What does Chrome OS mean for your website?

Google announced yesterday its plans for their Chrome OS, due out sometime late next year, and a parallel open-source Chromium OS project. A couple clients asked me this morning what it all meant, so I thought I would try to shed some light on the subject.

Chrome OS looks very much like Chrome, the open source web browser that Google released earlier this year. So what's the difference? The difference is that Chrome OS is an operating system, stripped of all the extras. There's no file browser (Finder if you're on a Mac; Explorer if you use Windows). There's applications, like Photoshop or Outlook. You won't even find a desktop (you know, that place you litter with documents you were too lazy to organize)!

There is only a web browser. And since there is only a web browser, Chrome OS boots very quickly and aims to be more secure.

For most of our clients, it doesn't mean much. Chrome OS speaks to a very specific segment of the market: namely people like me who love technology and cannot wait to try something new. Chrome OS is targeted in the longer-term at "netbooks," that funny piece of hardware that is somewhere in between your smartphone and your laptop.

While netbooks are poor sellers today, they do make good sense. There are plenty of times where I need something more than my iPhone, but I don't want to lug around my MacBook Pro. Business travel is a good example. I don't need Photoshop or the other "rich client" applications I run on my laptop, but I do need a bigger screen than my phone offers. It's a niche — but it's a niche that I could justify spending money on.

The trouble with netbooks is the software is lousy. And even though they are "mini" — 10 inch screens usually and much lighter-weight, smaller form factors — they are still cumbersome. I don't want a clumsy keyboard or something I have to fold and unfold. That's why I loathe carrying my laptop, after all! What I want is just a big iPhone.

Chrome OS is a bit ahead of its time. It is entering a market that is still very immature. The software needs to improve dramatically and the hardware is abysmal (and if you don't think so, you have set your expectations too low). In the short-run, it doesn't mean very much for your website. So what about the long-run?

In the long-run, it means a lot to you. It means more and more of your website's traffic will be from users on the go. So your website needs to be accessible to these mobile users — whether they're using their iPhone, "netbook," or laptop. And it means people will expect to be able to get to information very quickly and in a visually stimulating way.

So get ready for the netbook. Just don't get ready today.

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