Google Chrome Web Browser revisited

Google Chrome Web Browser has been released for quite a while now (and I've been using it since then), but still many people don't know about it. Richard Byrne just posted a nice article with some videos about Chrome too, so I decided to revisit what I feel is the best web browser.

I've written about it before (HERE and HERE and here is a good resource about web browsers) but want to point out some new features.

Some of the main features in Chrome:

Fast! Web sites load fast and web applications run quickly and smoothly.

Simple! The browser takes up less screen area giving you more area to view your website.
Combined Address Bar and Search bar - type a web address or search term in one box and you either go to the website or get search returns. Simple and easy.

Easy tab use - open, close, and move tabs easily.

Isolated tabs - if a web site on one tab crashes, it won't affect your other open tabs.

Opens online documents using Google Docs. Easy to view all kinds of files.

Themes - pick your theme (colors) for your browser.

Bookmarks - sync your browser bookmarks across multiple computers using your Google account.

Bookmarklets - besides having bookmarks on your bookmark toolbar, you can also include bookmarklets which are buttons that cause an action. Examples include: Clip to Evernote (clips the content to your Evernote account), Google Bookmark (creates a bookmark of the page you are viewing), Diigolet (which puts a link to the website into your Diigo account) and many more.

Extensions - extensions are add on programs for web browsers, and what made Firefox so popular. Chrome's development version supports extensions (and the main version will soon too). I only use a few so far, including Google Translate (of the page you are viewing), Internet Explorer tab (opens a tab in IE to view IE only websites), Aviary (perform lots of functions using Aviary's web based graphics editors), Blog This! (which clips a web page to your Blogger account so you can blog about it) and Google Calendar which tells me how long until my next appointment.

Favorites and Recently closed tabs - are all listed when you click on a new tab. This makes it easy to go to your most visited sites and to revisit sites that you have just closed.

Customizable / Privacy settings - you can customize the way the browser looks and functions and you can set different privacy settings to protect your privacy while online.

Stable and secure. Chrome is a very stable browser (I have had almost no crashes, ever, with Chrome) and very secure from attacks and hackers.

This is just some of the features of Google's Chrome Web Browser. Try it out for yourself and see how nice it is.

Google Chrome OS

Google just announced Google Chrome OS (although most people knew it was coming).

Google Chrome OS is a new operating system that Google is creating based on it's Chrome Web Browser.

The operating system will not store anything on the computer you are using. Everything, including applications, will be hosted on Google's servers ("in the cloud"). The operating system boots up in less than 10 seconds (very impressive!) and within another 5-10 seconds you are online and working. The OS basically runs everything through the Chrome web browser.

Every time you boot up your computer, the OS connects with Google's system and does a self check. If it finds any problems or issues, it will fix it with a reload. That is part of the security of Chrome OS. The other part of the security is that if you loose your computer, or someone steals it, they can't access your data with out your account information and password. There is no data on the computer itself. (This part is very nice considering how many companies lose important data, including customer personal information, when employee laptops are lost or stolen.)

My first impressions from the video of the launch are impressive. I see Chrome OS as the perfect OS for netbooks - it doesn't need much for memory on the computer, boats at warp speed, and still allows you do to your work. I already use mostly cloud based apps (Google Docs, Gmail, Google Calendar, Evernote, Engrade) so having an operating system like this on a netbook is great. This is not for everyone though. If you need to do work on computer based files, this is not for you.

Below, you can see a screen shot of Chrome OS. Notice how it runs in Chrome Browser. In the upper right corner you can see the time and battery level indicator. All the applications are tabs in the browser. The Chrome OS notepad is also shown on the right side.

Below is a shot of some of the applications for Chrome OS. They are all web based applications. Some of the apps listed: Gmail, Hotmail, Yahoo Mail, Google Reader, Google Calendar, Google Docs, Pandera, Picasa Web, YouTube, Hulu, Contacts, ToDo list, Calculator, Facebook, Twitter, and a "get more" link.

Overall, I would say that Google Chrome OS, which should be available next year, will be a great OS for people using netbooks and who work with web-based applications.

What Browser - learn about web browsers

Whatbrowser is a new site from Google that explains what a web browser is using a very short, animated video.

Google's research indicated that most people had no idea what a web browser is, so they wanted to educate people. The site will automatically detect what browser you are using. There are links to more information about web browsers, some useful tips. They also have links to the 5 major web browsers (Opera, Chrome, Firefox, Internet Explorer, and Safari) so that people can try a different one if they want. Obviously, Google hopes you'll pick Google Chrome, which is what I use.

Each browser has different form layouts and do things a little differently. I find that a web browser is part performance, part personal preference. I use Google Chrome because it works great with all of the other Google Products I use. Some people use Internet Explorer because it's what came with their computer. Firefox has a huge number of add-ons that let you customize your browser. Explore each one and find the one that works best for you. All are free.

