

Closed Open Source? Why can't Google be more like Microsoft? - louismg
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2009/11/25/google_chrome_os_closedness/

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donaq
This article is ridiculous crap. At the end of the day, Google _gives you
their freakin' code_ , damn it. This means that if you're not happy with the
way Google is running things, you can go ahead and fork your Chrome OS or
Android. And if you do manage to build something significantly better than
what Google can offer and people use your stuff over theirs, _there's nothing
Google can do about it_.

Jeez.

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mscarborough
Discussion / constructive criticism of open source code management or business
decisions that affect developers shouldn't just be dismissed with a "fine then
if you're so smart just fork the code, jeez".

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rpdillon
Sure, but starting off the discussion by implying that Google is somehow less
open than Apple or Microsoft is really just flamebait. If the Register were
really interested in inciting change, they could use a headline like "Google
May Be Open, But Keeps Community In The Dark".

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scotty79
I was amazed when Google released Chrome (the browser). One day there was
nothing, the other day there was web comic explaining dream about the browser
and the next day there was the browser itself.

How could they build a web browser in complete secrecy without anyone spilling
a word about it to the public?

I didn't know it was possible in times when even government documents make
their way to the web and copyrighted movies are routinely published as
torrents days before their premiere.

~~~
blackcadillac
How about any product released by Apple? That's complete secrecy.

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ovi256
Well, FSJ (Fake Steve Jobs) jokes that they have a squad of ex-Israeli Special
Forces guys on pay to punish any traitors. Given the results, I half-believe
it. Can't imagine how it could be achieved in another way.

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acg
_Chrome OS isn't built for developers. It's built for Google. And online
advertisers._

ChromeOS is built for users. The comparison in this article is ridiculous.
Somehow because Google does not provide a developer prerelease they are anti-
developer. It seems to me there is plenty of time to develop: there is a a
period of time between when Android gets released and when it gets onto the
handset of your choice.

If you are writing a development tool that you need early access to releases
perhaps it's best talking to google. I'm sure that Google is willing to work
with anyone who is supporting their platform.

~~~
gaius
_ChromeOS is built for users. The comparison in this article is ridiculous._

Nothing Google does is for "users". Advertisers are Google's customers. Users
are Google's _product_.

~~~
acg
Nothing? That's pretty bold. Google has begun to charge for services in the
cloud: this though is a competitive environment. I see ChromeOS as a move to
build a user-base for they cloud-based software services. Some of those
services will be advert funded, but no-doubt they will have a paid model too.

How something is funded is separate from who it is designed for. For example
newspapers copy is partly funded by advertisements too as is television. The
product in both these cases is not the readers/viewers.

Most of what Google does is for the users, as they want to keep their market
share. The same way that a television station needs good programming to keep
viewers.

~~~
bad_user
By that circular reasoning you could also say that developers are important,
since that's the way to attract users ... since nobody will use your OS if it
isn't capable of running your favorite apps.

I know that the browser is the new OS and all that crap, but a laptop/netbook
capable of only running web apps (or apps designed for Chrome's APIs) seems
pretty pointless to me. And I'm really thankful for Moore's law ... with
multi-core Intel/ARM processors, and all those GPUs ... you'll now be able to
run your all your apps in a browser. That's a serious accomplishment.

Developers should be able to choose the platform based on real technical
requirements, not on artificial limitations. All your applications running in
the cloud? Who's cloud?

Meet the new boss, same as the old one.

