All Entries Tagged With: "google chrome"
Google Chrome Turns 2, Version 6 Out For Mac
Two years. That’s how old Google’s Chrome browser is today. Before I established Erictric in April of 2009, I had another blog that was a part of Google’s Blogger service. I just managed to dig it up. Turns out my first and only post was related to the release of Google Chrome. Sensational.
Fast forward two years, and here we are. Chrome is two years old, I’m two years older, and running a blog upon which thousands of you read on a daily basis. I digress.
In commemoration of Chrome’s second birthday, Google has released Chrome 6 for Macintosh computers. For those using a developer or beta build of the browser, it should come as no different — but anyone using an older build or not using the browser at all will notice a difference.
Google Partners Up With Arcade Fire to Launch HTML5 Chrome Experiment
Mountain View, California-based Google has partnered up with Montreal, Quebec-based indie rock band Arcade Fire to create a HTML5-based experiment for Google Chrome”The Wilderness Downtown.” Now, it’s a little bit difficult to define or even describe what the experiment really is, as it’s composed of several elements such as audio, film, graphics, and other interactive features. Users are asked to enter their childhood address at the beginning.
Once the experiment begins, several Chrome windows open while playing “We Used To Wait” by Arcade Fire. Some of the windows show graphics and video clips, while others show Google Maps aerial and Street View images of the childhood address entered at the beginning. All the while, all the features are paired with HTML5 to make the experience truly interactive and fun.
At one point, one is even asked to write or draw a postcard to a younger self.
Google Makes Chrome Web Store Developer Preview Available
Mountain View, California-based Google announced today in The Chromium Blog the availability of a developer preview of its upcoming Chrome Web Store, which was first announced back in May at the 2010 Google I/O developer conference. Just yesterday, Google showed off the Chrome Web Store for the first time at GDC Europe 2010 in Cologne, Germany.
Beginning today, developers are free to upload their applications to the Chrome Web Store using the upload tool on the developer dashboard at the Google Chrome Extensions Gallery. According to Google Software Engineer Michael Noth, until the Chrome Web Store launches, developers will only be able to see their own applications. Additionally, the Web Store will replace the existing gallery. Developers can still publish and make available new Chrome Extension normally in the meantime.
What exactly is Google looking for in terms of applications? In a video demo, which we have embedded in the full post, Google Chrome Web Store Developer Advocate Arne Roomann-Kurrik explains:
“We expect web apps to deliver a tight focus and a rich user experience. In this sense a web app in the store should be more like a mobile application designed for a larger screen rather than a packaged installable website.”
To learn more about the Google Chrome Web Store Developer Preview, visit The Chromium Blog or check out the video explanation after the break.
Google Finally Makes Chrome to Phone Extension Available
Just moments after Voice Actions for Android was introduced, Mountain View, California-based Google announced today at its Mobile Press Event in San Francisco, California the availability of its Chrome to Phone extension, which was first announced at the 2010 Google I/O developer conference back in May. Chrome to Phone allows users to quickly and easily send a web page, Google Map, YouTube video, and selected phone numbers or text from your computer browser to an Android-powered smartphone.
According to a post on the Official Google Mobile Blog by Google Engineering Manager Dave Burke, the Chrome to Phone extension code is open, which means that developers can create the same or a similar extension for other browsers. Currently, the Chrome to Phone extension is only available in English for Android 2.2 [Froyo] devices. Other languages are expected to be added in the near future.
To get started, download and install the Chrome to Phone extension in your Google Chrome browser. Also, don’t forget to install the Chrome to Phone application, which can be found in the Android Market, on your Android 2.2 smartphone.
Video demo available in the full post.
Google Introduces Google Chrome 6 Beta
Mountain View, California-based Google announced today on the Google Chrome Blog the introduction of the sixth iteration of its browser in beta. As with previous releases, Google Chrome 6 Beta promises to be faster than its predecessors. Additionally, the new release introduces new features.
One of the new Google Chrome 6 Beta features is “Autofill,” which allows users to easily and quickly fill out forms by remembering specific personal information such as name, address, phone number, and even credit card numbers. For security purposes, credit card numbers will not be saved by default. Instead, the browser will ask users whether they would like to save the number or not.
Some may argue that the new feature is a little bit risky. However, Google promises that saved information will be stored safely and kept private until a users chooses to fill out a form. This will benefit those who are constantly shopping online, and hate introducing their information every single time.
The new Google Chrome 6 Beta also introduces new syncing capabilities. Thus far, users are able to sync their bookmarks, preferences, and themes with existing stable versions of Chrome. Now, Chrome 6 Beta allows users to also sync their extensions and the aforementioned Autofill data — with the exception of credit card numbers, of course — using a Google Account.
Google Introduces New Experimental Version of Chrome
Mountain View, California-based Google announced today on The Chromium Blog the introduction of a new experimental and version of Google Chrome called Google Chrome Canary Build. The main goal is to update the Canary Build more often than the Dev Channel. However, this means that the Google Chrome Canary Build will be highly unstable, considering that updates will be more radical and not manually tested by Google engineers. Google warns that the “Canary Build is only for users who want to help test Google Chrome and are comfortable using a highly unstable browser that will often break entirely.”
Those brave enough to test the new Google Chrome Canary Build will still be able to use any of the additional Google Chrome versions [Dev, Beta, or Stable]. The Canary Build cannot be set as a default browser for obvious reasons. Also, the Canary Build is currently available for Windows only.
Internet Explorer is Making A Comeback — Gains Market Share
It would appears as if Internet Explorer is making a comeback. According to a report by Aliso Viejo, California-based web analytics firm Net Applications, Internet Explorer has been gaining some market share during the past couple of months. As a matter of fact, the browser gained a total of 0.42% in July alone. Firefox, on the other hand, has been losing market share. Just last month, the browser by Mozilla lost 0.9% market share.
When it comes to other browsers, Google Chrome saw a 0.8% decrease during the same period, while Safari gained 0.24% of the market share.
Google Chrome Surpasses Apple’s Safari in US Market Share
According to web statistics firm StatCounter, Google’s Chrome web browser managed to surpass Apple’s Safari web browser in United States market share for the week which began on the 20th of June [last week].
The statistics show that Google Chrome managed to grab about 8.97% of market share during that week, whereas Apple’s Safari browser grabbed about 8.88% of market share. Certainly not a vast difference, but one worth noting nonetheless.
Take a gander at the full press release after the break.
Flash Now Comes Built-In Google Chrome Browser
Just as both Google and Adobe said in March that Google Chrome would come with Flash Player built-in, the two companies have finally bundled each other’s software into the stable Google Chrome 5.0.375.86 channel for Windows, Mac, and Linux users.
Aside from the built-in Flash functionality, Google also addresses a number of security and stability issues previously reported by users.
Flash already built-in to Chrome is nothing new, however. Google has previously offered Flash already built in to both developer and beta versions of the web browser, but now, we suppose it will be a bit simpler for many on the internet to enjoy what’s out there to enjoy [i.e., YouTube, and other Flash websites].
