Google CR-48 Goodness - Google+ Invites

Image via WikipediaI've been away from this blog for so long now, I'm probably hopelessly behind in what I should have been sharing all along.  The CR-48 is still incredible.  I'm on the dev channel still, and in the dev channel we're working on Chrome 14 goodness.  The number of apps and extensions for this machine are becoming larger all the time, and the types of apps and extensions covers just about anything you can imagine.

I was lucky enough to score a Google Music invite, so I've been slowly uploading my 3000+ songs (my bandwidth isn't the greatest, so everyone in the family yells when I'm uploading) and it's great to listen to the music on my CR-48 (with the Google Music extension) or my android phone anywhere I go.

Another things that's been keeping me pretty busy, is finding a job.  Finally found one, but it took 4+ months, and 4 months is way too long to be out of work.  My creditors are not as patient as I'd like.  ;-)

Another great thing is Google+.  It's a great substitute for facebook, I really like it a lot more.  Since most of the people I'm following right now are other Chromebook pilots or tech-minded people, there is a lot of great information posted to read through.  And I also use it to bookmark a lot of information that I want to go through later.  If you'd like to try out Google+, here's an invite for you:  http://goo.gl/wrzFt.

Well, gotta go.  Hopefully I can spend a little more time here in the near future.  Leave me comments, or look me up on Google+.

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Google building Skype-alike software into Chrome | Deep Tech - CNET News

Image via CrunchBase

Google is putting a voice/video solution into Chrome that is open source. Users of GMails video and voice chat up to this point had to rely on a proprietary plugin, but that will all change when Google is finished integrating it WebRTC acquisition into Chrome. Read about the details here:

Google building Skype-alike software into Chrome | Deep Tech - CNET News

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Chrome OS Help

In anticipation of everyone getting new Chromebooks over the next couple of weeks, Google has made their Chrome OS page public.  Previously, this page was reached by those of us with CzR-48's by pressing the Help item in the wrench menu.  The page has changed a little bit to reflect the new name Chromebook instead of CR-48 and a few additions.

Check it out here:
Chrome OS Help

Samsung Chromebook: Hands-On Visual Tour -- InformationWeek

The first look at the new Samsung Chromebook.  Pretty sweet looking piece of tech.  I still think they're a little overpriced though.  I though Chrome OS based netbooks would come in at about the $200 price mark.  While the Samsung entry is pretty sleek (can you say Mac-book like?), I don't think the higher price($500) is justified.

We'll see what the market will support.  In the mean time, head over here to take a look at the pretty pictures:

Samsung Chromebook: Hands-On Visual Tour -- InformationWeek

Top 10 reasons Chromebook will forever change corporate laptop use | Enterprise Features

With just over 1 week to go until the general availability of the Chromebook (Acer and Samsung versions) running Chrome OS, there is this article to peruse listing the Top 10 reasons that the Chromebook is a great idea for corporate use.

Top 10 reasons Chromebook will forever change corporate laptop use | Enterprise Features

Official Google Enterprise Blog: Another step in the browser-based desktop revolution

Citrix announced that their Citrix Receiver will be available in the Chrome Web Store soon.  The Citrix Receiver will work with Citrix servers to allow your Chromebook (CR-48) to run enterprise applications natively.  This fits in very nicely with the Corporate lease option of $28/mo. for chromebooks.  Now you can outfit an entire sales fleet with Chromebooks, and the users can run your company's software right on the Chromebook via the Citrix Receiver application.  And if your company avails itself of Google Apps, you will find that collaboration on work documents and applications will lead to greater productivity.

Read the story here on the Official Google Enterprise Blog:

Official Google Enterprise Blog: Another step in the browser-based desktop revolution

Company Backing the Chrome OS Model

A story from a company which has embraced the Chromebook to get work done.  Hear how they have determined that Google Apps give them everything they need to run their business:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vt579RU7Ot0&feature=player_embedded

Chrome OS 12 — AKA: The Shipping Version — Hits Beta

Chrome OS version 0.12.433.38, which is essentially the version that is expected to become the stable channel version, recently was promoted to the Beta channel.  Read this article at TechCrunch to see their opinion:


Chrome OS 12 — AKA: The Shipping Version — Hits Beta

Next-gen Chrome OS build hits Google's Cr-48 notebooks - Computerworld Blogs

As I've mentioned before, I'm on the development channel which has had the changes mentioned in this Computerworld Blog, but this article is a nice synopsis of what was rolled onto the Beta channel over the weekend.  Getting very close to a stable channel release, I would think.

