Ardi, the goal of Ubuntu was obviously to de geekify Liniux for the common man, and they did a great job on many levels, but there are some caveats that make it hard for the windows user to just jump aboard.
Forgive me if I think Google with its nearly unlimited resources will likely make a more compelling Linux distro.
That's the thing though, if they put their weight behind actually making a Linux distro I'm sure they would make a compelling one. They aren't. They're making a super-striped down OS, based off Linux, that just gives you access to web apps. The vast majority of the people that actually use Linux need more than web apps. Period. That is why your "Ubuntu is fucked" comment is so wildly off base and just plain wrong.
Also, you think getting a DVD to play is hard in Ubuntu.... try getting a DVD to play in a web app
Using Windows for just document editing, multimedia, and internet is like driving a Ford Excursion to grocery. Majority of the computer users pay for extra powerful hardware just to make Windows comfortable. Take netbooks for example, they are perfectly qualified for most, if not all, of the tasks an average computer need to do. But their main hardware deficiency is caused by Windows. Especially with the ION chipset, or whatever AMD might offer, the average home does not need more computing power for anything other than games. Many people I know, actually, play games with their consoles. If Chrome can make the average user happy, I think it has a good chance to grab some market share from Windows. I am not talking about erasing Windows. The market MS is dominating at ~90% is so huge that 20-30% market share is still huge business for any company.
Ardichoke, I am posting from Ubuntu linux now and I love it.
The speculation that Chrome OS would be adopted by folks looking to check email and surf the web is wishful thinking. There are already plenty of quick boot OSs out there. Hell, buy any recent motherboard and it probably comes with one. Even the cheap ECS boards have 'em. And even though they're out there, nobody uses them. There's no reason to move to an unfamiliar environment that you know is limited in its capabilities when you can simply wait a few more seconds and have everything you need.
I agree with the opinion that Chrome isn't going to be much of a threat to anyone.
Chrome's primary target is netbooks. The defining reason to purchase a netbook is portability, meaning it may be frequently used away from the owner's home internet connection. In order to run a cloud-based OS, the user has to be connected to the internet. While I can't discount strategic use of public access points, the fact remains that those access points are few and far between. Therefore, in order to be 100% guaranteed you can use your Chrome OS netbook, you need a cell network data plan, and those plans can get arm-and-a-leg style expensive.
Chrome OS may be free, but unless you never take your netbook out of your home, it seems like a bad choice to me.
What a lot of people will respond to however, is price. If Google can work with netbook manufacturers to get costs significantly below the competition, even if it means absorbing the costs themselves, they could slowly leverage Chrome OS into the market and it would be well worth their investment.
Comments
Ardi, the goal of Ubuntu was obviously to de geekify Liniux for the common man, and they did a great job on many levels, but there are some caveats that make it hard for the windows user to just jump aboard.
Forgive me if I think Google with its nearly unlimited resources will likely make a more compelling Linux distro.
Also, you think getting a DVD to play is hard in Ubuntu.... try getting a DVD to play in a web app
Ardichoke, I am posting from Ubuntu linux now and I love it.
Are you still playing DVD's
Chrome's primary target is netbooks. The defining reason to purchase a netbook is portability, meaning it may be frequently used away from the owner's home internet connection. In order to run a cloud-based OS, the user has to be connected to the internet. While I can't discount strategic use of public access points, the fact remains that those access points are few and far between. Therefore, in order to be 100% guaranteed you can use your Chrome OS netbook, you need a cell network data plan, and those plans can get arm-and-a-leg style expensive.
Chrome OS may be free, but unless you never take your netbook out of your home, it seems like a bad choice to me.