Google dropped a bombshell late last night:
It’s been an exciting nine months since we launched the Google Chrome browser. Already, over 30 million people use it regularly. We designed Google Chrome for people who live on the web — searching for information, checking email, catching up on the news, shopping or just staying in touch with friends. However, the operating systems that browsers run on were designed in an era where there was no web. So today, we’re announcing a new project that’s a natural extension of Google Chrome — the Google Chrome Operating System. It’s our attempt to re-think what operating systems should be.
The idea behind this is pretty interesting. Google sees the OS as only a vehicle to get the user online. By making the browser the primary component of the OS, it propels users to the Internet—and Google’s online services—faster and easier. It makes perfect sense for netbook users, who use their machines for Internet-based applications (for the most part) already.