palexc

READ. READ A Clockwork Orange.

Someone wrote a book on it?

I dunno if I would want Google to become an OS because then it would become another M$. They already have email and a search engine. With that said, I have gmail invites (email in profile).

/also if anyone can tell me why Firefox takes forever to load up when I start it that'd be great

8cttopus: read "A Clockwork Orange".

boohiss is right. There has been speculation about this for quite some time now and it looks like a gLinux and gBrowser. I'd buy it.

This is kinda like the whole speculation into Transmeta that occured years ago when Torvalds was hired and they would not disclose what Transmeta was or anything... And with that in mind, the general consensus about that was wrong...

... so who knows.

Google are certainly one of the few companies with both the financial clout and geek cred to pull off creating their own Linux/*BSD distribution and have it both snapped up and community supported. It would be an instant supported platform for anything I write, and I doubt I'm the only one who thinks this way.

The issue of profitability comes up, but with a bit of clever interaction with their technologies they could pull it off. Or perhaps it is being done as a PR move. Or to biatchslap Microsoft for wandering onto their turf (watch the Microsoft stock fall if this takes off!). Or perhaps a little of everything.

I do like how they seem to be able to pick and choose some of the best employees from Microsoft at whim. I guess the "do no evil" thing has more appeal than "evil empire". ;)

i hit refresh, and what did my glasies vidi?? it seems, my droogs, that your faithful narrator was a bit late with the response....

1. Make Google OS
2. ???
3. profit

Has anyone tried this yet? It kicks the crap out of Mapquest.

Google Maps

http://maps.google.com

The pieces are all there, and they're all open source. (Well, except for open-source productivity software. But hey, there's always Corel...) Someone just needs to put them together. Google would be a logical choice to do this.

IMHO, Microsoft will not be able to crush Google as easily as it did Netscape and Sun. Google's search engine technology is already leaps and bounds ahead of Microsoft, and my guess is Google's management has learned valuable lessons from their respective falls.

bolshy yarblockos!

epyonyx also if anyone can tell me why Firefox takes forever to load up when I start it that'd be great

Try using a preloader:

https://sourceforge.net/projects/ffpreloader/

Yes, it only takes one man to create an OS to rival WinXP.

Thanks paul9639 I didnt even realize google had a maps search engine

I would definitely eat delicious, crunchy new Google-Os, as part of a nutritious breakfast.

MasterThief:

(Well, except for open-source productivity software. But hey, there's always Corel...)

Open Office is ready when you are.

James_Maybrick: All of MS's product are based on the X86 kernel. And so was Dr.Dos and PcDos.

Um. I Think You Meant "x86 architecture". "Kernel" has a specific meaning in the operating system context, and the 8086..Athlon MP don't fit that meaning at all.

So, what's to stop Google from creating an X86 based OS...with a better more efficient GUI?

If Google were going to create yet another OS, why would they limit themselves to the x86? It's a popular architecture, but it's showing its age, and the x86_64 or PPC is where it'll be in the future. The OS market will be stable over the short term, since Microsoft has a stranglehold over lots of the consumer desktop market. I think they'll concentrate on developing userspace applications, not kernels, because to write a kernel from scratch, they'd end up reinventing the wheel that Mach/*BSD/*nix have already put together.

TempusRob: It would seem more likely to me that they'd use OS expertise to tweak and refine what they've got running

That's a lot more likely IMHO.

A GoogleOS gets my votes, when the rumors are replaced here with quotes. While I'm cheered by their boast, what we really need most is a GIS that can't return 'Goa+++DISCONNECT

So, where do I go to buy a bunch of Google stock?

it is in beta I think. It is awesome how you can drag across the map and zoom in

dan86turbo: Some of us farkers here work for Microsoft, you insensitive clod! :-)

Sorry to hear that. You have my condolences.

The Google maps tool is incredible. Beats the living hell out of mapquest. You can scroll across the whole country if you want w/o having to click arrows on the map and have the page refresh. I haven't put them head-to-head in terms of producing directions from Pt. A to Pt. B, but in terms of ease-of-use Google maps is years ahead of everyone else.

pshaw:

If Google suceeeds a this we will finally have an OS that combines the ease of use of Linux, with the polished "it just works" nature of Windows, and the game support of a Macintosh.

There's a joke there somewhere, and deep down, I'm trying to laugh.

I think the joke is found in the words "and the game support of a Macintosh." Just taking a wild stab at it.

Can't someone just resurrect BeOS?

Dman33:

This is kinda like the whole speculation into Transmeta that occured years ago when Torvalds was hired and they would not disclose what Transmeta was or anything... And with that in mind, the general consensus about that was wrong...

Didn't Transmeta end up developing it's own flavor of linux for embedded systems?

pshaw: Open Office is ready when you are.

I stand corrected. Most happily.

