The amount of comment on Google's announcement of Chrome OS operating system last week has been staggering if not completely unexpected. A large part of the comment has consisted of portraying Chrome OS in emotive terms such as 'Windows Killer'. The more excitable section of the tech press sees Chrome OS as a challenge to replace Microsoft Windows and as if it is a Chrome or Windows choice. It is not as they serve two different purposes. It is a choice but not Windows or Chrome OS but depending what you happen to be doing at a particular time.
It would be wrong to expect vast numbers of Windows powered PC's piling up at recycling centres as techno landfill while we all heading lemming like to Chrome OS. Lemming like is more the Apple community style but I will leave those comments to another time.
I have recently moved over from Outlook to Gmail, Calendar and Contacts so speak from first hand experience. I have used Outlook or its predecessor Microsoft Internet Mail and News (wow that dates me!) since 1996 so giving it up was a big ask. My reason was that Google Wave will be launched in the next few months and, regardless of your view of Chrome OS, Wave will be another important step in the development of communication and collaboration. Weaning myself off Outlook was a lot less painful than I imagined and, in some ways, liberating. Outlook has never been my favourite but there was no real alternative. Gmail is very user friendly and am already use to many of its features such as 'conversations' for multiple emails on the same subject. I do not want to turn this into a review but suffice to say I am happy using Gmail.
Additionally the Google Docs (the Google suite of word processing, spread sheet and presentation software) are different but usable. It is great having them online but they are NOT Microsoft Office and do not have the same features so I will be sticking with Excel and PowerPoint, Word is more flexible.
There is no doubt that where the use of applications becomes simpler, easier and cheaper users will move that way. I quickly could see the advantages of using the Google 'cloud' for 80% of what I do on a computer today. I can see that 80% increasing in the future. Whether it is via Chrome, Windows or a yet to announced system so be it. We can see where it is heading and we will have a choice on how we get there.
