Google Chrome Beta – Linux Version Not Available Immediately?
WHUT?
Google Chrome is a new open source browser made by, you guessed it, Google. Ok, so yeah, the guys are trying to do something revolutionary. They are using open source. I repeat, open source. Of course, Google is a company and I know they would like to reach most of the crowd with the beta version of the browser first (we’ll see how fast they get out of this ‘beta’). But what the heck does this mean?
Ars Technica; “Google says that an early test version for Windows will be released tomorrow, and support for Linux and Mac OS X will arrive in future releases. “
If Google likes open source so much, it could at least let the most important open source operating system (which the open source crowd pretty much likes, right?)Â have a beta version to test on their preferred platform…
It’s almost like if Apple released a new beta of iTunes for Windows first, just to reach more users.
By the way, this is my personal opinion, so please don’t bitch in the comments section about how much my opinion sucks. I will delete hate.
Couldn’t agree more!
DIGG this up please: http://digg.com/software/Google_Chrome_Beta_Linux_Version_Not_Available_Immediately
I use Ubuntu and was expecting a Linux release too. But hey hopefully FireFox will have some open source competition.
Dobro google me vedno preseneÄa.
It does sound odd. And if they’ll be using Webkit’s GTK+ port, it’ll be a slap in the face.
I use Linux/Gentoo, but I’d have to disagree with you. Just because something is open source does not mean it has to be avaible for Linux, and you have to remember that Windows is the most widely used operating system… Google has no obligation to make a Linux version just because they let people see the source code (that is like saying if a company releases the schematics of a car they should make it drive on all terrain). I’m sure we would all like to see a Linux version of Chrome (I know I would, the Google team seems to have thought really hard about this one and I have always embraced Webkit), but either you can wait till they finish the Linux version or port it yourself (it is open source like you said).
Not a flame, just my honest and realistic opinion on the subject.
Google is a business after all. The key words here are popularity and profit potentials.
If only a minority of online users are under Linux, why would Google spend time and effort this way?
Google may give the impression of having an “open” philosophy to online communities, but the reality is that they aren’t philanthropists, they are money makers.
By my opinion, Google is not what it used to be. Looks to me it’s becoming a IT cancer like microsoft and (latley) apple. Search results offer ‘sponsored’ links at the top, valuable links are now on second place…
And I agree, linux version should be released at least at the same time as windows.As it is, potential linux downloaders (like me) spend minutes, before they realize they’we been cheated.
Google, watch what your’e doin’! There are alternatives, you know!
I like that Google were forced into releasing this beta before they intended to and as a result I don’t think they or it are ready, hence the lack of OS X and Linux support.
Gary
I can see both side.
Google has a right to market it’s products to any OS it wants too.
But it is kinda a slap in the face for me and my little Ubuntu box
Hell at least they’re working on a linux version though. Instead of just ignoring us completely.
LOL i’m testing Chrome right now in VirtualBox
I like! I like!
[...] http://www.internetling.com/2008/09/02/google-chrome [...]
I tried it out on an XP box and I’m really not impressed. A few innovative functions here and there, but I’m staying with FF for the time being.
It’s a beta though, so we’ll see how the final version looks like.
Just disappoints me. Google was always good at multi-platform support. Untill now. Hurry someone port it, I’ll start working on it. Google supported port please!
This is nothing new, remember that google has other products that have not been ported to linux, but rather let to run by wine, and by this I mean:
Google Talk, Google Warehouse and Google Sketchup, Picasa for linux has appeared late in the game, so, it doesn’t seem to me that they like linux or osx as much as they pretend.
I think it is a smart move. We know that the Mac and Linux version will come, but the most important stake is the one aimed at microsoft’s heart.
I’ve got to admit, I’m personally pretty annoyed, but yoda brings up a good point. At least it has been released on the platform where it was needed the most. I’m content to stick with Firefox for now, and hopefully we’ll see chrome for Linux very shortly.
Google Chrome is really fast!
Now I can sort 200,000 records inside of Browser (Chrome) just in 1 sec. (Faster than Microsoft Excel):
http://www.ardentedge.com/ex_if.htm
I don’t think this is like that at all. They say they’re working on Chrome for Linux.
