You enter a URL or search term and it offers suggestions.

Once you're used to the styling it is accessible, logical and straightforward. And because it's so intuitive you can get used to its basics before moving on to the sophisticated additional features.

Such as the way you can simply click and drag a tab so it becomes a separate window you can place wherever you like. Handy if you want to see two windows at once. You can drag it back, too.

Chrome is certainly fast, too, with benchmark tests showing speeds of 35 per cent faster than rival Firefox, for instance. It's also particularly suitable for web applications, like Google Docs, providing good performance for them, too.

Don't be put off by the fact that it says Beta in big letters – the excellent Google Mail program still says that now and it's been stable and highly usable for over four years.

If there's a negative, it's just that you can only use it with Windows. Mac and Linux versions are promised, and Google says they're being designed by engineers who are passionate about the platforms, not just guys tweaking the Windows model. Still, it's a shame they weren't ready sooner as this is a great browser.

Tuesday, November 11, 2008

Google Chrome: Plug In Support Updated; Watchdog Slams ‘Privacy Threat’

We’ve been loving the speedy operation of Google’s Chrome browser, but a few glitches - mainly to do with plug in support - have been holding us back from making it our number one browser.

The lack of an adblock plugin has been annoying us, and as power users we still prefer the power and flexibility offered by Firefox’s arsenal of plug ins and add ons.

Google has acknowledged that there’s been problems with Chrome’s support for plugins used to play videos and show PDFs and have just released a new releases which they claim is “packed with plugin fixes,” with early developer-channel users noting a dramatically improved plugin performance.

Wednesday, November 5, 2008

Mozilla bounces backs from Chrome challenge

Firefox surpassed a 20% share of the browser market last month, breaking its own records.

The figures, reported by web metrics firm Net Applications, reveal that for two weeks in October the company accounted for 20.6% of all monitored browser traffic.

Despite this, Firefox closed the month with an average traffic share of 19.97%, falling just short of the magic number.

The report will come as good news to Mozilla, which has seen its share bounce back following a half percentage point fall in September, due to the introduction of Google's Chrome browser.

At the contrasting ending of the scale, dominant browser Internet Explorer has seen its share fall 71.52% to 71.27%. The fall marks it out as the browser with the fastest declining market share.

Chrome was also hit by Firefox's gain, with the buzz surrounding its September launch fading, resulting in its share falling to 0.74% from 0.78%.

Indeed the only other browser to to gain during October was Opera, which jumped from 0.69% to 0.75%.

Monday, November 3, 2008

Chrome Version 0.3.154.9 Released

On Wednesday Google released the third Chrome beta Version 0.3.154.9.

Version 0.3.154.9 fixes a security issue that allowed address spoofing in pop-up windows.

"The window's address bar could be manipulated to show a different address than the actual

origin of the content," explains Mark Larson, Google Chrome program manager, in his blog

post.

Version 0.3.154.9 also enables laptop touchpad scrolling, improves plug-in and proxy

performance and reliability, fixes a PDF crash generated by closing a tab, and eliminates

the storage of data from secure sites.

The updated Chrome also has benefited from some housekeeping and interface changes. The menu

commands "New incognito window" and "New window" now always open new windows, privacy

protected and normal, respectively. The spell checker now works on text input fields and

allows users to add words to the spell check dictionary. And file downloading has been

changed to make it more secure.

Chrome is currently a distant fourth in terms of market share. According to Net

Applications, the global browser market-share breakdown, as of Oct. 30, is as follows:

Version 0.3.154.9 also enables laptop touchpad scrolling, improves plug-in and proxy

performance and reliability, fixes a PDF crash generated by closing a tab, and eliminates

the storage of data from secure sites.

The updated Chrome also has benefited from some housekeeping and interface changes. The menu

commands "New incognito window" and "New window" now always open new windows, privacy

protected and normal, respectively. The spell checker now works on text input fields and

allows users to add words to the spell check dictionary. And file downloading has been

changed to make it more secure.

Chrome is currently a distant fourth in terms of market share. According to Net

Applications, the global browser market-share breakdown, as of Oct. 30, is as follows:

Microsoft Internet Explorer (71.52%), Mozilla Firefox (19.46%), Apple Safari (6.65%), Google

Chrome (0.78%), and Opera (0.69%).

Chrome is currently available for Windows XP and Vista; Google is planning to release a Mac

version in the coming future.

Chrome users can also expect an automatic update soon.