Next-gen Chrome OS build hits Google's Cr-48 notebooks - Computerworld Blogs

Google Chromebooks: Aimed directly at Microsoft's PC upgrade cycle for $28 a month | ZDNet

Another article which examines the cost of the Chromebook in relation to the Microsoft money suck.  It describes how it is very attractive to use Chromebooks that are always updated with the latest version of the operating system, and that have a cost-free upgrade plan included.

Check it out:

Google Chromebooks: Aimed directly at Microsoft's PC upgrade cycle for $28 a month | ZDNet

Five Reasons why Google's Linux Chromebook is a Windows killer | ZDNet

Another very good article on why the Chromebook is a great platform, and how it fits into the enterprise:

Five Reasons why Google's Linux Chromebook is a Windows killer | ZDNet

Why Chromebooks do have a role in your enterprise - JavaWorld

Now that the Chrome OS pilot program has been in existence for about 6 months, news of Chromebook releases from Samsung and Acer were announced at Google I/O 2011, and the technical press has been filled with reviews and opinions about the necessity of such machines.  As readers of my blog know, I'm a big fan of Chrome OS and my CR-48.  I have 2 laptops, a netbook, a MacBook and my CR-48 in the house, in addition to 2 desktop machines, and I use my CR-48 almost exclusively.  I think that the ability to use this machine as much as I do is a testament to the fact that most people use the internet primarily, and other, non-internet functions are secondary.  There are those who claim that the Chromebook becomes a paper weight as soon as you loose internet connectivity, but by the time these machines hit the market, I believe that Google will have the off-line capabilities ready to go, or very nearly so.  And what this means is that you can continue to work on your documents and email until you reconnect to the net, at which time the work you have done syncs to the cloud.  Read the following article from JavaWorld to get their take on the Chromebooks fit in the enterprise.

Why Chromebooks do have a role in your enterprise - JavaWorld

Product Manager of Chrome OS for Business: "You Can Just Pay Monthly" | thechromesource - Google Chrome and Chrome OS News and Forum

Image via WikipediaI thought this line of discussion regarding the monthly subscription service to own a Chrome OS powered device needed more exposure.
Read this interesting post about the plan from the head of the business unit that is involved in business:
Product Manager of Chrome OS for Business: "You Can Just Pay Monthly" | thechromesource - Google Chrome and Chrome OS News and Forum

Chrome OS Subscriptions: (Possibly) A Step Forward | PCWorld

Image via WikipediaThis is something that I've commented on before in the many forums that I post to: I can totally see the hardware supporting ChromeOS being sold as a subscription supported platform.  You get reduced prices on phone hardware by signing a one or two year agreement, it's not much of a stretch to imagine that you can do the same with a netbook running the Chrome operating system.

Read more about it here:
Chrome OS Subscriptions: (Possibly) A Step Forward | PCWorld

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New Development Channel Update Fixes Some Problems

Image by lewong2000 via FlickrThere was a new Development Channel release at the end of last week (3/17) which for me has fixed a couple of glaring problems.  The previous release had the annoying habit of continually restarting every time I would bring it out of sleep mode.  It had something to do with reconnecting to the wireless network in my house, which is a problem that has persisted since I got my cr-48.  I would need to disconnect and reconnect my wireless in order to get any data.  And then the release came that would make my cr-48 crash completely while trying to reconnect to the wireless.  So, I'm happy to report that this release doesn't crash my cr-48 on wake-from-sleep, and even successfully reconnects to the wireless occasionally.  This is something that still needs some work, but it appears to be getting close to completion.

Another problem is that the location aware features of the cr-48 crash the cr-48.  If you try to use any extensions or apps that are location aware, the crash occurs.  Some examples are the full-page web app from the weather underground, and Twitter if you try to use location stamping on your tweets.  This problem has been around for the last two releases on the dev channel, so hopefully a fix is forth-coming.

