[real-eyes] Re: Fw: google's new OS
- From: "Fettgather, Jim" <jfettgather@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- To: <real-eyes@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Wed, 8 Jul 2009 11:32:50 -0500
Windows 7, the last version of Windows?
I hardly think so, Windows 8 is already in the planning stages.
http://blogs.zdnet.com/microsoft/?p=2559
Having said that, accessibility is of course a high priority and concern
to these new evolving operating systems.
-----Original Message-----
From: Reginald George [mailto:sgeorge@xxxxxxxxx]
Sent: Wednesday, July 08, 2009 11:14 AM
To: real-eyes@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: [real-eyes] Fw: google's new OS
What really blows my mind in the below article, is the difference in
the stock price. Could a computing sea change be on the way? If
computing fragments and everyone starts using their own favorite
operating systems what will this do for standards and accessibility?
Microsoft has said in the past that Windows 7 would be the last version
of Windows. Much computing is supposed to be moving to the cloud. At
the end they say that people have tried to compete with Windows in the
past and failed. But they didn't have a billion dollar company behind
them. Google needs to have continuing pressure applied from the VI
community around the issues of accessibility. The Chrome browser hasn't
been accessible at all to this point. But they have promised to address
accessibility in the future. they really need to address it now. Just
my thoughts.
Reg
LLEY, Idaho (AP) -- Google Inc. is working on a new operating system for
inexpensive computers in a daring attempt to diminish Microsoft Corp.'s
longstanding control over people's computer experience.
The new operating system, announced Tuesday night on Google's Web site,
will be based on the company's 9-month-old Web browser, Chrome. Google
intends to rely on help from the community of open-source programmers to
develop the Chrome operating system, which is expected to begin running
computers in the second half of 2010.
Shares of Google jumped $6.92, 1.8 percent, to $403.55 in morning
trading Wednesday, while Microsoft fell 15 cents to $22.38.
Google is designing the operating system primarily for "netbooks," a
lower-cost, less powerful breed of laptop computers that is becoming
increasingly popular among budget-conscious consumers primarily
interested in surfing the Web.
Google has already introduced an operating system for smart phones and
other mobile devices, called Android, that vies against various other
systems, including ones made by Microsoft and Apple Inc.
The Android system worked well enough to entice some computer makers to
begin developing netbooks that will run on it. For instance, Acer Inc.,
the world's third-largest PC maker, said last month it would make
netbooks that run Android instead of Windows. Acer said Android would
make the computers less expensive and possibly help them boot up faster.
Google, though, apparently believes a Chrome-based system will be better
suited for netbooks.
That is a direct challenge to Microsoft, whose next operating system,
Windows 7, is being geared for netbooks as well as larger computers. And
it would be Google's boldest confrontation yet with its biggest nemesis.
Microsoft had no immediate comment Wednesday.
A duel between the two technology powerhouses has been steadily
escalating in recent years as Google's dominance of the Internet's
lucrative search market has given it the means to threaten Microsoft in
ways that few other companies can.
Google already has rankled Microsoft by luring some of its top employees
and developing an online package of computer programs that provide an
alternative to Microsoft's top-selling word processing, spreadsheet and
calendar applications.
Meanwhile, Microsoft has been trying to thwart Google by investing
billions of dollars to improve its own Internet search and advertising
systems - to little avail so far.
In the past month or so, though, Microsoft has been winning positive
reviews and picking up more users with the latest upgrade to its search
engine, now called Bing. Microsoft is hailing the makeover with a $100
million marketing campaign.
Now Google is aiming for Microsoft's financial jugular with Chrome its
operating system.
Microsoft has drawn much of its power - and profits - from the Windows
operating system that has steered most personal computers for the past
two decades.
Google's chief executive, Eric Schmidt, and its co-founders, Larry Page
and Sergey Brin, have not concealed their disdain for Windows.
Schmidt maintains Microsoft sometimes unfairly rigs its operating system
to limit consumer choices - something that Microsoft has consistently
denied doing. Google fears Microsoft could limit access to its search
engine and other products if Windows is set up to favor Microsoft
products.
Google made a veiled reference to Windows' perceived shortcomings in its
blog posting Tuesday.
"We hear a lot from our users and their message is clear - computers
need to get better," wrote Sundar Pichai, Google's vice president of
product management and Linus Upson, Google's engineering director. "We
believe choice will drive innovation for the benefit of everyone,
including Google."
Schmidt and Brin are expected to discuss Google's new operating system
this week when they appear at a media conference hosted by Allen & Co.
at the Sun Valley resort in Idaho.
Despite its own power and prominence, Google won't have an easy time
changing the status quo that has governed personal computing.
As an example of how difficult it is to topple a long-established market
leader, Google estimates about 30 million people are now using its
Chrome browser - a small fraction of those that rely on Microsoft's
market-leading Internet Explorer. And there have been various attempts
to develop open-source software to undermine Windows on PCs, with
relatively little effect.
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