2009年11月19日 星期四

Chrome OS

導語:谷歌在北京時間11月20日凌晨2點于美國總部ul開Chrome OS特別會議,首次公開演示了這款備受關注的作業系統。而谷歌官方博客也于當天發表文章,解釋了提前公布這一開源專案的初衷。

  以下為全文:

  谷歌Chromium OS開源專案發布

  發表者:谷歌產品經理凱撒‧桑古塔(Caesar Sengupta),工程總監馬修‧帕巴基波斯(Matt Papakipos)

  今年七月,我們宣布正在研發谷歌Chrome OS作業系統,這是一個專為深度使用網路的用戶而設的開源作業系統。

   今天我們發布的這個開源專案叫做Chromium OS。我們之所以在谷歌Chrome作業系統正式對用戶開放之前提前幾乎一年這樣做,是因為渴望與技術伙伴、開源社區和第三方開發者通力合作。從現在起, 基於谷歌Chrome瀏覽器,開發人員就可以自由參與開發過程。這意味這些免費的代碼將面向所有人開放,也歡迎公眾為其添磚加瓦。現有的Chromium OS專案包括了我們當前的代碼庫、早期的用戶界面體驗成果和一些設計開發人員可以以此為基礎進行進一步的完善。此次發布的只是雛型,在接下來的一年時間z 翩A我們會不斷地對它進行完善。

  我們想借此機會向大家解釋我們為何如此熱衷于這個專案以及它與當前計算模式v釵颾琤趕洇O。

  首先,Chrome OS的一切皆基於網路。所有的應用程式都是網路應用程式。所有體驗都在瀏覽器內進行,不再需要傳統的桌面應用程式。這就意味著再也不用管理任何程式,再也不用為更新軟件而煩心,再也沒有複雜的安裝過程。

  其次,由於所有應用程式都存在於瀏覽器內,這對於提高安全性 能大有裨益。不同於傳統的作業系統,Chrome作業系統不完全信賴你所運行的應用,所以每一個應用程式都在一個安全沙盒中運行,這就限制了程式入侵您的 電腦的能力。此外,Chrome作業系統也不完全相信自己,所以每當您重啟電腦,Chrome作業系統便會確認其代碼的完整性,如果您的系統存在風險,它就會自動修複並重啟。誠然,沒有一台電腦是絕對安全的,我們只是盡量讓惡意的人更難得手(也更加無利可圖)。如果您想了解安全問題,請閱讀Chrome作業系統安全綜述。

  最後,速度是我們關注的第一要務。我們正在剔除任何不必要的進程,對大量操作進行優化,並竭盡所能讓程式並行運行。這就意味著開機幾秒鐘後就能上網衝浪。同時,我們對速度的追求已經全面擴展到硬體。我們指定專用的硬體從而為谷歌Chrome作業系統提供最快速的體驗。

  我們仍有許多工作需要完成,我們熱切盼望能與開源社區合作。以往,我們從GNU、Lin颱 Kernel、Moblin、Ubuntu和WebKit及其他專案的合作中獲益匪淺。我們將上傳代碼,並且與開源社區密切合作。

  谷歌Chrome作業系統即將於明年此時正式發布。敬請註冊Google Chrome OS,了解最新動態。如果您想開發自己的作業系統,可通過Chromium.org加入我們。


Google Offers Peek at Operating System, a Potential Challenge to Windows


Published: November 19, 2009

MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif. — Google began lifting the veil on its planned Chrome operating system on Thursday, but it said that computers powered by the software would not be available for a year.

Skip to next paragraph
Peter DaSilva for The New York Times

In September, Sundar Pichai of Google discussed the Chrome operating system, which will not be on computers for a year.

Related

Times Topics: Google Inc.

The new operating system, which is closely tied to Google’s Web browser, also named Chrome, is seen as a potential challenge to Microsoft, whose Windows software powers the vast majority of personal computers.

But with the Chrome operating system, Google is not trying to build a better version of Windows. Instead, it is aiming to shift users toward its vision of “cloud computing,” a model in which programs are not installed on a PC but rather are used over the Internet and accessed through a Web browser. In Google’s approach, a user’s data will also reside on servers across the Internet, rather than on their PC.

Most PC users already rely on cloud computing, using their Internet browsers to access things like e-mail, photo albums and digital maps.

“Hundreds of millions of users are living on the cloud,” said Sundar Pichai, a vice president for product management at Google in charge of Chrome. Every program that users enjoy on their PCs today, Mr. Pichai said, will soon be available as a Web application. “The trend is very, very clear,” he said.

While Microsoft and others say they believe that cloud-based programs will coexist with traditional PC software, Google has often said that Web applications will replace all desktop software, another area that Microsoft dominates. Machines running the Chrome operating system, which initially will be limited to lightweight, portable computers known as netbooks, will not run any desktop applications other than the Chrome browser.

But even Mr. Pichai said that devices on the Chrome operating system were likely to be used, at least at first, as a complement to users’ more powerful computers at home.

Analysts said that the Chrome operating system could pose a challenge to Microsoft over the long term but said that Microsoft was not sitting still.

“Chrome OS moves the playing field to the cloud,” said Ray Valdes, an analyst at Gartner. “But Microsoft is a multifaceted company. They have a systematic effort to put a lot of their technology portfolio in the cloud as well.”

In a statement, Microsoft said that the Chrome operating system was in “early stages of development” and that “customers are already voicing their approval of the way Windows 7 just works — across the Web and on the desktop, and on all sizes and types of PCs.” Speaking to investors at Microsoft’s headquarters, Steven A. Ballmer, the chief executive, said that Windows 7 was outselling any previous version of Microsoft’s operating system.

On Thursday, Google demonstrated an early version of the Chrome operating system on a netbook during a news conference at its Mountain View headquarters. Google also announced that it was releasing the underlying programming code for the operating system to anyone who wants to tinker with it under an open-source license.

Not surprisingly, the Chrome desktop looked similar to the Chrome browser. It included a handful of smaller tabs that Google calls application tabs, which are meant to run the programs people use most often, like e-mail or calendar software.

The netbook using the operating system booted in seven seconds, and Google said it was working to make the start-up time even faster. Google declined to say which hardware makers were planning to build machines that used the operating system, but said it would work closely with manufacturers. It said it had been pushing them to make netbooks that were slightly larger than today’s models and included full-size keyboards.


沒有留言:

網誌存檔