Archive for the ‘review’ tag
Google Chrome: First Impressions.
Google Chrome
Microsoft’s Internet Explorer is the most commonly used web browser nowadays, but for the more discerning user, there are are alternatives. Mozilla’s Firefox, Apple’s Safari, and the independent Opera are all rising competitors that are rapidly cutting out huge shares of the market. If you’ve always been an IE user, now would be the time to try exploring your other options. IE has always been slow on the innovative side of things, and features you see in new versions have usually been implemented for a while in the other browsers. The downside is of course, that most websites have been coded for Internet Explorer, so new browsers might not display some sites correctly.
If you’re someone like me (a person who doesn’t really follow technology news that closely), today will be the first time you’re hearing about “Google Chrome”.
Chrome is the new brower released by Google that’s out to compete with Internet Explorer 8 and Firefox 3.1. It’s also Google’s latest tool in its quest for WORLD DOMINATION. This is an important step for Google, since the internet browser is probably the most used (GUI) application in a computer, other than the base operating system. It’s important to note that Chrome is still in its Beta stage, so there will be various problems and bugs; these will usually be fixed quickly, since the whole reason behind a Beta version is to uncover the bugs.
Installation
Chrome’s installation was quick and easy. It had the option to import bookmarks, history, and other settings from my other browsers, which it did without any problems. The installation took less than a minute, and opened up instantly.
Appearance
The first thing you notice about Chrome is its minimalism. The browser lacks any menu options, and the address bars and tabs make up the very top of the window. It’s comparable to running IE in permanent full screen mode. All the menus are accessed by a small button on the right of the address bar, and the same with the settings.
Another subtle change is the lack of a status bar at the bottom of the screen. There is no “loading website” status bar, which I find a little annoying. You never really know whether the connections stalled, or whether the browser is still loading the page. To make up for the lack of a status bar when hovering over links, a little blue tab pops up at the bottom of the screen, giving you the full url of a link.
The colour scheme is very simple and clean, although apparently options to skin the browser will be showing up very soon (if not already present; I haven’t had a chance to check).
Functionality
The first thing that Google wants to drive into your head is that the Address Bar is now the “do everything” bar. Which really doesn’t mean much; rather than have a seperate input box for searches, you now type your search into the same box as your URL’s. The problem is, this is a common feature in all the other browsers. A nice new feature is the option to change what search engine the browser uses as a default, when typing in searches in the address bar. The removal of a search bar does remove some clutter.
The second thing I checked was keyboard shortcuts; all your common browser shortcuts are the same in Chrome. Ctrl+d, ctrl+f, ctrl+t, all work the same.
The lack of a regular menu on top of the screen does tend to get annoying. It does come down to habit more than anything else; you just have to get used to clicking on the right of the address bar rather than the top. It seems more like a “we’re different” gimmick than an actual accessory to functionality and aesthetics.
Tabs are a standard feature, and they look really nice. When you have a lot of tab spacings open, the spacing remains the same when you close one, so you don’t have to move your cursor when trying to close a lot of tabs; a useful feature, although standard.
A completely new feature is the “incognito” window. Anything you type in the incognito window does not get saved to your bookmarks, history, or cookies. Basically once you close the window, it’s like it never existed. An interesting feature, although i’m sure it’s going to have an impact on workplace productivity.
One thing that bugs me is the loss of a “drop down” button next to the address bar. This button usually lists off the sites you’ve viewed recently; this feature seems to have completely disappeared in Chrome. It’s a pretty major annoyance.
Overall
It’s too early to make any definite statements, but i’d say stick to your regular browser for now, if you’re used to things like addons (I know I can’t browse without Firefox’s adblock). It’s still a little slow, especially when searching for plugins like quicktime. How stable the browser is will only be clear after a few days of usage, but if you like new things and don’t have anything invested in your new browser, try it out.
You can download the browser at