A daily digest of IT news, curated from blogs, forums and news sites around the web each morning. We highlight the key commentary and demystify the real story.
Chrome 10, the new version of Google's Web browser, is now out of beta, ready for the unwashed masses to download. How about a roundup of reviews? Happy to oblige...
Google has released the "stable" version of Chrome 10 -- its "fast", "secure" Web browser. Now it's "faster" and "more secure", thanks to a new JavaScript engine and Flash sandboxing. In IT Blogwatch, bloggers rush to download it, only to discover that it's already updated itself.
Your humble blogwatcher curated these bloggy bits for your entertainment. Not to mention The Chronicles of Rick Roll...
(GOOG)
Cade Metz reportz:
[It] adds the revamped Crankshaft JavaScript engine the company unveiled late last year. ... Google first revealed its Crankshaft JavaScript engine in December, claiming it was roughly 50 per cent faster. ... Now, with the stable release, Google is boasting a 66 per cent speed improvement.
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Crankshaft uses "adaptive compilation", identifying important or "hot" code and optimizing [it] as needed. ... [It] recompiles the hot code to offer such optimizations as loop-invariant code motion, linear-scan register allocation, and inlining. ... Chrome 10 also ... synchronizes your ... web passwords across multiple machines, and ... [puts the] integrated Flash plug-in inside the browser's sandbox.
Emil Protalinski adds:
Google is no longer concerned about using version numbers to mark a significant development milestone. ... [It] recently promised to accelerate the release cycle for Chrome and push out a new stable build every six weeks.
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Apparently users don't mind these frequent releases: the browser's market share is already over 10 percent.
Google's Tim Steele steels himself for inevitable punnage:
With todays stable release, even your most complex web apps will run more quickly and responsively in the browser. ... Chromes new settings interface will help you get to the right settings quickly so you dont have to dig endlessly. ... For those of you who save your passwords in the browser ... you can also encrypt those passwords with your own secret passphrase. ... If youre using Windows Vista or newer versions, youll benefit from [an] additional layer of protection against malicious webpages.
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We hope that Chromes speed, simplicity and security will continue to make your daily life on the web more enjoyable.
Martin Bryant is hardcore:
The most visible new feature in Chrome 10 is a revised Settings panel. This now takes the form of a browser tab. ... Theres now a Search box for quickly finding any setting youre looking for ... [and] each options page has its own URL making it easier to help others find the right setting when they need it.
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As ever, existing users will automatically be upgraded to the new build soon. ... [Or] you can force update Chrome. Just go to About Chrome and select Update Now. ... For hardcore geeks. Although if they were that hardcore theyd be using the beta version anyway.
And Steve Kovach illustrateifies:
Here's a video from Google with all the new chrome settings.
Richi Jenningsis an independent analyst/consultant, specializing in blogging, email, and security. A cross-functional IT geek since 1985, you can follow him as @richi on Twitter, pretend to be richij's friend on Facebook, or just use good old email: itbw@richij.com.
