John Walter

Browser Wars: What Are They Good For?

captainccs is right, but there are other stakes.

Google has implemented a browser "substructure" called Gears, that has been available for use for many months now. Gears speeds up routine web database operations by caching recently-accessed information, which reduces internet traffic and increases perceived speed. Chrome integrates Gears.

Additionally, Google says they have reduced the memory footprint and improved the stability of the browser; it wouldn't surprise me at all if they have provided software hooks to allow developers to create a wider variety of well-behaved add-ons than are currently doable. MySpace has already created a Gears-aware environment that (it is said) is far faster that their previous non-Gears application. And the end-user doesn't have to change anything but their browser...apps that use Gears just run faster and with less network overhead when accessed with a browser that supports it.

My initial reaction is that the company with the most at risk in the current environment is Adobe. Apple has gone on record as not supporting Flash in their handhelds. Google's handheld is expected a few months from now. There's no doubt in my mind that Android (the Google cell phone product) will incorporate Chrome. Suddenly, Adobe's role in the hottest part of the IT market is unclear. While visually flashy (pun intended) Flash is piggy with memory and CPU cycles.

I've used Chrome and aren't won over from Firefox and Safari (yet). But the opening shots have just been fired, and the game is far from over.