Google Chrome for Mac, Linux? Keep waiting

Update 9:14 a.m. PST: I uncovered much more specific information from Google programmers, so be sure to check this separate story describing how Chrome works crudely on Linux.

I get a lot of e-mail from people asking when Google will release its Chrome Web browser for Mac OS X and Linux. So, with the Windows beta version available for more than two months now, I thought I'd pester Google for an updated schedule.

Will we see the new versions by Thanksgiving? The end of the year?

The answer, in effect: "Please hold, your call is important to us."

In other words, the search powerhouse still isn't going to commit to any timelines. Here's the official statement: "We're working on a version for Mac and Linux, but we wanted to launch Google Chrome in beta for Windows so that we can get feedback from our users...We care about reaching all users and so this is a very high priority for us."

[gagahput3ra]

And.........play the drumroll.........FAIL!

Google made a big mistake playing the Microsoft only card here. I think lots of powerful geeks who can influence other people are usually Microsoft-hater and without Linux-Mac version of this browser, you can guess what will happen.

[catch23]

if 'powerful geeks who can influence' are anti MS, then why does MS continue to dominate the market?
Even the 'failure' that is Vista has 2x the userbase in 1.5 years that Apple has been able to get in 20+ years.

I'm calling your BS for what it is; simple wishful thinking, unfounded in any reality.

I think the fact they released it and have done nothing what-so-ever for months is far more of a problem.

[ballmerisanape]

catch23.. for the same reason McDonald's dominates the market.

[man_w_balls]

No big deal, actually. Mac or Linux users can already get WebKit (same as Chrome, what's under the hood). Safari is a WebKit browser too.

[FellowConspirator]

Agreed. Chrome is like a castrated Konqueror, and somewhat in between Safari and Fluid. Maybe it's of interest to the Windows user base, but for the rest of the world, it's kind of old-hat.

[Shankland]

It's more than just WebKit, which handles HTML rendering duties. Google's V8 JavaScript engine is separate from the engine in Safari or WebKit's Squirrelfish, for example. Plus there are details about memory management, tab behavior, Web page isolation, user interface, search and history, private browsing, etc.

[hutwarmer]

this is no different than what was said the first week of launch.

this is newsworthy today because...?

[rexworld]

@gagahput3ra: Windows is still well over 90% of the installed base out there, Google is simply focusing resources where they will have the biggest impact. Remember they are now a public company and as such have a responsibility to their shareholders. They can't continue the practice of just throwing a ton of stuff against the wall to see what sticks, they have to put resources where it makes the most economic sense.

[john55440]

Yup, Google made a logical business decision by concentrating on the world's dominant operating system.

[aporter]

I've been waiting years for a mac version of Picasa...

[gsmiller88]

They still haven't released that yet?!

[AndrewRich]

Same here. Still no news on that.

[Penguinisto]

Err, okay... so what? In Linux I have:

Firefox
Konqueror
Opera
...and at least a dozen others.

In OSX I have:
Safari
Firefox
IE
...and a small handful of others.

It's not like Chrome is the only way to get online, or has features that the others do not. *shrug*

/P

[rcrusoe]

IMO, Google has missed the boat releasing Chrome as Windows only.

Safari is faster, Firefox has the extensions, and IE is king with the technically clueless. Since many of the the bleeding edge geeks don't run Windows and all Chrome's "gee whiz" features will be copied in short order, I predict it will quickly fade into obscurity.

[sidisinsane]

For the time being Mac and Linux users can go with CrossOver Chromium (http://www.codeweavers.com/services/ports/chromium/) instead.

[ktswami]

Thanks for the follow-up on Chrome availability, Stephen, but you have to look with better eyes than that.

The poison in the Web now (and forever) is the mangled IE, because of MS' insistence in proprietary extensions (as Ballmer reiterated in Sydney last week when questioned about switching to a Webkit engine). Opera has and always will lead the fight for an open-standard web infrastructure (as illustrated by their AcidX efforts, HTMLx development, video tag, CSS, SVG innovation, arguing against WAP, etc...).

