Slashdot Mirror

← Back to Stories (view on slashdot.org)

We Didn't Need Google's Schmidt To Tell Us Android and Chrome Wouldn't Merge

Posted by samzenpus on from the keep-em-seperated dept.

First time accepted submitter Steve Patterson writes "Thankfully, Google Chairman Eric Schmidt has announced that 'Android and Chrome will remain separate.' Rumors that the products would be combined emerged last week when leadership of Android and Chrome were consolidated under Google Senior Vice President Sundar Pichai. Schmidt stated the obvious, but if you are a developer and you took the bait and thought the rumors might be true, you already read enough of Google Chrome or Google Android documentation before Schmidt's clarification and confirmed that consolidating the two products would be, well, stupid."

27 of 107 comments (clear)

  1. Forced convergence is all the rage. by symbolset · · Score: 5, Funny

    Obviously they're crazy. Putting the same mobile touch-based user interface on every phone, tablet, laptop, desktop, watch, games console, server and small appliance is the wave of the future.

    --
    Help stamp out iliturcy.
    1. Re:Forced convergence is all the rage. by jhoegl · · Score: 2

      Son, Ballmer don't tell us Schmidt!

    2. Re:Forced convergence is all the rage. by hairyfeet · · Score: 3, Insightful

      Which is frankly bumming me the hell out, this is the first time since i got into tech in the late 70s that I have thought the future is actually gonna be shittier than what we have now. before things always got better, systems got faster, prices went lower, the generations were just better and better...now? Its fucking game consoles man, that is ALL it is, fucking locked down game consoles in phone or tablet or whatever form and the public eats that shit up because it means they don't have to think because there is no thought involved with a game console, mommy corp takes care of everything so don't you worry your pretty little head none. They'll tell you what to buy, when to buy a new one, it'll all be controlled and as user friendly as a TV remote and just as worthless for anything not approved by corporate.

      Its fucking depressing man, you got Google building DBs on everybody that would make the Stasi jealous, you got Apple seeing how locked down they can make a device and still get the public to buy, and you got MSFT being Apple's bitch and copying every bad feature of Apple without any good, the whole thing fucking stinks.

      --
      ACs don't waste your time replying, your posts are never seen by me.
    3. Re:Forced convergence is all the rage. by Snospar · · Score: 2

      I mostly agree with you and yes, it is depressing but I think there is another reason pushing people onto these locked down devices and it's simply that Microsoft still haven't worked out how to protect their systems from malware & viruses. Now before everyone jumps in and says this isn't just a MS problem, malware attacks 3rd party software too - I know that and I'll gladly put Java and Adobe in the same sin bin.

      Let's say that Average Joe buys a nice shiny Windows laptop for $2000 - it's his machine, he can install whatever software he likes and there's no lock down right? But even on day one there is crapware installed by the laptop vendor that has started to slow his machine down (preinstalled AV "trials", desktop gadgets, Troubleshooting "assistants" and of course add-on toolbars). Now lets move on 6 months, the shiny laptop that was pretty fast on day one is now crawling - he's probably got a virus or some other malware by this stage (possibly because his OS updates didn't force 3rd party updates) and to combat this he's now got 2 or 3 always active anti-virus/anti-malware scanners running. It's possible he's also got malware masquerading as Antivirus running too and all these applications are fighting with the system and each other for resources.

      But look over there, someone with a crappy netbook isn't having these problems because it's running Linux, or there's someone else with an Apple iThing (which they religiously keep updated and haven't been hit by any unfortunate 0-day exploits) and finally there's someone with a Chromebook who again have no need for multiple AV programs.

      I hate that people opt for locked down systems over Linux but I think I hate more being called out to try and fix the crappy mess that Windows has left someone with when they mistakenly clicked that dodgy link on the web.

      --
      Moore's law is not a law. Theory, yes; Predictable trend, certainly; Law, no.
    4. Re:Forced convergence is all the rage. by wed128 · · Score: 3, Insightful

      I'll have what he's having.

    5. Re:Forced convergence is all the rage. by hairyfeet · · Score: 2

      Bullshit its become a status thing. Hell my fricking dad asked about getting an iPhone, he can't even work the stuff he has on his Android phone and frankly hates smartphones so why would he want an iPhone? Because the other big wigs has one so he has the urge to keep up with the Joneses, that's all. I saw a girl struggling like hell to juggle her purse and a shopping cart because she was using a damned iPad for a fricking grocery list. The dirty look when I said "Trying to justify shelling out all that money huh?" told me all I needed to know, she had no real use for the thing, it was ALL about status but now that she had the thing she couldn't think of enough ways to be seen with it to justify the expense.

