chrome

BitTorrent Surf is a new Chrome add-on (download) that turns the browser into a torrent client. While that's not an innovation on its own, this is the first time the company has built a complete torrent-manager for the browser.

In development for the past six months, according to the BitTorrent blog announcing the add-on, Surf lets you find torrents on the Web and download them.

Still in rough alpha, Surf goes beyond that. It allows for automatic torrent detection when you navigate to a site, and you can save favorite sites to "create your own combined engine," … Read more

Google got a big new ally in its Chrome OS push today: Lenovo, the No. 2 PC maker.

Although Lenovo is a notable ally, it's only really a foot in the door for Google. Lenovo's new ThinkPad X131e Chromebook is only geared for schools. Presumably it could lead to greater things for Google if the device gets a good reception, but this shouldn't be confused with Lenovo pushing a mainstream device the way the two existing Chrome OS partners, Acer and Samsung, have done.

It's not clear whether Lenovo has grander ambitions for Chrome OS, something … Read more

Android users who want to live an edgier life now can try a beta version of Chrome.

Google yesterday released the Chrome 25 beta for Android 4.x for smartphones and tablets, a version number in sync with the release for personal computers. Previously, the only option was the stable version of Chrome for Android, which is still way back at version 18.

The Chrome for Android beta is available on the Google Play app store, but only by following that link -- it's not visible in Google Play's search, Google said. The beta version can be installed … Read more

Google released the stable version of Chrome 24 today, adding support for IndexedDB for apps that work better offline, mathematics formulas formatted with MathML, and faster JavaScript.

The new version also comes with a range of security fixes, including two $1,000 bounties and one $4,000 bounty paid to people who found high-severity vulnerabilities. Because Chrome automatically downloads updates by default in part to patch holes as fast as possible, people just need to restart the browser to update it.

IndexedDB, under development for years, is geared to store data for use even if a Web site or Web … Read more

Google wants to change the way people access the Internet.

And as part of that strategy, the company has been developing separate operating systems for mobile devices and personal computers. The idea is that the search and advertising giant wants to make it easier for people to connect to the Internet and eventually use Google services.

Since it was introduced in 2007, the company's Android mobile operating system has become a huge hit. It's now the most widely used smartphone operating system in the world. But its Web-based computing OS Chrome, which was introduced in 2009, hasn't … Read more

With little fanfare, Samsung has revamped the look of its Chromebox budget desktop. Shedding last year's gray-and-black plastic chassis, the 2013 Chromebox now comes in a white, rounded plastic shell.

You won't find any new specs in this new model. The 2013 version has the same 1.9GHz Intel Celeron CPU, 4GB of RAM, and 16GB solid-state hard drive as last year's Chromebox. Its ports remain almost entirely unchanged as well. You still get two DisplayPort outs, a DVI output, and six USB 2.0 ports. The only update is a small door that hides the Chromebox … Read more

The evolution of the Web is a messy process.

We do so much with the Web today that it's easy to take it for granted. Banking, social networking, word processing, travel planning, education, shopping -- the Web is reaching to new domains and tightening its grip where it's already used. To match that expansion, the Web is evolving.

But the Web is built by countless individuals -- browser engineers who enable new technology, Web developers who bring that technology online, and standards group members who iron out compatibility wrinkles. With so many constituents, it's no wonder there'… Read more

VP9, the successor to Google's VP8 video compression technology at the center of a techno-political controversy, has made its first appearance outside Google's walls.

Google has built VP9 support into Chrome, though only in an early-stage version of the browser for developers. In another change, it also added support for the new Opus audio compression technology that's got the potential to improve voice communications and music streaming on the Internet.

VP9 and Opus are codecs, technology used to encode streams of data into compressed form then decode them later, enabling efficient use of limited network or storage … Read more

Online ads slow down Web browsing and are quite annoying in general. As an extension for Google Chrome, AdBlock Plus will eliminate all of the ads from your browsing experience, even ones attached to videos on YouTube. It installs in seconds and has absolutely no hiccups or surprises.

This software offers one the best features related to ad blocking -- it strips Web videos of ads. This is a fantastic feature if you frequently watch TV shows or other videos online. Other than that, this program isn't about what you see, but what you don't. While there's … Read more