Chapter II Review of Related Literature The development of computer system has grown abundantly and swiftly, giving many

modifications in all technologies with business and institutions. In our times today, many operating systems have come out and sometimes it confuses us on what operating system would fit for our needs or which operating system has a better functionality. Since my research is all about Google Chrome operating system, this chapter only focuses on Google Chrome OS and other things that are still related to it. With some related articles and studies, the researcher hopes that this will be a big help and a reliable source of information. Foreign Studies One of the up and coming server operating systems is Linux. In an article from CNETNews on July 24, 2000, a new study has identified Linux as being a significant threat to Microsoft in the server market over the next few years. Linux is a free Unix-type operating system originally created by Linus Torvalds alongwith other developers in the industry. Linux is an independent POSIX (Portable Operating System Interface) implementation and includes true multi-tasking, virtual memory, shared libraries, TCP/IP networking and other features consistent with Unix-type systems. Linux was developed under the GNU General Public Licensing and all of its source code is freely available to everyone. This doesnt necessarily mean that the program and all of the distributed software is free. There are companies and developers that may charge money for the program as long as the source code remains available. Linux is becoming more and more used in business today. One of the main reasons is the cost-effectiveness of the operating system itself. As well, there are numerous articles all over the Internet and news media detailing the positive aspects of open source operating systems in business today. One reference found on the Open Source website describes the basic idea behind open source code. When programmers on the Internet can read, redistribute, and modify the source for a piece of software, it evolves. People improve it; people adapt it, and people fix bugs.

And this can happen at a speed that, if one is used to the slow pace of conventional software development, seems astonishing. (Open Source, August 2000) From a business persons standpoint, the open-source model has a lot to offer. Companies are now able to build open standards as actual software and many companies and individuals can collaborate on a product that none of them could achieve alone. With open-source code, there can be rapid bug fixes and changes that the user asks for, done to the users own schedule. Other positives are increased security and increased reliability, and yet another positive is the ability of Linux to run on systems as low-end as a 386 to the higher end system such as Alpha and Sparcs. Based on the reports and studies being conducted by independent firms around the world, it is very apparent that Linux is making great strides in the networking market. According to a recent study by International Data Corp. (CNET, July, 2000); in 1999 Linux surpassed Novells Netware moving in to the number two spot for operating systems, right behind Microsofts NT operating system. The upside is that Linux is becoming more popular due to the upswing in server sales, filling in where Microsoft could not provide the cost effectiveness or reliability Linux is able to offer. The only downside to this prosperous trend is that the operating system will not benefit from the use on client systems. This market share is dominated by Microsoft. Ultimately the Linux operating system is an up and coming threat to Microsoft. Its opensource code is allowing businesses to take advantage of the features available. Linux is proving to be a cost effective, secure, and stable solution for businesses around the world. Linux is sometimes suggested as a possible publicly developed alternative to the desktop predominance of Microsoft Windows. Although Linux is popular among users already familiar with UNIX, it remains far behind Windows in numbers of users, but is making steps forward to shrink this gap.

Google releasing Google Chrome OS Google said it would release an open-source operating system based on its Chrome browser. The OS will be free, geared (at first) toward netbooks, and focused on "speed, simplicity, and security."

Google executives told the New York Times that Google Chrome OS would be available online "later this year" as a free, open-source download, while specially tailored netbooks running the operating system are targeted for the second half of 2010. The release will not be a remixed version of the Android phone platform, but a "minimalist user interface," with more screen space and computer power given over to web applications. Google's official blog post lays out some basic but intriguing details on Chrome OS' goals: We're designing the OS to be fast and lightweight, to start up and get you onto the web in a few seconds. The user interface is minimal to stay out of your way, and most of the user experience takes place on the web. And as we did for the Google Chrome browser, we are going back to the basics and completely redesigning the underlying security architecture of the OS so that users don't have to deal with viruses, malware and security updates. It should just work. More specifically, Chrome OS is planned to run on x86 and ARM-based processors, and its architecture is described as "Google Chrome running within a new windowing system on top of a Linux kernel." Developers looking to specifically target the Chrome OS need not apply, as Google says "the web is the platform"the system will, in other words, run web applications online and offline, and those applications should also work on any standards-based browser on any system. Many who closely watch the search company have predicted a similar move for some time now. To say the Chrome OS will face stiff competition is quite an understatement, with Intel developing its own lightweight, Linux-based netbook platform, Windows XP emerging as a force in netbook OS share, and Microsoft itself likely to fight tooth and nail to keep yet another upstart from encroaching on the one area of PC sales that is still seeing significant growth. It's easy to assume Chrome OS is a strong push to get users familiar with using Gmail, Google Calendar, Google Docs, and other web suites, both online and off. It's harder to figure out the specifics of how Google's platform will overcome the deeply entrenched Windows familiarity that has kept other Linux-based netbook upstarts mostly in check, and how it will

accommodate the vast array of x86 hardware compatibility quirks that plagues Linux distributions to this day.

