Google Chrome OS to be ready anytime soon

About 5 years ago, Sun Microsystems CEO Scott McNealy and Oracle's Larry Ellison was on the stage together. Ellison comment on the Google PC rumors, "Let Google make the network computer now". Network computer, a vision that Sun and Oracle team up together, with Java and Internet technology to build an Internet thin PC client.

Now the rumors are almost to be true, but Google still not making any PC hardware but focus on the light weight Chrome OS. The CNet reported that Google shows new features on Chrome browser and Chrome OS may be ready at mid-next year.

Chrome OS which is a Linux-base operating system, but different from the Google Android (which is another Linux-base operating system too). Chrome OS is a light weight OS, which will be centralize on Chrome browser, using the browser connected to Internet cloud services.

You can take a quick tour of Chrome OS by PC Magazine. The Chrome browser will be integrated nicely into Chome OS, the browser will be the only application available and it runs fast on the OS. All application like email, messenger, office application, photo editing and management will be available as a web service.

I just name a few here, Google has build Gmail (email), Google Talk (messenger), Google Docs (office application), Picasaweb (photo management), Picnik (photo editing) as an replacement of the daily application that most users are using on the desktop.

Is too early to comment much about Chrome OS now. With Google services, Chrome OS and Chrome browser, Google make the network computer vision that Larry Ellison brought out 15 years ago becomes true.

Oracle Sun sue Google for Android Java license issues

With Oracle support Sun can sue Google over Android Java license issue. Android use Java technology, but they build a Dalvik VM on top of the Java (refer to Google Android software stack).

Sun in not into the business to sue other company for money, you can refer to Sun Jonathan Schwartz's blog post. Oracle do it a different way. You may say Oracle sue Google for Java license issue on Android platform.

Google has the money to pay Sun for Java license, Google also support open source (Java is open source), but Google try to avoid some issues may came with Java open source license. At the end Android is open source for most of the smartphone manufacturers out there. Google should have paid Sun earlier which may avoid all these issues.

Continue reading:

Java founder James Gosling blog.
Oracle sues Google over Android and Java
[Android被告侵權] 當年昇陽沒告 為何是甲骨文卯上了Google？

Gmail new contact interface 2010

I get a feed back request from Gmail, asking me why I am still using the old gmail. My main reason is, for the Gmail Contact only.

I don't like the previous "new" contact. It has 3 columns, looks like the Windows application or Outlook style. It leave me limited space for content editing. This type of design only suitable if you have a large display with high resolution.

The previous Gmail contact manager.

The new contact manager is more "Gmail-like".

Finally I don't have to go back the old gmail anymore.

Google announced to support royalty-free WebM video format

Google announced in I/O conference to support royalty-free VP8 WebM video format. The WebM video is the technology that Google acquired from the company On2.

WebM which base on On2 VP8 technology, expected to deliver a high video quality through online streaming. The WebM technology sounds promising but there are professional comment that VP8 is a mess.

If you are interested, you can access to youtube to take a quick look on how WebM video looks like. Since WebM is still new, it only supported by the developer version of Mozilla, Opera and Chrome.

These is what you need to do:

1. Download a browser which support WebM. Try Mozilla Developer Preview.

2. Enable youtube html5 support. Access http://www.youtube.com/html5, enable by clicking on the link "Join the HTML5 Beta".

3. Search for WebM video, by adding &webm=1 at url. eg. http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=trailer&aq=f&webm=1

The WebM video on youtube looks good.
Notice HTML5.WEBM shown at the bottom

The html5 player and flash player looks similar, if you right click on flash player, the right click menu will show "About Adobe Flash Player...".

For WebM video, it will show "HTML5.WEBM" at the bottom of the player. It will only show "HTML5" if is not a WebM video but html5 video. Make sure you get WEBM for WebM video.

The different between HTML5 and WEBM (HTML5.WEBM) video is the WEBM video only supported by the latest developer version of few browsers. HTML5 video is supported by (later version of) Firefox, Google Chrome, Opera and Safari.

The video quality of WebM looks good. The WebM video is still new, it might take some time for the market to accept and support it.

Video encoding (and decoding) is a complicated and advance technology. Other than the technology, the support from the software and service provider is importance as well.

WebM is new, is too early to make any conclusion. As youtube is one of the largest and popular online video website, the support from youtube affect the video format used online in the future. Other than the online video website, support from the browser software is important as well.

Is no surprise Apple Steve Jobs say no to WebM video format, since WebM is still new and Apple has their own preference. I rather take it as no comment from Apple at this point of time.

Normal user like us, don't really care (or know) what video format that we are watching, as long as it can be deliver smoothly and nicely through web.

A potential Google competitor candidate 2009

Google is the giant of the Internet, especially on search and online advertisment. If you ask me who is the potential candidate to compete with Google? I will say, is not Yahoo!, is not Alibaba, but is Apple.

Why not Microsoft? Microsoft is another IT giant, Microsoft can compete with anyone. It will not inspire you.

Google is a service provider on the Internet, but it also an Internet media company. Apple is a hardware, a software or an entertainment related company by selling iPod and mp3 songs. How could these two companies could compete with each other?

Google is good in search, and Apple is developing its search technology as well. Apple add in spotlight technology in Mac OS X 10.4 Tiger, it is a search function, not just to help user to look for a data file on the hard disk, but it can help user access to application easily, by 'searching' it.

The different is Google search the Internet, Apple spotlight search your desktop. This is not all the truth, as you know Google Desktop application search your desktop too. Is hard to avoid competition these day.

Searching is just a start. Browser application lead me to relate Apple as the potential competitor of Google.

Google search already dominate the Internet, if it can control the software platform like Microsoft does, that will be great. Google's answer for the software platform is browser--Chrome.

Google Chrome is an innovative browser, it not just render html real fast, its new v8 javascript engine performance out do all browsers available on the market. Since new web application depends heavily on javascript, an efficient javascript engine is crucial for a browser.

Apple release Safari 4.0 beta public few days ago.
Click on the picture to view

Apple develop browser application many years ago, way before Google does. The first Safari browser was release in year 2003. Recently Apple release Safari 4.0 beta public, is surprisingly fast on javascript performance (test by Sun Spider and V8) , it is the only javascript engine which can compete with Chrome in terms of speed.

Chrome and Safari share the same html engine, WebKit. It is one of the fastest html render engine in the market now. WebKit is modified from an open source html engine, khtml from KDE project. WebKit is open source as well, Google take the engine to build Chrome and added in with their v8 javascript engine.

Is too early to say that Apple will compete with Google with its new Safari browser, it is just a beta version and javascript engine is not the only thing that we are looking for in a browser, but I think Apple is a potential competitor.