#Chrome os review install#
#Chrome os review windows#

As is true about every aspect of this operating system, updates are much more likely to tweak the layout and design of the interface.Д¬hrome's extensions are fairly limited in how they can alter the browser's interface. Hiding essentials like that remains an odd design choice to make. Others, such as the extension manager, are hidden away under a Tools submenu. Some controls, such as page zoom, are readily available from the 'wrench' options menu. What works well in the browser works well here, but the faults of one are reflected in the other, too. The interface's strongest point is also its weakness.

#Chrome os review windows#

The window snap is another cue taken from Windows 7, but it's a clever and intuitive one, and works well in Chrome. Drag the box down to minimize the browser, drag it to the edges to 'snap' it to the side and make it half the width of your screen, or click it to switch from windowed mode to full-screen mode. On Chrome OS, the upper-right corner of the browser hosts a square icon and an X. Tabs are on top, the location bar - which Google likes to call the Omnibar - dominates the minimalist design, and the browser has few visible control buttons besides Back, Forward, and a combined Stop/Reload button. The look of Chrome has changed remarkably little since its surprise debut in September 2008. Changes made in the browser tend to be reflected in Chrome OS about a month or so later. However, it must be either locally stored or in your Google Drive - it won't pull in an image from a service like Facebook.ДЄll the Settings have been moved to open in their own tabs, but you probably knew this from using Chrome-the-browser. You can customize the background with one of several dozen options, or upload your own image. Click the avatar to show shutdown options and reveal more information and settings.

The lower-right corner shows the time, Internet connection status, battery status, and shows your Google account avatar to indicate who's logged in.

#Chrome os review install#

When you install an app, it'll appear here. The desktop itself shows only your background by default, but a Tic-Tac-Toe-style icon on the Launcher reveals all your installed apps over the desktop background. While most of the desktop has been designed to feel like modern personal computers, the App List brings a more mobile flair to the new Chrome OS layout. There's an actual desktop that looks a bit cribbed from Windows 7, with Chrome-the-browser pinned to the far left of the Launcher, and other apps pinned right next to it. It looks and feels like a personal computer, finally, where before it was little more than a full-screen browser.

Google has clearly spent some serious time developing the new interface. There's no doubt that the EULA is annoying, but we've never seen another new, unused operating system start so quickly. It took our avatar about 30 seconds to synchronize our existing account avatar from the cloud.Д¬hrome then takes anywhere from 30 to 60 seconds to synchronize your Google settings, if any, and then the computer is ready to be used. Gone from previous versions is the mandated Webcam photo. Next, you can take a photo of yourself with the Webcam, use a provided icon, or use your current Google account avatar. This will only appear for the initial log-in it won't show up for subsequent uses and users. After choosing your log-in method, you're asked to read through and accept the EULA.