Tag Archives: Chrome Frame
New For Users Considering the Switch to Chrome: Non-Admin Chrome Frame
Posted on 20. Jun, 2011 by Daniel Cawrey. 
1 Comments
Google has announced today the release of non-admin Chrome Frame, something that the company said they would be launching during the Google I/O developer conference back in May. Basically, this means that anyone who uses Internet Explorer can now get some of the benefits of Chrome in terms of performance regardless of if they have administrative rights on their machine. This is done through a helper process that runs in the background that is part of startup.
You can get this new version of Chrome Frame right here. Right now this is a developer channel version only, although a stable version is coming soon.
Chrome Frame works within Internet Explorer to provide advanced HTML5 capabilities. This new release is another way for Google to circumvent some of the objections that administrators and users have had about switching to Chrome. One of the major issues is proprietary software compatibility. As in, many organizations have developed customized software that works in or a part of the browser. Often times this software was created with IE in mind.
The use of non-admin Chrome Frame is a distinct option for those who still feel like Chrome is not ready for the enterprise. Of course, there are other reasons why some want to stick with Internet Explorer.
Can you think of other reasons? Do you think that admins will think of non-admin Chrome Frame as a threat, or just an evolutionary step?
Sneaky and Smart: Google Toolbar 8 Installs Chrome Frame
Posted on 14. Mar, 2011 by Daniel Cawrey. 2 Comments
Chrome Frame is a plugin that was developed by Google to allow some of their more modern JavaScript and HTML5 features to be ported over to Internet Explorer. Users stuck with IE in their offices with managed IT environments that do not allow software installations could still get Chrome Frame and use interactive components more akin to Chrome.
With Toolbar 8, the software automatically comes with Chrome Frame as well. The reason behind this, according to Google, is that the new version of Toolbar is more like a webapp than an add-on as it once was.
Google Toolbar is a direct attack at Microsoft. It essentially puts an Omnibox in your Internet Explorer browser as well as other Google services such as Translate. It even has a PageRank checker that you can turn on. I know this because I installed it myself to take a look at it.
thechromesource Daily: Links for 9/23/10
Posted on 23. Sep, 2010 by Daniel Cawrey. 0 Comments
Chrome is starting to overtake Firefox in terms of power users, Lifehacker takes a look at why that might be.
Does Chrome Frame really matter now that Internet Explorer 9 has been released in beta?
The FCC has opened up vacant TV airwaves for use in wireless data services, a much needed boost for mobile connectivity.
The Stable and Beta channels of Chrome browser were updated last night with a fix for the V8 JavaScript engine.
Google Tutor has some tips for reproducing text in Chrome and Google Apps.
Stuck with IE? Chrome Frame Goes Stable
Posted on 22. Sep, 2010 by Daniel Cawrey. 2 Comments
The Google Chrome Frame plugin offers those who must use Internet Explorer either for service level agreements or because of IT administration purposes a way to experience the technology behind Chrome inside Microsoft’s browser. Of course, I’ve also written in the past that it’s potentially available simply to piss Microsoft off as well.
Today, the Chromium Blog has announced that Chrome Frame has gone stable, and they’ve even added an MSI for deployment throughout large-scale networks. Many sites support Chrome Frame, and reports are that it makes the IE experience much faster because of the technology integrated into the browser with this plugin.
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New Version of Jolicloud Uses Chrome for Webapps
Posted on 05. Mar, 2010 by Daniel Cawrey. 0 Comments
A few months back I did a review of Jolicloud, which is a competing netbook OS that uses the Linux kernel and is made possible by venture capital-backed funding. There was some news related to the newest version of Jolicloud that while the default browser for the OS is still Firefox, webapps for its “cloud” portion of the platform will run with underlying Google Chrome architecture. This will be a change coming in its new beta version that is due out later this month.
As mentioned in my review, Jolicloud is a different animal when compared to Chrome OS. It has a mix of installed applications and webapps that will satisify both early adopters and regular computer users. However, I found that the “connect to the cloud” notifications when I first booted the system up would be confusing for regular users. I will have to take a look at the new version, but in the previous one it seemed to me that they only reason I needed to actually login to Jolicloud’s servers was to download and install new applications – of which I had to make a choice from their app directory.
But I like this concept of Chrome being the underlying engine for running applications that are web based. This shows that Chrome is really more than just a web browser even right now. A great example of this is Chrome Frame which can be paired with Microsoft’s Internet Explorer to run more intensive applications than the standalone IE can handle.
Video: Using HTML5 with YouTube
Posted on 11. Feb, 2010 by Daniel Cawrey. 0 Comments
As many already know, YouTube is attempting to get away from using the proprietary Adobe Flash standard for video playback. In mobile devices such as the iPhone and soon the iPad, you cannot use Flash, supposedly because Apple CEO Steve Jobs deems it “buggy” – causing applications that use it to crash. There is another valid argument for not using Flash, and it is because now that it is installed in so many devices it could be a security threat according to McAfee.
As previously reported here, there is a beta for using HTML5 while on YouTube. This allows anyone using a HTML5-compliant browser to use it. But that means using a compliant browser such as Safari, Chrome, Firefox or IE when coupled with Chrome Frame to use it. The current version does have its quirks, but eventually it will result in a a faster and overall better user expeience when looking at any type of media over the web.