Playing YouTube Videos in your classroom

Many school system block Youtube because of the multitude of bad videos on there. The problem this causes is that teachers can't show the good videos in class. And there are a lot of great videos on YouTube that teachers can use - lectures, demonstrations, news, and more. I've had many teachers ask me if there is a way to save the video at home and then play it at school. Here is my way of doing it, there are others. Everything I list is free.

Google owns YouTube, so even Google Video is blocked.

1. You need a way to download the video. I use a user script in Google Chrome to do this. You can find the script and instructions HERE. You then go to the YouTube video and click the bookmarklet that you just created and the video will download.

If you use Internet Explorer v7, you should download and install IE7Pro. Then, follow these instructions to set it up to allow you to download YouTube videos. When you go to the YouTube video you will see a "download video" link on the web page near the video information. Click on that and save the video.

2. Now, the videos you just saved are in .flv format (Flash Video). You will want to convert them to play directly on your media player. Since we are talking about Windows (since I don't use a Mac) you should convert the video files into Windows Media Player files. Windows Media Player is on all Windows computers.

To convert the videos I use WM Converter. It can be downloaded for free HERE. The other sites are blocked at my school, but you can also try THIS ONE and THIS OTHER ONE.

Open WM Converter, select your input file (the video) then click on "convert to WMV/Zune" and "quality - Better". Select "convert" and let it run. You should also select your location for your converted files before converting.

You now have a YouTube video file that you can put on a CD, Flash Drive, email to yourself, or post to your site and then download at school to use.

It would be easier to just be able to play the video from YouTube, but, alas, that is not an option at many schools.

Good luck.

Google 3.0 Released

Google has just released version 3 of it's web browser, Google Chrome.

Version 3 brings improved renderings of web pages, error and bug fixes, and a huge increase in speed. I immediately noticed a difference in the speed that many web pages were loading. There is also a difference in how the new tab page works and some nice improvements in the omnibox - this is where Chrome uses one box for both web addresses and search.

For a great review on Chrome 3, check out Lifehacker's article. Lifehacker is a great web site that covers a plethora of topics, from technology, to home improvement, to finances, and more.

If you already have Chrome, just click on the wrench symbol at the top right of the menu bar and click on "About Google Chrome." It will automatically find the update and you can install it.

If you have yet to try Google Chrome, simply go HERE to download and install it.

Google Chrome Web Browser

Google Chrome is Google's own web browser. It is available for free for Windows computers, and is in final development and testing for Apple and Linux.

Chrome takes a very minimalistic approach as a web browser, keeping the interface simple and the screen uncluttered. Chrome is extremely fast, ranking 1st or 2nd in web tests, including Acid, V8, Sunspider, Celtic Kane, and Slickspeed. Web pages load quickly and simply, without problems.

When you download and install Chrome, it can import your favorites and other settings from you current browser, making the transition to Chrome very easy.

Chrome has tabbed browsing, crash control (which prevents one tab crashing from affecting your other open tabs), private browsing, safe browsing, instant bookmarking, and more. You can even create application shortcuts with Chrome and Google Gears. These shortcuts allow a web page or web application to run as if it was a native software application. This keeps the window layout much cleaner.

Chrome only has one area to enter a webpage or search. Google calls this the Omnibox, and you can enter a web page URL or a search term. As you type, Chrome automatically brings up related pages and past searches that you can quickly search. This makes web searches and entering web page URLs very simple and quick.

If you use a lot of other Google Web Applications, such as iGoogle, Blogger, or others, you will find that Chrome works flawlessly with them.

The bookmarks toolbar is very easily customizable, and there are some great user scripts that you can add to it. I have added "Clip to Evernote", "TinyURL", and "Google Bookmark" scripts to my bookmarks toolbar. This allows me to very easily clip a web site to my Evernote account, create a TinyURL for the web page I am browsing, and add the page I am viewing to my Google Bookmarks account. More scripts are out there and being developed everyday. Chrome does not have the kind of add-ons that Firefox has, but there are some and more are being worked on. Many companies, such as Evernote, have bookmarklets available for Google Chrome.

When you click on a new tab, Chrome brings up thumbnail images of your most visited websites. This is very convenient, allowing you to quickly visit important, often used web sites. This feature can also be disable for privacy.

I find Chrome works better than Internet Explorer, is the fastest at loading web pages, and I like it's interface and layout better than Firefox, Opera or Safari. I have not had any problems with it and it makes a lot of sense for me to use it because I use so many other Google products. Try it out and see what you think. A browser, like many other things, is a lot about personal preference.

For more information on Google Chrome, go HERE.

Some other Chrome resources:

http://www.google.com/support/chrome/?hl=en

http://www.pctipsbox.com/ten-tips-and-tricks-for-google-chrome/