/Is there anything open source can't do?

If Google wanted to make a good desktop GUI, why would they hire someone from Microsoft to do it?

Maybe they're tired of being successful and want to give failure a try?

Or, gee, I dunno, maybe they just want to know how to better integrate their wares into the Windows OS?

A Google OS a pretty big leap of assumption.

I hear Google just hired a well known janitor too. Could the Google toilet brush be making its way to your household soon????

ah shuck, I was counting on Booble OS

danceswithcrows

Meh. I'm not going to argue with you. I'm from the pre-gui generation anyhow. You're entitled to an opinion. No matter how wrong it might be.

Using Microsoft's x86 Kernel Debugger

I always wondered why people talk so much about developing alternative OS's to counter MS Windows when there are and have been X86 OS's for quite a while. The one I am thinking of that has been around for quite a while is FreeBSD. IIRC, it predates Linux and has been very stable and free. Shouldn't the effort now be to make a MS Windows emulator for any of the UNIX lookalikes currently available?

re: google maps

nice of them to show the provinces. Canada - that vast wasteland to the north.

On the other hand, it's so sweet not to have to first select your country, then the province, then the city, then the address, and still have the farking thing not find it for you.

Well why not? Let's all enjoy a new fortune from Google!

im guessing the guy was sick of working for m$ and needed change of scenery.

/was this from the department of 'reading too much into things'?

BRING IT ON!!! A little competition should do wonders for us all. Goodbye activation, adios lousy security and stability, arriverdici outrageous prices...

/Gates shiats pants, a la Dilbert: "Send the competition seekers" [incoming missile attack to Google HQ]

James_Maybrick - Actually, dances is right. "Kernel" refers the main guts of the operating system - the interrupt handlers, cpu time management, memory management, etc. "Architecture" refers to the instruction set that the software must use to run on a particular system. Read your link - the "x86" refers to the fact that the kernel was designed to run on the x86 architecture. Think about it - how would one debug a microprocessor from the command line?

Oh sorry dan86turbo I will type slower for ya ;-) Now get back to work and fix all of your security issues.

/didn't even mean to be a troll there, sorry man.

trapped-in-CH - the Google Maps thingy is still in beta - you can't expect full functionality yet. I'm sure Canada will be there in due time.

You mean I can play games AND sign away all my personal information to Google's marketing department at the same time?!

WOO-HOO!

[face_wtf_evar]

NSFW The only operating system for me!

Yeah, there will be a Google OS, and it will be in beta forever, like everything else they "release".

Just tried Google's map utility. Wow. That kicks the crap out of mapquest, which I (used to) absolutely love.

BTW, whatever happened to that thing on google where you could search for an address, and get a satellite photo of it?

shieldforyoureyes

Microsoft decided to crush Netscape because of similar rumours.

By releasing their own browser for free with their own operating system. Cue massive Netscape usage drop, even while Netscape was still far superiour.

The new MSN Search - as the starting page of all default IE installations - could easily overtake Google's usage amoungst the masses. We'll see.

GOD DOS was butt ugly. Im so glad I never ever had to deal with that farking shiat.

1a. Novell was a great security system for Windows.
1b. Microsoft hired the Novell developers, made a cheaper version, sold it to companies.
1c. The Average Joe already knew how to use Windows, because M$ had saturated the desktop market.
1d. Average Joe can use it, cheaper for the biz to train their employees.
1e. M$ wins, (superior) Novell loses.

2a. Microsoft gives away free hotmail.
2b. Adds toys.
2c. Everyone has a hotmail account.
2d. Now you can log into a huge number of sites using your MSN "passport."
2e. Your site has a passport, it's easier to use than anything else.
2f. You get more traffic (or more return traffic.)
2g. M$ wins, other (better) security companies lose.


3a. Google has a search engine rivaled by no one (as far as usage.)
3b. Everyone knows how to use it.
3c. Google adds Toys (see shopping, google bar, desktop search, etc)
3d. Google deploys email which requires authenication.
3e. Google hires M$ developer
3e. ?????

I'm not drawing any conclusions, but when Hotmail was born, who would have thought it would be a moneymaker for M$.

I'm sure there's something I'm missing here, but I see a lot of the same moves that M$ made being mimiced by Google. Anyone got an idea as to a conclusion?

Maybe Google could revive Alpha while they're at it, and
crush Intel as well...

Maybe Google wants this guy to help with their new browser or maybe it's another Google toy like local search. I serously doubt Google will be creating an entire friggen operating system. That's a tall order. Especially for a company that has little experience with with anything outside of advertising and search engines (+50% of G's revenue is AdSense). What Google needs to do is slow down their R&D and start buying up companies with real revenues and assets before their PE ratio gets any higher.

My 5 dollars says that he was hired to support the Googles Search Applicance. A stand alone search server. Cost is $16,000 per year rental