Google recently announced a new netbook operating system to great fanfare: Chrome OS. It's named after Google's browser for a very good reason - all applications run within the browser framework, rather than being downloaded, installed and run atop the user's desktop operating system. Much of the subsequent analysis has revolved around the battle of the titans that is expected to occur now that Google has moved directly onto Microsoft's turf.
Here's my take: Google's approach is gonna win.
Why? Developers, developers, developers, developers. And installers, installers, installers, installers. Developers because people don't buy computers to run operating systems - they buy them to run applications. And developers write those apps. Installers because having a seamless installation experience doubles or triples a software developer's customer base. And nothing is more seamless than clicking on a link.
At least, that's Pathfinder's experience. We've build hundreds of software applications in the past 10 years. Most web-based. But some were native desktop apps that users would download and install locally. And for a huge portion of the population, the everyday process of downloading and installing desktop applications is completely broken. Here are some numbers, based on our experience:
- 50% to 75% of users who visit a software download web page abandon the page without starting the download.
- Roughly 30%-60% of users who download the application never install it.
These two numbers are why companies pay Dell and HP to pre-install crapware on every PC they sell. It's why Google pays to have the Google toolbar piggyback on the installations of Adobe Reader. It's why AOL carpet-bombed North America with installer CDs in the 90s. And it's why the Chrome OS - or something like the Chrome OS - is the future for netbooks. Sure, Windows XP has a head start of 15 million or so netbook installations. But if you believe the numbers above, a cloud-based, browser-based OS like Chrome only needs 25% of that number to be a more valuable platform for software vendors. That's a pretty powerful advantage for a company looking to break Microsoft's stranglehold on some part of the netbook operating system market.
Pathfinder is a software development firm. Hire us to build complex software that's easy to use.
Why Chrome OS is the Future of Netbooks
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