IE kills user productivity by being last in new features, and wastes millions of dollars of man-years for developers that have to muck around with IE6, IE7 compatibility. If they just programmed first to Opera/Safari, they would save 90% of that time. (Is IE8 over 17/100 on Acid3 yet?)

Safari is pushing open standards now also, with mSafari in iPhone as their humungo bazooka. Google released Chrome on Windows to get IE market share down somehow. FF has done a good job, with Safari trying further with their (ahem) auto-install, and Opera has good share also (but little respect from FF/IE users & developers and less from the press, for Opera's leading feature innovations and striving for open-standards).

Having Opera on Win/Mac/Linux/mobile, and Safari on mostly Mac/iPhone, and FF on Win/Mac/Linux, covers open-standards (FF less so -- as typified by ) enough for Google.

Windows IE is the propietary poison that needs to be "innoculated" from the Web. ;)

[ktswami]

EDIT: "FF less so -- as typified by Mozilla pooh-poohing Acid3 being passed by Opera, Safari." (Sour grapes, ergo, if Mozilla thought Acid3 was worthless, why didn't they give input to make it worthwhile??)
http://blogs.zdnet.com/Burnette/?p=560

[Ipopngraphics]

I am noticing something very interesting about this website.... If you read a post who's subject is Windows or Microsoft, you basically see interactive comments from Win/MS users, with very little "bashing" or name calling. In other words, it seems like those who use the "other" guy's software and hardware do not have much propensity for this type of behavior, nor do they waste their time reading posts that have nothing to do with them.

HOWEVER... if you go to an article posted on CNet about Apple it is an entirely different story. There are more hateful comments there from non Apple clients than you can read in one day. Name calling, product bashing, writing long, long, paragraphs that have little to do with the issue at hand, and generally being a nuisance and preventing any real discussion of the matter at hand.

What intrigues me the most about this discrepancy, is those that are exhibiting their hatred the "loudest" are the ones that never show up in comments about their own products.

Imagine that... perhaps it is possible that how you make the choice between the two has more to do with maturity and common sense than loyalty or "coolness"?

There. Now you have something truly interesting to debate. Have at it.

[cobaltblue1975]

ipopngraphics, I know this is a couple of weeks old but no one backed you up on this and I happen to agree completely. People have some strange desire to spout off about something that doesn't even remotely concern them. Seriously if you don't have OSX and are a Windows user then good for you. You've made your operating system choice. Go use it and leave people who wish to discuss an alternative alone. If what you have to insert into the discussion is more bashing then you've wasted your time and everyone else's. I guess the true question that needs to be asked of all these Apple haters out there is this. If you hate Apple so much then why do you keep finding your way to forums about them? If this were a different topic and forum I'd call you closet cases.

[tobyp--2008]

If Mac users are interested in keeping up with Chrome for the Mac's development, the best place to check is Google's official dev page:
http://code.google.com/p/chromium/wiki/MacDetailedStatus

And in addition to Codeweavers' solution mentioned above, another alternative for Mac OS X users (well, at least Leopard users) is Stainless.
http://www.stainlessapp.com

[joggyiscool]

They've had a slow down in developing, they haven't done anything for months, I signed up to when Google Chrome for Mac's coming out and they haven't said a word

[chocbar31]

Slow-down??? I may be two weeks late on voicing my opinion/fact; however, I don't call pushing-out a cam application that works through email is much of a slow-down.

Not that I am complaining as I have every right to get the source and pound away at the keyboard myself. He, I'm a network engineer and don't have that kind of time with the network I support.

I just gave-up on Google. YES, they have been making promises to Linux and MAC users for years and have not delivered. One native application for Linux...OK two applications. Desktop search and Widgets. Which I don't think anyone will really go out of their way to use or even keep around, as Linux applications are better than what Google has created.

Any other application they have for Linux needs Wine to run, attempting to reduce a Linux box down to Windows speeds.

[mavink]

There is a recent mac build (not much of a GUI yet, but you can browse the web with it) at http://securityandthe.net/chrome/