Google Chrome: Underlying technology

Chrome's weak link, for now, is plug-ins, which necessarily run with certain privileges that can be abused. But, as Google puts it, Chrome offers at least a "huge surface area reduction in vulnerability."

Nothing new

It's worth remembering that, for all Chrome's good ideas, there's nothing really revolutionary here. There's very little you can practically do today with Chrome that you couldn't already achieve in another browser. Indeed, a lack of extension support makes Chrome look a little limited next to Firefox: there's nothing like AdBlock or Mouse Gestures.

But even without that, the speed and stability of Chrome's first release make it a highly credible challenger to the more established browsers. It's a stunning vindication of the ground-up approach which many of us hoped Microsoft would adopt for Windows 7.

Indeed, the contrast with Microsoft is telling. Cynics have been warning for years that Google has the potential to be the next Microsoft, and this expansion into the browser market will do nothing to allay their fears.

But while Redmond has, in the past, stooped to some questionable means to further its success, it seems Google hopes to win simply by producing the best products. And if they're all as efficient and innovative as Chrome, that might not be such a bad thing.

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Author: Darien Graham-Smith