Comments on: 10 things we'd like to see in Chrome

Google's Chrome is pretty good, but it could be a whole lot better. We've rounded up 10 fairly extensive ways to tweak it to make it an all-around better browser.

[axis_304]

I could be wrong, but almost everything mentioned there is just a feature of firefox. Addons, firefox has them, cross platform, firefox has that, themes firefox has as well. So really all you guys want is a faster firefox?

[rgersmrk]

lol, I was about to type out the same thing.

[BCF1968]

When are you FireFox fanboys going to get it that some of us never have and never will like FireFox. It's pretty simple. Out of IE, FF, Opera and Chrome, FF will be 4th on my list of browsers I would use. The fact the FF biggest issue is speed and memory useage and after being told over and over again to fix it and they still don't even try what does that tell you.

[cbasden]

Why is everyone so nuts about Firefox? The Chrome article in fact only compared it to Firefiox like there is no other browser.

[evenicoulddoit]

I think people are highlighting a key issue here about people wanting a Firefox, or indeed a better one. I think the problem I have found with Firefox 3 is that they have completely compromised functionality for an impressive GUI and an extensive list of features. Whilst I'd like Chrome to have a number of these features, or moreover to simply enhance a couple of their already existing features such as the bookmarking platform, I think they have approached browsing in completely the right way, with speed and browsing functionality being of key concern. Unlike the report above I do think that the uni-bar for both searches and for addresses is a good tool, as realistically who uses Yahoo or MSN search features over Google - and if you wish you can also change these in the settings list. I actually gave up with Firefox 3 and went back to 2 because I felt they deviated away from the original goal they set out to accomplish, something which Google appear to have taken over. THIS IS WHY WE ARE NOT LOOKING FOR FIREFOX.

[c-net geek]

@cbasden: There is no other browser. The other browsers aren't remotely as good as firefox.

@BCF1968: Firefox is the best in those categories, I don't know where you heard otherwise, but you need to get your facts straight.

[awnstudio]

As stated, Chrome has a different approach to browsing, a minimalistic approach, if Firefox had the same approach as Chrome, we wouldn't be having this discussion. Firefox is fast, but Chrome is faster, better with memory, better with tabs and its in its infancy. So no, all we really want is a better browser. Hidden extras, blazing fast, better mem consumption.

Don't know what you're doing wrong, but it is saving sessions flawlessly.

Also, applications are meant to be used separately. There is no reason to want to reatttach them. That's what tearing away tabs is for....

Actually, I wouldn't mind snapping everything open back into one browser making it one cohesive session. For example, I found that you can't snap incognito into the main browser at all either. I would love it if you can right click a tab and there was an option for opening an incognito session that's a functioning tab in the browser's frame.

I'm scheming with some friends on how to write that... I'll let you know how it goes.

[Yittirum39]

You can reattach applications anyway. Click on the document icon in the upper-left hand corner, then in the dropdown, select "show as tab." Then you can put it wherever you want.

[firestarter]

a home bottom would be nice and also a drop down address bar too and also when i max i want to be able to access my task bar

[alvareo]

the home button enabling is already in Chrome's options.
don't ask for features if you haven't even taken a look at the browser's options.

[cavergeek]

Uh, there is a home button. Click on the wrench and the option to show the home button is under the basics tab.

[ronin.achilles]

:)) So you are basically asking for Firefox?

[Lerianis]

Yeah, I have to agree that is basically what he is asking for. The fact is that Firefox is an extremely good web browser... though Chrome one-ups it in some areas.

Namely, the having browser tabs in separate processes (I was wondering why there were 12 instances of it in my Task Manager).

[Spartan_458]

@ axis,

That would make it better, though.

[BradTaylor]

WHAT is everyone's fascination with Foxmarks. the GMarks addon for Firefox is SO much better. Last I used Foxmarks, the Syncing wasn't that reliable. GMarks everythings online, and when your using bookmarks your generally online, so doesnt matter if they're not on your system. GMarks has made it much easier to reinstall FF on multiple machines, no exporting/importing/syncing bookmarks, just install the addon and go.

I would have assumed that a GMarks like thing would have been implimented into Chrome from the begining, it is google after all. I'm sure in time it'll be that way.

....just dont get foxmarks....

[AndrewBNZ]

Foxmarks works seamlessly for me, I had trouble with other syncing apps in the past which couldn't get their head around the fact I would have my desktop and laptop logged on at the same time and that I wanted syncing to happen on both, simultaneously.

[geneven]

I've installed Foxmarks on maybe 50 Firefox installation and have had no problem with sync. I'll try GMarks, but there is nothing wrong with Foxmarks. If you are mentioning alternatives, why not mention Mozilla Weave? I haven't had great results with it (slows my system down) but it's still under development and shows promise.

Anyway, Chrome is great and I use it on the rare occasions when I run that program, what's its name? Oh yeah, Windows.

[geneven]

For one thing, gmarks assumes that you are running Google Bookmarks, and Foxmarks doesn't. If I don't happen to want to use Google Bookmarks, it appears that gmarks is worthless.