You can take a look at how to use HTML5 and its early performance on the YouTube site right here:
It’s pretty clear from the clip that the video loads pretty fast. Instead of using Flash as the go-between, HTML5 allows web developers to directly embed compressed video files such as MPEG right into the code itself so that it can be called from a server. Not to mention that Flash can take up a lot of resources on your machine if you’re trying to load up a couple of videos. The only intermediary is the application that you use, further evidencing the fact that personal computing is becoming more centralized around the internet browser and the standard application that we use to view it.
Chrome Experiments Offers a Glimpse of the Future Browser
Posted on 24. Jan, 2010 by Daniel Cawrey. 0 Comments
Just like the developer of Google Gravity, there are those who are well versed in Javascript and HTML 5 that are pretty excited about the prospects of new standards that are coming for web browser technologies. That’s why when I came across Chrome Experiments I was surprised initially that the site was actually owned by Google.
My perception would have been that this type of site would be something done by an ambitious programmer, but in fact Google runs the site and there is a submission process that is required to show off your project on the site. This is a place that shows off some new application concepts that can be run in Chrome browser, or Internet Explorer with Chrome Frame if you wish. Although some of these are a bit basic or rough around the edges, remember this is simply and experimental site that is simply showing off what Chrome was actually created for.
One case in point was Bomomo, which is a new way to create digital art. I opened this project up in a browser window, and in under a minute I was able to create my first work:
Say what you will about my artistic tendencies of lack thereof; the point of this is how cool web technologies are becoming. Those who are not especially technical can handle these type of apps. I am sure that some can relate to this, for example I’m especially impressed with myself and my use of Bomomo since I can barely finger paint. Chrome Experiments has all sorts of browser apps that can be checked out. It’s really about how much time you want to waste during your day looking at this type of stuff.
HTML 5 Beta Goes Live for Youtube
Posted on 23. Jan, 2010 by Daniel Cawrey. 2 Comments
It’s been a day or so since YouTube publicly released the HTML 5 beta program. This is largely in response to users who had overloaded the Google Product Ideas submission site with requests for this feature on YouTube just a few weeks ago. In order to view videos in this newer web format as opposed to using traditional Flash, you must have a compatible browser and head over to this page in order to turn it on while you are looking at Youtube videos. So what is a compatible browser? It must be Chrome browser, Apple Safari (verion 4 and up) or Internet Explorer with Chrome Frame installed. Full screen mode currently does not work, and ad supported videos don’t either.
The benefits of using HTML 5? Faster video loads as well as smoother playback.
When looking at videos on the Youtube site with the beta, you’ll see a HTML 5 logo when your clip begins to load. Other than that, and along with the inability to go full-screen there really is not much I noticed different at first glance. But that may change as I watch more videos. Interestingly, another video site that I’d never heard of called Vimeo also is testing HTML 5, where there is a link to switch over on the lower right hand side below individual videos.
Anyways, go ahead and sign up for the beta at YouTube if you’re interested. There are some issues right now with Flash for Chromium OS, and it is for Google’s own benefit in the project to get HTML 5 up and working successfully on YouTube.
Check out Google’s own presentation on HTML 5 from September 2009 right here:
Google Search Gets Interactive With Google Gravity
Posted on 23. Jan, 2010 by Daniel Cawrey. 2 Comments
Ah, the old days of static web pages. I think that they are really starting to disappear, sliding into a slow extinction. Kind of like payphones. Or newspapers. Case in point would be Google Gravity:
Sure, you’re thinking it’s totally worthless. But but then again, maybe not. This just shows what you can do with some Javascript in a new generation of browsers. And in the future, HTML 5 will be the engine for this type of stuff. You can play with this yourself, search all you want. But don’t try using Internet Explorer, because when I surfed over to Google Gravity with IE7 I got this:
Although that shouldn’t happen in an IE7 window using Chrome Frame, if the developer were to have it enabled in his code.
Google: Let’s Piss Off Microsoft with Chrome Frame
Posted on 18. Jan, 2010 by Daniel Cawrey. 5 Comments
OK, so sometimes I’m behind the times, but I just discovered this little project Google has been working on called Chrome Frame. Basically it’s an add-in to Internet Explorer that allows it to run newer web technologies such as HTML5 if a developer puts in a line that triggers it within their code. This includes the Chrome browser’s V8 Javascript kit that allows for faster performance, support for newer CSS formats and offline storage functions that are starting to be seen in Google applications such as Gmail.
We all know that Internet Explorer has become a slow and cumbersome behemoth, and for those who are unable to install Chrome browser on a managed machine this is a simple fix for that as you can easily download a small executable and then run it. It would also be useful for developers who need to test different browser versions in one application as well. Chrome Frame works with IE 6, 7 and 8. Here is a video from Google:
Although released under the auspices of development, this kind of stuff must really irritate Microsoft and when this was first announced last September they issued a statement that using Chrome Frame may have security implications, but Google later released a patch that allayed those concerns.
Anything from the positive department for Microsoft? Looks like Bing is making headways in search. Must be all those ads on television. Too bad I make my own decisions.