Overall, the CR-48 experience is getting better and better.  I have noticed an increase in the speed and responsiveness of the system, with quick redraws on loading of web pages.  Flash-heavy pages still seem a little choppy, and scrolling with the track pad while loading one of these pages is jerky at best.  Scrolling with the down arrow key is much better.  Speaking of flash, the newer dev channel releases include to different flash engines: one called pepper and the "regular one."  In order for most flash pages to work, the pepper flash needs to be disabled.

Cloud printing still works well for me, but the about:flags print preview page is still broken.  Luckily for me, most of what I print is pdf, so I can already see what the printed output will look like.

The last couple of dev channel releases have also seen the addition of a widget in the status bar that looks like a little square.  Much has been asked and answered on many blogs as to the purpose of this widget.  It is, in fact, a window changer that becomes active when you have multiple windows open.  It somewhat mimics the task of the "next-window" button in the top row of the keyboard, but unlike that button, it will not display crosh shell windows when used.  So if you have a crosh window open, you still need to use the "next-window" button to see it.

Oh, one more thing:  the slideshow url still doesn't work, so you need to use the trusty file:/// url to see any screenshots or image files that you may have.  It will be nice when this is fixed; a lot of users are complaining that screenshots don't work, when in fact it is the slideshow functionality that is broken.

As alway, anxiously awaiting the next update to see what goodies it brings!

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Google's Chrome untouched at Pwn2Own hack match - Computerworld

Image via Wikipedia

Google offers $20,000 to anyone who can crack Chrome OS, and no one even bothers to try. How many volumes does that say about Google's technology behind the operating system? This should easily boost Chrome OS as being a safe alternative to business.

See the original article here at ComputerWorld:

Google's Chrome untouched at Pwn2Own hack match - Computerworld

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Google Chrome 10: A Feature Breakdown - PCWorld

Image via Wikipedia

For those of you CR-48 owners that are still on the Beta channel, here is a good article that explains most of the features of the Google Chrome Browser version 10. The article pays particular attention to the new settings interface (tab-based) and what all of the features in the settings are used for.

Beta Channel users can find this article at:

Google Chrome 10: A Feature Breakdown - PCWorld

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Hands-on: Chrome 10 Pushes the Browser Speed Barrier - Computerworld

Image via Wikipedia

An article at ComputerWorld hightlight the speed improvements in Google Chrome 10. We lucky CR-48 owners who are using the development channel have seen our Chrome version rocket to 11.0.

Read the article here:

Hands-on: Chrome 10 pushes the browser speed barrier - Computerworld

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Another Update in the Development Channel for CR-48s

Image via CrunchBaseLast night (3/7) brought a new update to the Development Channel, and now we have the following version information:

Chrome OS 0.11.227.0 (Official Build) dev-channel x86-mario

Google Chrome 11.0.690.0

However, this release comes with more problems than it's worth, and from what I hear this morning the update has been pulled.

The problems were many:  Crashing on every restart, blank, white pages, inability to go to bookmarked pages and receive any data, plus many more.  A new functionality was added to pre-render web pages and according to on of the moderators on the Google Groups group for the pilot program, you need to disable this in order for pages to load correctly.  You do this by going to the about:flags page and selecting Disable from the drop-down in the Pre-rendering group.  Problem is, a lot of people can't even get to the about:flags page to change this setting.  It takes several reboots, closing all tabs, a couple of crashes and, well, you get the idea.

On a good note, with the upgrade to Chrome 11.0.690.0, there is a very noticeable speed improvement.  Pages draw much  more quickly, and there is no lag in any of the websites that I normally use.  Reminds me more of the commercial that Google did early on for Chrome that show it being faster than a speeding projectile and other things.  Also the track-pad is much better behaved.  Scrolling in all directions is smooth and controllable.  Another new feature is the window cycle button in the top of the window by the battery monitor.  If you have several windows and panels open, pressing this button will cycle through them all.

So, if the rumor about the update being pulled is correct, then hopefully the next release will fix the problems for those of us who got this upgrade.  When  that happens, this will be a great little machine.   Snappy, responsive and with some really great features.

Top 10 Chrome OS extensions

Image by lewong2000 via Flickr

The great thing about the Chrome OS is the ability to load web apps and extensions that aid you in the way you use your computer.  I found a slideshow this morning that highlights some of the most popular/useful extensions that you can use with Chrome OS on your CR-48.  Check them out, and let me know which ones you like!

Top 10 Chrome OS extensions