It’s not ready yet – that’s all. If they really didn’t care about Linux users, they wouldn’t even say they’re making a Linux version. Personally, I think they just don’t have it working yet more than anything else. Probably most of the team uses Windows and is more familiar with it, and so that version got finished first.
they should simultaneously release versions for linux and windoze!
As dissapointed that I am that there’s no version for Linux yet, Chrome has a pretty revolutionary design which is definitely going to require some debugging. It’s a very common practice to simply release software on one platform until it is stable in order to keep complexities to a minimum. This is only a beta, as soon as it’s proven itself on Windows then they’ll get the Linux port going.
Just because it’s open source doesn’t mean it *has* to be for Linux.. But I am a little dissapointed that the people trying to follow the FOSS philosophy arn’t writing for the FOSS community. Besides.. Why not test the beta on people who use Linux/OSS. I would think you’re more likely to get actual feedback from a FOSS user than a typical windows user who might just say “This sucks.” And moves back to IE with no feedback to Google at all! As well as the fact that I’m slightly peeved at the fact that I can’t test it without having to boot up Windows (Which I really don’t like) I just wanna try it now!
I think google had to release the linux vesion at the same time. And the Mac OSX version. And the Mac OS 9 version too…
And the FreeBSD version, and the Plan9 version, and the CP/M version, and the DOS version… not forgetting the Atari TOS version and the Amiga version. Heck! I want to run chrome on my Timex Sinclair 1000 man!
Well there could be many reasons for google to release chrome for windows before the other operating systems. One reason could be that they just spend more time developing chrome for the operating system that normally gives the most problems first. This is important because most people still uses windows and as was said before we have to realize that google is a business. So I won’t quarrel. I will just wait patiently for chrome for Linux as I am a ubuntu user.
ubuntu has to had first the chrome and not as it hapenned that windows had the first chrome version..
some people say “google must spend resources on the most popular os”
they tend to forget that free os like linux is self powered,plus the crowd in linux is less demanding ,people in linux have a beta tester attitude since they do not pay and they like to contribute.
the point is that releasing an open source browser on an open source os helps you get human resources -testers and coders to overcome problems, so it gives you resources ,it doesnt take them away from you.
plus the open source community will take a grudge over google for spitting on our face, i am pretty sure of it.
they now have a problem with Windows libraries they included in the Win version
As I said before, I think the only reason they did the Windows version first is because that’s what most of them are used to. I have a feeling that most likely, this started as someone’s personal “20% project” as they call it, and they had Windows in mind since that’s what they use – and now, as Google has revealed – there’s some issues with portability.
It’s nothing to take personal – it’s just something that happens. They ran into snags with porting because they used MS libraries, and now they have to switch to something else if they want to port.
It’s not something they did intentionally.
Check Google trends for: “chrome linux, chrome windows”. It’s interesting to see that they were searched for almost equally frequent. Or… do I see
chrome linux has a better score ?
In my opinion, Linux users are more inclined to try new software and I think Chrome popularity will start to grow significantly only after linux version release.
Dobro google me vedno preseneÄa
Well, i always used to have 3.1 then 95, NT, XP and linux as a 2nd os. Then Vista came up, my system went south and could not get XP, vista just took my freedom away.. 2 years ago went to Linux suse and been doing my job just fine, actually better.. I do not think I am one of the few but rather one of the majority of vista triers. The stability of the browser is becoming very important knowing what is ahead.
I think that they would have done better releasing beta in parallel MS, Linux & Apple the same day to make a point that the OS is not something we get shoved in by the force.
I believe that a bit of time today would have gotten a bigger bang to computing freedom as a result higher returns longer term.
Can’t wait to have the capability to create and manipulate Visio (.vsd) files with my browser regardless of the operating system.
happy and free computing all…
jose
Get serious you idiots that don’t understand what Open Source and true web browsing means ..
There is only one serious browser in the world for those that understand what browsers and Operating systems are.. None of which have ever been understood by MS..
So all of you that think that Microsoft understand the net or web browsing have obviously something to learn.
So Firefox will continue to rule the world as the only serious choice of a browser on a serious Operating system..
You had you chance Google and quite frankly .. you have blown it..
