Google lays down the gauntlet with ChromeOS

We all knew it was coming. There were rumors and flat out denials from Google so of course it had to be true. It was the logical path for them and anyone who paid attention to the types of software they’ve been releasing could clearly see the writing on the wall. Every time Google made an announcement or released something new, the was the immediate response… why? Every app, framework, website, tool, they have ever released is a piece of a puzzle that when assembled shows you Google’s over-arching strategy. You just have to step back a little bit to see it.

Google’s goal is nothing short of complete and utter domination of the web as a platform, not unlike the way Microsoft dominated the pc as a platform. For years people have speculated at who would unseat Microsoft as king of the desktop, throwing out wild pipe dreams about Apple or Linux usurping them with superior technology. Meanwhile nobody bothered to consider that it wouldn’t matter in the end because desktop market share is irrelevant, it’s like scrambling to build invent a better steam engine when the world has moved on to internal combustion. Software has become platform agnostic and as a result as marginalized the importance of desktop market share. This is what we all wanted, trust me.

Follow the trail of crumbs… Search…. Analytics…. News….. Gmail….. Youtube….. Picasa…. Google Gears….. Google Talk…. Google Docs….. Google Voice…. Chrome….. Android…… Google Wave… Google Music….. ChromeOS …. SPD Protocol….. Google Netbooks…. Google Phone….. etc. Each one of those is a component that addresses an aspect of everyone’s online life. Rather than competing against Microsoft on their own turf, they simply created an entire new platform/paradigm. In essence they are reinventing the personal computing experience in a way that makes the operating system obsolete. This is especially ironic considering everyone was waiting with baited breath for a Google branded version of Linux not unlike Ubuntu, or in other words, another operating system.

Chrome has positioned itself in a way that many people consider risky and are very nervous about, especially in the wake of the many PR fiasco’s that apple has found itself in for its overbearing lock-in policies and in the shadow of Microsoft’s own devastated reputation for being the inventor of vendor lock-in. In my opinion, Google has assured it self complete dominion over the future of computing for a number of reasons. First let me start with the reasons why I think Google has placed their balls on the chopping block.

Google is banking on the next generation of thin clients before internet connectivity is as ubiquitious as it needs to be. They’ve hedged their bets with their invention of Google Gears, which introduces the concept of offline websites and web applications that can utilize client side hardware for transient persistence. Great idea, however this relies on developers implementing it on their own applications. This leads me to my next point. In order to offer a truly rich application experience utilizing nothing more than a browser, then the world needs to move on to html5 as the next language of choice for making web apps. Well html5 hasn’t even been formally blessed as it’s specifications remain at the mercy of standards organizations. Again, Google is banking on this early which is risky, but if (when?) html5 becomes the new standard, Google will have already won the war with their support of the standard. I asked earlier today whether ChromeOS will promote the adoption of html5 or if html5 will promote the adoption of ChromeOS. Chicken and the egg? Maybe, or maybe this was Google’s plan all along to have them both bud together with the promise of a web free of the chains of any one vendor. Google has been meticulous about sticking with open source technologies and open standards. This is one of the reasons I champion Google, and all this time I applauded them as been wonderful netizens but the underlying motives I believe are simply threads in their plan for world domination. If html5 falls away to a more proprietary standard (Microsoft’s wet dream), or if people are dissatisfied with the user experience of Google’s coming netbook devices, then all of this will be for naught.

This is not the future I see in my crystal ball however. Google is not stupid and the future is not unpredictable for them like it is for Microsoft or Apple. They have already created the future and now we are all just sitting back with our popcorn and watching it like a film. With the advent of html5, web applications will become as rich as desktop applications. With their security sandbox model sharpened with the Chrome Browser, the security headaches that have perpetually plagued desktop operating systems will be replaced with less esoteric threats. With the arsenal of tools and applications Google has deployed over the last decade, users will not want for email, productivity tools, storage, connectivity, music, videos, pictures, books, information, etc, all the things that people use computers for.

Finally, Google has wined and dined developers giving them everything their hearts could desire. They have incubated projects that people actually care about, they have endorsed really kick ass development practices, and they have bolstered communities of developers that actually get stuff done. With an army of developers worldwide behind them without even having them on the payroll, there is no way any other software company could compete. Rather than taking the Microsoft approach of force feeding developers with their way of doing things, Google actually listened to the developers and catered to their needs and wants. They built it… we came. Nuff said.

What about linux? Well… what about it? People make the mistake of placing it in the same bucket as the other players but the truth is, is that it’s not in the same game nor is it’s purpose the same. Linux is not an operating system… its only a component of one. All of the userspace tools that wrap snuggly around the linux kernel are another component. Open source has given birth to ChromeOS. ChromeOS is the fruit of the visions of the open source community.

So I say the game is over, this is the new paradigm. The gauntlet has been laid down and Google’s true intentions have finally been exposed. Now watch everyone else try to catch up.