      That is one thing I always gave Jobs credit for, he could take what should be a boring device and make it into a Rolex watch, something that the wealthy have and the poor want, even if they have no fucking real use for the thing and something half the price would do just as well...like a Rolex watch actually. Its all about the illusion of status and classism, of making those around think you are better than you are, and it fricking stinks. Its no different than those $300 Jordan sneakers, is there any. single. thing. that makes a Jordan somehow "better" other than the price tag? Nope made in the same Chinese sweatshops where you get cheaper sneakers from but BECAUSE it costs $300 it is therefor better. It reminds me of the hostage situation on Robocop "I want a 6000 SUX that goes really fast and gets really shitty gas mileage" because in the commercials built into Robocop the fact you could afford to drive such a gas hog was its entire appeal, it showed money meant nothing to you which is why all the execs in that movie were in 6000 SUXs.

      --
      ACs don't waste your time replying, your posts are never seen by me.
    6. Re:Forced convergence is all the rage. by pnutjam · · Score: 2

      Maybe there is a market for a business class of device that can be repaired. I think it's afew years off, but I just heard the other day a news report saying how all the hardware specs are boring and don't really mean anything. It's the software that matters on new phones. Commodization can't be too far off and then it gets down to durability and fix-ability.

      --
      Cheap storage VM.
    7. Re:Forced convergence is all the rage. by SpectreBlofeld · · Score: 2

      Software isn't the only reason for slowdowns. The thermal paste on processors also gets old and brittle after a few years, causing the CPUs to overheat. The CPUs then self-throttle in order to keep the heat down, which slows the machine down. This is why even a machine that is well-maintained in software will get slower over the years than it was when it was new. This is especially true for laptops that have desktop-class processors in them. Re-applying thermal paste and cleaning out all the gunk from the cooling system can help.

      Your ARM netbooks and mobile devices don't generally have this problem because the processors don't run as hot.

  2. The OS should match the hardware by xyzio · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Chrome and Android are very different OS. Chrome is designed to run off the web on lightweight hardware using a keyboard/mouse while Android has a touch interface and runs on essentially mini-computers and needs to be able run offline. Combining them is going to give you something like Win 8 - neither one nor the other but a giant mess.

    --
    Just because it's hard doesn't mean you shouldn't try, it means you should try harder!
    1. Re:The OS should match the hardware by c0lo · · Score: 2

      It is possible to somewhat merge the products in an intelligent way, while retaining their advantages for the hardware they work on.

      You wish! Unfortunately, better chances are in having the progeny as ugly as the one parent and as stupid as the other.

      --
      Questions raise, answers kill. Raise questions to stay alive.
    2. Re:The OS should match the hardware by drinkypoo · · Score: 4, Informative

      Chrome and Android are very different OS.

      Chrome is a browser, and Android is an operating system. Linux is a kernel, and it is the basis for both Android, and ChromeOS, a lightweight Linux distribution intended to present an interface to the user only through the Chrome browser.

      Chrome is designed to run off the web on lightweight hardware using a keyboard/mouse while Android has a touch interface and runs on essentially mini-computers and needs to be able run offline.

      You do not even know what a minicomputer is, so please don't use that word again until you consult a computing dictionary. Android does not run on minicomputers, and it barely runs on microcomputers. It's intended to run on handheld computing platforms, but one day it should be a dandy operating system for microcomputers as well. (Right now, the hardware support is lacking.) It has no problems supporting a mouse and keyboard interface, which has been true since Gingerbread at the latest — which was delivered with the Acer Aspire One AOD250 netbook, which is an example of a microcomputer.

      Combining them is going to give you something like Win 8 - neither one nor the other but a giant mess.

      Chrome for Android already exists, which permits you to combine Chrome with Android by installing an APK. It is crap compared to the version of Chrome for microcomputers, which is why ChromeOS even exists. Otherwise, it would make absolutely no sense for Google to maintain two Linux-based operating systems (Android and ChromeOS) due to duplication of effort. When and if Chrome for Android reaches feature-parity with Chrome for ChromeOS, then not only will there be no further reason for ChromeOS to exist, but we will also be able to say that Google has "merged" Android and ChromeOS, since the entire interface of ChromeOS is the Chrome browser.

      I admit that for there to be no reason for ChromeOS to exist any longer, that Android will have to be able to run on the equivalent of the highest-end Chromebook shipping at the time, but almost regardless of the details that will be a minor implementation hurdle compared to bringing Chrome for Android up to speed.

      --
      "You're right," Fisheye says. "I should have set it on 'whip' or 'chop.'"
  3. All Google products are very ethereal by fustakrakich · · Score: 2, Insightful

    They pop up and disappear like toadstools. Google is everything but stagnant.

    --
    “He’s not deformed, he’s just drunk!”
  4. Tell it to Mozillla by colfer · · Score: 4, Informative

    Tell it to Mozilla. All resources seem to be going to the OS project. Thunderbird lost funding.