Google announces Chrome apps The web browser quickly started to gain marketshare and is now the most popular web browser in many places. Globally it is the most popular browser and is now used by

approximately 42% of web users. In 2010 Google introduced the Chrome Web store which began serving up web apps. In many ways these web apps were simply websites. Google has even admitted that Chrome Web apps are simply fancy bookmarks that when clicked simply link to the website which is technically a cloud-based app. Think of Chrome apps as Google placing it's own ecosystem within Windows and OS X. Chrome apps are truly Chrome apps. They use web technologies and have Chromespecific code so they require that you have Chrome installed on your system. They are able to exist outside of the web browser window and act just like desktop apps. They can be synced across multiple devices and operating systems and they even work offline. A big advantage of them acting like a desktop app instead of a web app is they have more access to the computer's hardware. They are able to access your computer's GPU, camera, ports, bluetooth connection, and storage. At this time Chrome apps are only available on Chrome on Windows systems or Chrome OS. Chrome for Mac will be updated in approximately 6 weeks allowing for Chrome apps. It's possible that Chrome apps can at some point become a big competitor to both Windows and Mac OS X apps. It's even possible that Chrome apps could become a threat to Windows and Mac OS X at some point. With the problems with Windows 8 it's looking even more likely. Chrome OS was introduced as a competitor to Windows and Mac in the desktop arena. Early on it didn't seem like much of a threat but now some of the top selling systems are Chrome OS systems. One big drawback though is Chrome OS did very little offline and also it only ran Chrome web apps. Now with Chrome apps Chrome OS will do more offline and move to a whole new level, definitely increasing it's potential as a desktop platform.

Google states that at launch more than 50 Chrome apps are available in the Chrome Web Store. Some popular apps such as Pocket and Wunderlist are already available. A big advantage for app makers is they can build one app, a Chrome app, that will work on multiple systems such as Chrome OS, Windows, and Mac. Chromium is available for Linux which is the Chrome browser, only for Linux, and it's likely that Chrome apps will also run on that adding to Linux software availability. Google has stated that they are still going to be offering Chrome Web apps and just want to offer Chrome apps as an alternative. For the immediate future, Chrome apps will only be available on the desktop. Yet Google says it will be coming to mobile, just not in the near future. Chrome is available on both Android and iOS and once it hits those two platforms it will bring Chrome apps to almost every device, both mobile and desktop, with a similar experience on devices on different platforms and operating systems and syncing between all of them.

Google bares Chrome's Trojan strategy with native-style packaged apps Google's move to make it easier for Chrome browser users to find "packaged apps, "Chrome OS's souped-up Web apps, is part of its strategy to turn any Internet-capable device into a Chromebook wannabe loyal to the company's ecosystem. Last May 8, Google said that users of Chrome 28 on Windows, currently in the "Dev" channel, and thus the least-polished version of the browser, can locate packaged apps in a special section of the company's Chrome Web Store, the distribution mart for Chrome OS and Chrome (the browser) software. Previously, users had to know the URL of a packaged app -- with that URL usually provided by the developer -- to retrieve it. Now the "Apps" category of the store shows only packaged apps to those running Chrome 28 on Windows. Packaged apps are ber-Web apps that are much closer to "native" software -- the kind written for a specific operating system, say Windows and its desktop -- that can run minus a live Internet connection and call on several Google APIs (application programming interfaces) and services barred to Web apps. Written in HTML5, JavaScript and CSS (Cascading Style Sheets), packaged apps run in a stripped-down frame minus any of the "chrome" of a browser, such as the address bar, toolbar