[Lerianis]

You haven't used FoxMarks in a long time then. It has always been able to sync my 3 browsers, no problem whatsoever.

[mauidan1]

How about autocomplete on form fields?

[vectorizer]

In response to #4: Chrome does have the option to resume the previous browsing session on startup. It is just not set by default, like in Firefox.

[t26l]

So you're going to use Google Chrome eh?.
So you'll browse with Google, search with Google and get all your mail thru Google as well? You trust them that much eh?
Do you really want to keep all your personal eggs in one Google basket?
Personally I'd trust Google as far as I could throw Bill Gates!

[bikerelc]

I don't know about you but I bet I could throw Bill Gates pretty darn far.

[jab818]

I dunno, some of us might be able to give gates a good heave. He's not very big.

[geneven]

Chrome is open source, so even if you don't use it, it will probably be turning up as part of Opera or Firefox anyway.

[manodud]

add keyboard shortcuts to the list

[jtkunle]

How about Google's own Toolbar built right in without even having it as an extension, if all my bookmarks are in google toolbar, I don't think copy and pasting links from Firefox makes sense, I've gotten so use to looking at my web history for sites I've visited and as a mac user, I can't even use it all.

I hope by the time the mac version is out, all this extra's are added because if I don't get everything that firefox already has, saving only 2 milliseconds to load a page is not enough reason for me to switch.

[mpitogo]

I concur with #8 Considering webkit is already on Mac OS X why was it hard to release it simultaneously?

[buggermenot]

webkit is already on linux (KDE) too. Apple hasn't released safari for llinux either

[mjconver]

Ad-block! The one feature it needs, and Google will never add, because it's totally against the business model.

Chrome is wonderfully fast, but I was shocked at all the advertisements that I haven't seen in years. Including this page. On Firefox, this page is clean and quiet. On Chrome, it's cacophony.

[mike.loux]

mjconver, I agree with you 100%. I've been using FireFox since the 1.0 beta, and one of the first extensions I installed was AdBlock (then AdBlock plus when that came out), so I've been blissfully ignorant of the onslaught of ads we get pummeled with every time we load a page for close to 5 years now. The first time I went to a commercial site using Chrome, I nearly screamed in shock from all the visual noise on the page. :-)

I'm still sticking with FireFox for the majority of my browsing, especially at work (I'm a developer, so I spend a lot of time on code sites), but I have to admit that for email and such, I am leaning towards Chrome because it's screamingly fast at page rendering. If they start adding in some (but not all) of the features of FireFox, it will be a nice, happy medium.

[lordeagle]

What version 1.0 of a browser? If you go to "About Google Chrome" in the Tools menu, it says v0.2xxxxxxxxx

[mike.loux]

That's pretty standard for a Google product. Chrome is still very much a beta application (and given their track record of wanting to make sure it's perfect before taking it off of beta status), it will most likely remain so for quite some time (GMail was in beta for 4 years).

[bigpicture]

No. 10, maybe there is something different about the way that you use a browser, than as to how I use it, but when you have the home page set to Google, and on a whole lot of other web pages besides, there is already a "search box" present on the page.

[iisensei]

I too wish to surf without ads, but the reality is that websites have to make money to exist. If they can't make money they will go out of business. Nothing is free. I will not visit sites that put ads in my face or are obnoxious with their presentations.

[RJSUSC]

As a mac user, I hear you on the slowwww release dates for us. I guess I'm used to that though as a mac user, comes with the territory. I'm definitely looking forward to using Chrome, but Firefox 3 is getting the job for me just fine.

[theonlybuster]

Everyone brings up FF and says that it's Chrome and not FF, but the fact is that FF is the browser to beat, it's the mode widely used browser (next to IE because it's forced on users). But FF is the browser to beat. So far Chrome has it beat in terms of speed, and also why not add another Google product to your desktop?
I see all the Google gadgets syncing and communicating with each other soon.

[mbPixelated]

I totally agree - FF is the one to beat and in terms of speed Chrome is right up there!

[The_Decider]

Speed is overrated and Chrome is nothing but a trojan horse

[andrefavron]

speaking of incognito... this feature will make it very difficult to monitor what our children are doing when on-line.

[public_pants]

uh? No. We "your children" can easily clear our browsing history in any browser. For example in firefox clear private data ;). Chrome just makes it such that we dont have to clear it. Its fair.

[hopskipnfall]

or even move easily and thoroughly with internet explorer. tools>internet options>delete web history>delete all or something like that. it takes out the web history and cookies and all temporary internet files to boot.

[andrefavron]

speaking of incognito... this feature will make it very difficult to monitor what our children are doing when on-line.

[shakethebabyass2]

You can download k9 web protection for free and monitor and restrict everything that goes on. Thats what Ive had to do becuase my kids are to smart.
www.k9webprotection.com

[denzii2006]

Perhaps a Password to protect the ingognito pages from loading. This way your kids can't open them.