Browsers, SSDs and Satellites: Monday Morning Updates
Google’s new Chrome browser, which I mentioned twice last week, is the subject of additional competitive analysis by Microsoft employees, with highly critical results. Check out, for example, Robert Hensing’s follow-on to last week’s critique. Check out, too, Rob Mensching’s dissection of the Chrome (and Gears) install (and uninstall) procedures. As I suggested before, Chrome seems to be (as much as anything else) a Trojan Horse to get Google Gears onto your system.
The Inquirer alerted me this morning that Google’s just released a Chrome update, which hopefully addresses some of the security and other issues I’ve pointed out. While the Inq gang had trouble getting it installed, my Chrome copy auto-updated on program launch (which is a bit disconcerting). A WINE update is also now available, for all of you who want to run the browser on a Unix-ish O/S (including Linux and Mac OS X). And Lifehacker just published a Power User’s Guide.
Intel’s 1.8" and 2.5" MLC (multi-level-cell) NAND flash memory-based SSDs, whose impending release I alerted you to a few weeks back at IDF, are now shipping. 1,000 unit pricing for the 80 GByte X18-M and X25-M is $595; 160 GByte variants will be sampling sometime next quarter. As I mentioned in my prior writeup, Intel also plans SLC (single-level-cell) NAND flash memory-based variants of the 2.5" drive product line, called the X25-E Extreme SATA SSD series. Curiously, though, today’s press release still carries the same ‘within 90 days’ tag line that I heard three weeks ago. Does the repetition simply represent sloppy copy-and-pasting by the press release author, or is this duplication indicative of a schedule slip? Inquiring minds want to know…
Finally (at least for today), judging from the feedback I received, it seems many of you enjoyed last week’s International Space Station-themed writeup. As such, here are a few related tidbits for you:
- You can track satellites and other orbiting objects (at least the ones the Pentagon wants you to know about, that is) directly in Google Earth.
- An upcoming sensor- and compass-inclusive USB stick (but no GPS?) will assist your astronomy aspirations; regarding Gizmodo’s computer screen ‘blinding’ critique, though, Mark Wilson must not know about the vision-sparing red ‘night mode’ (link is to an interesting YouTube clip, for which embedding in this post is unfortunately not offered) that many programs (such as open-source, multi-platform Stellarium) offer. To wit, I recall that many sub-notebooks (such as Apple’s various MacBooks) already include orientation sensors…too bad they don’t (yet, at least) also embed compass and GPS functions!
- Finally, check out a NASA official’s diatribe about how the (premature?) retirement of the Space Shuttle will negatively impact the United States’ access to the ISS.
Followup: My contacts at Intel assure me that there’s been no SLC NAND flash memory-based SSD schedule slip…the company repeated the three weeks back ‘within 90 days’ mantra for simplicity’s sake, although by now it’d be more accurate to say ‘within 70 days’. And they can’t believe I caught this, either…;-) Also, here are details on the Chrome browser upgrade; better late than never, I guess, Google…