and menus, so that they look less like in-browser code and much more like a native application on Windows, OS X or Linux. They can be set to run offline by default, take advantage of Google's synchronization architecture, and call APIs to access a device's hardware. Google debuted packaged apps at 2012's I/O conference, and last February 2013, they introduced the Chrome OS "App Launcher" -- a Windows Start button/menu-like program launch tool -- to the Chrome browser on Windows. To Al Hilwa of IDC, the expansion of packaged apps to the Chrome browser is a clear signal. According to Hilwa, "It looks like Google is defining the Chrome platform as what I'd call 'Web Platform Plus,' and intends for Chrome OS and the Chrome browser to be a 'platform on a platform' on any device it is permitted to run on." In other words, by extending capabilities once limited to Chrome OS, the browser-based operating system that powers Google's Chromebooks and those of its partners, to the Chrome browser -- which runs on Windows, OS X and Linux -- Google is slipping in a potential Trojan Horse that makes the native OS moot. If the same package apps run on a Windows 8 ultrabook and an OS X MacBook Air, the hardware becomes an ersatz Chromebook, all without Google having to make and sell the device." Packaged apps allow Chrome OS [and Chrome] to become richer platforms," argued Hilwa in an email Friday. "The approach appears to be about offline capabilities, which make Chrome OS much more practical and useful. To the extent Google is able to build a rich ecosystem of these apps, Chrome OS may encounter more success in the marketplace." Google and its partners have had only limited luck pushing Chromebooks. According to Stephen Baker of the NPD Group, during March and the first half of April, Chromebooks accounted for 22% of sub-$300 notebooks sold at retail in the U.S. Because the sub$300category was 19% of all notebook sales, Chromebooks were responsible for just 4% of all laptop sales.

Google has promised to add packaged app discovery to the OS X and Linux versions of Chrome 28's Dev build. The developer preview of Chrome 28 can be downloaded from Google's website. This year's I/O conference was scheduled last May 15-17 in San Francisco, it hosts two sessions on packaged apps, including a project status update last May 15 and another last May17 that shows developers how to transform their Web apps into packaged apps.

Google tests enhanced notifications in Chrome browser Google has released a beta version of Chrome that introduces what the company describes as "richer" notifications from the browser's apps and extensions. The Chrome browser has been able to display this type of notification for more than two years, but Google has now revamped the interface and functionality for these alerts. The purpose of the enhancements is to boost the effectiveness of these notifications, which remind users of meetings logged in Google Calendar, alert them about incoming Gmail or IM chat messages and display urgent headlines from news applications. Specifically, developers can now format the text in the alerts and include images, as well as surface functions from the application or extension so that users can take actions right from the notifications' interface." Rich notifications include full-bleed icons and space to convey a headline and short message. Additionally, they enables the user to create action buttons and respond to clicks right within your app, empowering your users to do anything they could do within the app's UI itself," wrote Justin DeWitt, a Google software engineer, in a separate blog post aimed at developers. Another new feature is a "notification center," which contains all alerts so that users can review them in a single place and catch any they may have missed. In the browser settings, users can disable notifications by unchecking a box next to each app or extension.

No doubt about it, Chromebooks are here to stay According to the research of NPD, Google Chrome OS-based Chromebook laptops take significant share of retail sales in the sub-$300 market. Low-cost Chromebook computers are doing very well with retailers, in stores and online, and now make up a significant share of the low end market, said market research firm NPD Group. Chromebooks that cost $300 or less account for anywhere from 20% to 25% of monthly sales of computers in this category, reports NPD. There is no comparative data from a year ago because the Chromebook is so new, said Stephen Baker, an NPD analyst. But in the span of a year, equipment makers feel a lot better about merchandising and marketing Chromebook laptops. Retailers see an opportunity there and feel it isn't a niche product. According to Baker, Chromebooks have definitely made an impact and they are here to stay. Chromebooks run Google's Chrome OS. Work is accomplished through the browser, and users are encouraged to store everything in the cloud, and little or nothing locally. Many Chromebook systems use SSDs. Last June, Google said that Walmart and Staples had agreed to sell Chromebook computers in their stores. The impact of sales at those retailers on the Chomebook market is not yet reflected in research results. A $249 Samsung built Chromebook has been the top selling laptop on Amazon for months. Even with the success, Chromebooks remain an incomplete product line. There is one high-end system, Google's own Pixel device, which starts at $1,299, and a number of low-end systems, such as Acer's 16GB system priced from $199 and available at Walmart. But there is very little in the way mid-range Chromebooks that are priced close to the average notebook, which NPD estimates is in the $480 range.

Baker said he expects the Chromebook market to fill out with new types of machines at different price points. "I think over time you will see Google and their partners look at how they can add value into higher price point machines," he said.

