Google Inc, owner of the most- visited Internet search engine, plans to release a computer operating system to challenge the dominance of Microsoft Corp’s Windows.
The software will be based on the Chrome Web browser, Mountain View, California-based Google said in a blog post. It will be designed for low-cost laptops called netbooks at first and will be available to consumers in the second half of 2010.
Google’s plan intensifies the company’s competition with Microsoft, the world’s largest software maker. In addition to Web browsers, the companies compete for Internet-search users. Google is also going after users of Microsoft’s Office software by offering online word-processing and spreadsheet programs.
“We hear a lot from our users and their message is clear - -- computers need to get better,” Google said. “The operating systems that browsers run on were designed in an era where there was no Web.”
The Chrome OS will be open-source, meaning the program code will be open to developers, Google said. The software will work on top of Linux, the open-source operating system, Google said.
Google said the Chrome OS is separate from its Android software, which was initially designed for mobile phones. The new operating system is designed to prevent users from having to deal with viruses and security updates, Google said.
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