I’m not sure anyone who’s commented so far understands the entire point of Chrome. It’s not another entry in the browser wars. It’s an attempt to move the web forward (about time) to be able to support today’s web applications. No one else was doing it, so what Google is doing here is setting new goals and standards and demonstrating how to do it properly so that other browsers can pick up on the example. That’s why it’s open source; so that they can develop superior web technology that is available for imitators to examine and recreate.
Google has a detailed explanation of why they made Chrome and what it does.
http://www.google.com/chrome/intl/en/features.html
It looks like some pretty neat stuff. I wish I knew more about writing code myself so I could help get it ported to Linux quicker. To those folks who want it on Linux I say talk is cheap, code is golden! Get to work!
I haven’t bothered with Google. Codeweavers produced a Linux version just a week after the Google release. So its not a matter of an impossibly tough task. What it is then is a warning shot across the bow of Microsoft and the initial frame for their cloud system.
I have been too busy playing with the new Firefox to even check to see if the Linux version ever gets released.
Google’s privately made, profit driven version of “open source” really pisses me off. They’ve invented a new style of corporate washing.
Green washing is a term referred to the idea of when bad companies pretend something is eco friendly to make them look good, like Clean Coal for example. Google has invented “Open Source Washing”
@Cory
I couldn’t disagree more. Are we to criminalize anyone who tries to make a profit? People have to make money, and Google, among other companies like Sourceforge and Novell, chooses to do so while promoting open source. Google has gifted some nice stuff to the community while prompting much needed advancement in a web that has gone stagnant.
Competition creates a drive to achieve excellence, and providing funding and stability to open source projects helps make the community stronger.
I agree with Brad.
MS is OS monopoly and Googles biggest competitor. By publishing Chrome first for windows, Google is harming itself (and the whole IT market). With OS taxes the monopoly MS may eventually force Google of the market.
I think this is because Google only cares about undermining MSIE with Chrome. Since MSIE isn’t available for linux, it’s not important to them have Chrome on linux platforms as fast.
People working at google would definately be used to working under Linux and Mac, so the “they are first releasing under the platform they are most used to” argument is weak. They are technology geeks, not Windows-(l)users. Not to mention they are using Webkit, a rendering engine specifically made under Linux (Konqueror) and later used by Safari.
My speculation is the real reason there is only a windows chrome version is because they have a relatively small development team working on it and the software is still in beta. When they have to support less platforms in parallel in the phase where most bugs occur, the beta, they have more time to spend on the bugs in the platform-inspecific part of the code. So, I predict that when they take the beta label of chrome, and have a stable groundwork going, a Linux and Mac version will be released soon if not immediatly.
IMO it just shows good development management from Google if it’s preferring to use small teams that get the time to release instead of large teams that have to deliver in a shorter deadline (ie like Microsoft works), which leads to less quality results.
Just because Google’s servers use Linux, doesn’t mean that everyone at Google is accustomed to writing code for Linux. And I really don’t see what WebKit being used on Linux and MacOS has to do with what you said. Yeah, it works in Linux and MacOS – how does that make it any easier for them to write code for Linux? Not to mention, Visual Studio is what they teach you to use in school – there might be a lot of people who know how to *use* Linux but still only know how to develop software for Windows.
I think they probably have a relatively small team of people who are really good at writing code for Linux or MacOS – small enough that the development is slower.
Google should release Chrome for open source community first, just to show support to community….
They have so much money they could easy rent whole teams of developers for Linux…
But, money is money and 90% of users use Win platform…. I think that is the answer….
so…does anyone know when the linux version is set to be released? And I don’t mean a stable version; even a beta version would be good.
By now, a lot of folks should have made the connection, but since it is not posted, I’ll post it here. Google owns a huge chunk (by own I mean sponsors) the Mozilla Foundation. Firefox is just as much a Google browsers as Chrome is. The main reason for the release of Chrome was to throw MS a one two punch that knocked it momentarially off balance. In the end, Google could care less which browser gets the better marketshare…Chrome or FF. They just want to keep the MS folks on their toes and hopefully in a position they can’t deal with.
It is weird, I agree, I was pretty surprised, I hoped Google would support Linux more. In the future, I could even see Google pushing their own Linux bundle as a direct competitor to Windows. With that brand weight behind it, it could very well be the last straw for making Linux be known mainstream.