Asus to launch Chromebook in second half of 2013 Taiwanese PC maker Asus plans on getting behind Google's Chrome OS and will launch a notebook running the OS in the second half of this year, said company CEO Jerry Shen. According to Shen, the Google-developed OS is still in its early stages, but "market momentum" could develop for the OS in 2014. Other PC makers, including Samsung, Acer and HewlettPackard, have already launched so-called "Chromebooks" with prices between US$199and $449.He also said that Chromebook is good, not on the consumer side, but it's good in the education and government side, and some for the commercial side. Asus is preparing the product in the wake of a notable decline in shipments for Windows PCs, which dropped by 13.9 percent year-over-year in the first quarter, according to research firm IDC. Microsoft's new Windows 8 OS has yet to jump-start PC sales, while demand for tablets and smartphones continues to rise. Despite the struggling PC market, net profit for Asus was up 21 percent year-over-year in the first quarter, reaching NT$6.1 billion (US$205 million). Revenue during the same period also grew by 16 percent, and hit NT$105.2 billion. Helping to fuel its revenue growth has been the company's success in selling Android tablets. In the first quarter, Asus shipped 3 million Android tablets, up from a mere 600,000tablets in the same period a year ago. The company's best known tablet is possibly the Nexus7, a product it partnered with Google to build, and starts at the low price of US$199.Outside Android tablets, Shen said the company is seeing some potential with touch-based notebooks built with Windows 8, and expects them to grow in popularity in the coming quarters. In this year's first quarter, about 21 percent of its entire Windows devices shipped were touch-based notebooks or tablets.

Chrome OS 28 hits stable release, brings visual feedback to Chromebook Pixel Chrome OS 28 hit the stable channel and will be rolling out to laptops. First and foremost, the user can find a speedier version of the Files app, which now supports recent and shared files on Google Drive. In addition, the operating system now allows for monitor rotation and scaling, and even displays pop-up notifications after taking screenshots. As an added treat, Chromebook Pixel users will find visual feedback when clicking on buttons and links. Combine this with performance enhancements and crash fixes, and Chrome OS 28 stacks up as another incremental (but wholly welcome) update. Numerous crash fixes and performance improvements, speed improvements for the Files app, along with support for files that are shared with me and recent on Google drive, monitor rotation and scaling wherein the user can scale UI smaller and rotate the screen on all Chromebooks, notification pop-up message that will appear when screenshots are taken, with just clicking on the notification will bring the user right to the screenshot, replacing the Japanese IME with a NaCl extension version downloads a better language model upon actual usage, adding transliteration IMEs for Indic languages from Google Input Tools, touching link highlighting on Chromebook Pixel can now provide feedback on which link you click or button you press, updated Chrome Office Viewer (Beta) extension, and lastly, Pepper Flash updated to11.8.800.94 are the released highlights of Chrome OS 28.0.1500.68.

Google opens up its Google+ Photos app to all Chromebooks in 52 languages, no longer a Pixel exclusive Google released its Google+ Photos app for all Chromebooks. And anyone can grab it now in 52 languages directly from the Chrome Web Store. The good thing about this is when you plug an SD card into your Chromebook, the app will automatically get to work and back up your new photos to Google+, when the user is offline, he/she can still view his/her most recent photos, top shots will be highlighted as the user back them up, making it easier to organize and share his/her favourites, with this, it is now easy to share individual photos, sets of photos, or an entire album right from the app, they just have to simply select the images that they want and then click Share. It also has the Auto Enhance that

makes improvements to each photo the user added, making his/her pictures look great and lastly, an Auto Awesome that creates fun new versions of his/her photos like short animations and photobooth-style collages. Google first showed off the Google+ Photos app at its Pixel launch, and then released it exclusively for the device last June, 2013. The limited launch was likely due to Googles desire to showcase the Pixels display, which is particularly well-suited for browsing photos due to its high resolution and touchscreen support.

Google turns on native Microsoft Office file editing by default in latest Chrome OS build After adding native Microsoft Office file editing to the dev channel for Chrome OS less than two months ago, Google has now turned the feature on by default. The change means Chrome OS users on the latest build of the companys browser-based operating system can now edit Microsoft documents out of the box. As before, the progress was first noted by developer and Google open-source Chromium evangelist Franois Beaufort. He points to a Chromium code review that explains the change: Enable Quickoffice Editor by default. It flipped the existing About:flag around such that editing is enabled by default, and the flag is used to return to a regular viewer. This made the manifest naming clearer so its easier to see what is what. In updating the manifest they must have set the version number of the component extension to be correct. The technology being used here is based on Googles QuickOffice acquisition in June 2012. The expectation is thus that Word, Excel, and PowerPoint will all be supported soon in the stable build of Chrome OS (although in June the original flag only supported Word and Excel editing). In April, Google rolled out a beta release of its new Chrome Office Viewer extension, which lets users view Microsoft Office files directly in the browser on Windows and OS X. The

Office Viewer extension was ported straight from Chrome OS, suggesting Google could end up merging it into Chrome altogether one day. The dev channel for Chrome OS is updated once or twice weekly. Since the feature is now on by default, as opposed to just a flag, we expect it to show up in the beta channel before the end of the year, then eventually the stable channel, and maybe even the Chrome browser one day.

