Google cloud computing OS may complement Windows

The forthcoming Google Chrome cloud computing operating system may complement Microsoft Windows rather than compete with it, because both platforms will have different specialties, one technology analyst wrote in an article on Wednesday.

Chrome OS does not assume that people will give up traditional personal computing entirely in favor of the cloud, but rather merely assumes that many functions users want, including web browsing and email, are cloud-based, technology journalist Bill Snyder wrote in a recent article for InfoWorld.

"Right now, it appears that the Chromebook won't even boot when it's not connected to the internet," Snyder noted.

Rather than using Chrome OS as a replacement for Windows on their personal computers, users may run the new operating system mostly on simple web appliances such as the upcoming Chromebook, the columnist argued.

On November 19, Google offered a preview of Chrome OS in a live webcast from its headquarters, and announced that the new cloud computing platform will be completely open source. According to the preview, every software application run on the new operating system, including media players, document editors and content managers, will be hosted on the internet.

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