3 Reasons Why the Chrome OS Won’t Help Cloud Computing

What’s nice about Chrome OS is the speed with which you can boot, likened to turning on a TV…or perhaps pulling your laptop from standby mood. Also, its ability to load Web applications quickly, and I bet it does an amazing job at using Google applications. Thus, many in the press have dubbed it a “cloud computing OS.” But, should they?
Google has designed Chrome OS as an on-line only platform, and the company is betting that many folks will happily trade their desktop apps for cloud-only computing. “Naturally, this won't appeal to all users. I'd even say it won't appeal to most users”… I agree.

Don’t get me wrong; with this first blog post here you might get the impression that I’m an anti-cloud guy. However, considering the recent release of my cloud computing book, my well read cloud computing blog on InfoWorld, and my Cloud Computing Podcast, nothing could be further from the truth. But, I’m also a realist. Thus, binding Chrome OS to the concept of cloud computing is clearly not a good idea.

First, the notion that most people will want “on-line only” access to an array of cloud computing applications is a bit reaching at this point. Indeed, we just can’t count on connectivity as much as we think we can, and without an active and fast connections to the Internet this platform wont’ function. People won’t give up off-line storage, even with cloud computing providing the majority of office automation and enterprise application processing.

Second, the press is still a bit mystified about cloud computing, and thus the instant binding of the concept of cloud computing to the Chrome OS won’t be good for cloud computing if the Chrome OS fails. The headlines will read: “Death of the Chrome OS calls cloud computing into question,” trust me.

Finally, I’m not sure we need another OS. Ubuntu, Windows 7, and the Mac OS work just fine with cloud computing applications. Thus, why would I use an OS that is a browser, over an OS that has a browser?