    1. Re:Tell it to Mozillla by caspy7 · · Score: 2

      Thunderbird's Address Book is being replaced and made pluggable (easily connecting to various contact providers).
      So not all development has stopped.
      Work from Thunderbird has fed into Firefox OS and I believe vice versa.

  5. It's not as crazy as you think... by supersat · · Score: 2

    Parts of Chrome and Android have always shared code (namely WebKit and some glue), but now Android is shipping Chrome as the default browser. The weird overlap is between Chrome OS and Android. Chrome OS is just Linux and Chrome... both of which are part of Android.

    1. Re:It's not as crazy as you think... by kllrnohj · · Score: 2

      Which is *exactly* why it's crazy/stupid to merge them. The entire point of ChromeOS is that it's just a browser. If you merge anything with it, all you've done is killed ChromeOS. And there's nothing to merge from ChromeOS into other OSes - it's just the Chrome browser, which Android already has.

    2. Re:It's not as crazy as you think... by jaxxa · · Score: 2

      Google Chrome does not Run on older versions of Android.

    3. Re:It's not as crazy as you think... by kllrnohj · · Score: 4, Informative

      I was always confused why chrome wasn't the default preinstalled browser on android. Google developed the same thing twice?

      You seem to have forgotten your history here. Chrome and Android launched around the same time. Hell, Chrome on Linux didn't show up until 2010 - that's *AFTER* the Motorola Droid had launched. It's obvious *NOW* that Chrome should run on Android. But 3-4 years ago both Chrome *and* Android were far from proven, and both were focused on establishing themselves first.

      Also, how you build a browser on a desktop is very different from how you build one on mobile. And the vast majority of the work is bringing webkit up on a new platform. WebKit by itself doesn't do much - it's basically "just" HTML parsing + DOM management + JavaScript. Graphics, audio, video, etc... is all platform-specific, and when Android was starting out webkit didn't support touch either.

  6. Linked article has little to say on the issue by grouchomarxist · · Score: 4, Interesting

    The only bit of substance this article has is the quote from Eric Schmidt which is a partial quote which leaves out a very important bit. The fuller quote is: "Chrome and Android operating systems will remain separate products but could have more overlap ". When the article discusses Chrome it seems to be focused on Chrome the browser, not Chrome OS, which the linked Reuter's article properly does. The original article discusses the differences between Chrome and Android, but none of these differences preclude merging or otherwise combining the OSes. In particular, it is very possible that Google at some time will support running Android apps on Chrome OS or running Chrome OS apps on Android.

    1. Re:Linked article has little to say on the issue by roc97007 · · Score: 4, Insightful

      More overlap is fine. The back end could be virtually identical (probably is already very similar) and developers would benefit. As long as they don't try to force us to use the android touch interface on non-touch chromebooks, we're golden.

      Google appears to understand that presentation is a layer atop a collection of resources. Presentation is not the OS

      --
      Oliver's law of assumed responsibility: If you're seen fixing it, you will be blamed for breaking it.
    2. Re:Linked article has little to say on the issue by samkass · · Score: 3, Interesting

      Is the summary really implying Sergey Brin, Google's co-founder, is stupid for suggesting that the two OS's will probably merge someday?

      --
      E pluribus unum
    3. Re:Linked article has little to say on the issue by drinkypoo · · Score: 2

      Even Android doesn't force you to use the Android touch interface. Have you ever installed Android-x86? I wouldn't suggest you depend on it for anything, but it should be an eye-opener. But beyond that, you can plug a mouse into a modern Android device with host mode and get a pointer...

      --
      "You're right," Fisheye says. "I should have set it on 'whip' or 'chop.'"
  7. Duh! by mordejai · · Score: 3, Funny

    Of course they won't MERGE. 3 years from now, tops, Chrome OS will be more dead than Google Reader.

  8. Agree by roc97007 · · Score: 5, Funny

    Of course Android and Chrome won't merge. No company would be suicidal enough to try to create a single GUI paradigm intended to run on both a laptop and a touch screen appliance.

    Wait...

    --
    Oliver's law of assumed responsibility: If you're seen fixing it, you will be blamed for breaking it.
    1. Re:Agree by sconeu · · Score: 4, Funny

      Or to make the browser an integral part of the OS....

      --
      General Relativity: Space-time tells matter where to go; Matter tells space-time what shape to be.
  9. Browser by markdavis · · Score: 4, Informative

    I think Chrome and Android have already merged. Chrome is the default browser in Android Linux, now.

    Oh, perhaps they meant "Chrome OS" Linux?

  10. Schizo summary by mattr · · Score: 2

    Is Slashdot berating Schmidt or thanking him?

    "We Didn't Need Google's Schmidt To Tell Us Android and Chrome Wouldn't Merge"
    "Thankfully, Google Chairman Eric Schmidt has announced"