Why dont they make dual-booting Chromebooks? Chrome OS is not for everyone. People many times need computers that dont rely on the internet to fully operate, an advantage that Chromebooks lack. This will continue to be an issue until more developers make offline apps for Chrome OS, Google changes its strategy or the internet becomes much more prevalent. So, how can we make Chrome OS more popular? Dualbooting Chromebooks. `Dual-booting computers are becoming popular nowadays, especially with the rise of touchscreen devices. We have seen multiple Windows/Android computers come to the market, making us wonder why the same couldnt be done with Chrome OS. Chrome OS will always have its advantages over a traditional operating system. Its faster, light, convenient and simple. If you ever need to work with a more intensive program, you could always boot into Windows or Linux to do so. We can currently do this by doing a bit of tinkering on a Chromebook. All we need to do is to google a bit to find a good list of tutorials to turn our Chromebook into a dual -booting machine (or simply a computer with another OS). This is not a very consumer-friendly option, though. We need dual-booting machines that come with both operating systems from the factory. How many Chromebook users do you think are willing to tinker with their laptops? Not many. Even if they cost more than you usual, affordable Chromebook, also giving it a full OS would make Chrome OS much more enticing.

Google Updates Chromecast Software, Chrome Os, Chrome Browser The Google Chromecast update is the first bug-fix patch for the new product Google has issued an assortment of software updates for its new Chromecast television dongle and for its existing Chrome Web browser, Chrome OS, Chrome for iOS and Chrome Beta for Android applications. The Chromecast update was announced in a July 31 post by Ambarish Kenghe, the Chromecast product manager, on the Chrome Releases Blog. "Today, we are pushing a bug-fix update to Chromecast devices to improve performance, reliability and security," wrote Kenghe. "The update will roll out over the next few days and will happen automatically; users do not need to take any action." The Stable channel update for Chrome OS, to version 28.0.1500.95 for all Chrome OS devices, was unveiled in a July 30 post by Danielle Drew of the Chrome team, on the Chrome Releases Blog. The release contains several stability and security improvements, including crash fixes related to suspend/resume on Samsung Chromebooks, correction of a problem in which the keyboard backlight could not be turned off properly when watching full-screen video on Chromebook Pixel devices, and a Pepper Flash update to version 11.8.800.94-r10, wrote Drew. The latest Chrome Web browser has also advanced to its Stable channel, with Version 28.0.1500.95 being released for Chrome Frame, Linux, Mac and Windows, according to a July 30 post on the Google Chrome Releases Blog by Anthony Laforge of the Google Chrome Team. The latest Chrome browser has 11 security fixes, including one medium-severity fix and five high-severity fixes, wrote Laforge. The latest Chrome for iOS browser has been released as Version 28.0.1500.16 and contains improvements to embedded video playback on iOS 5.1 and other bug fixes, according to a July 30 post by Jason Kersey of the Chrome team, on the Chrome Releases Blog. The update is rolling out in the Apple App Store, he wrote. Also released is an update to the Chrome Beta for Android development channel, to Version 29.0.1547.40, according to a July 31 post by Kersey, on the Chrome Releases Blog. The

release is being rolled out through Google Play and includes crash fixes and feature fixes, he wrote. With the latest Stable channel update for Chrome OS rolling out, Google also updated the Dev Channel, or developer's channel, of Chrome OS to Version 30.0.1581.2 for all Chrome OS devices, according to a July 31 post by Josafat Garcia of the Chrome Team, on the Chrome Releases Blog. The new dev version includes a host of improvements and bug fixes. In July, Google announced previous updates for many of these applications, including a new version of its Chrome browser for iPhones and iPads, as well as a new Chrome Beta version for Android that introduced a new Web audio API and support for WebRTC. In June, Google introduced a video game, Cube Slam, to demonstrate and show off WebRTC capabilities. WebRTC allows users to see, hear and communicate with each other using only a Web browser, whether they are playing a game or participating in an online video conference. Google has been working on WebRTC projects for some time as a Google Chrome Experiments project. The technology could find its way into many other business and consumer uses in the future. The Cube Slam video game lets users play face-to-face against their friends by simply using a WebRTC-enabled browser.