Author Topic: Google Chrome: Time for a Second Chance? (Read 83,326 times)

Deozaan · « **on:** July 15, 2009, 01:35 AM »

Back when Google Chrome launched, I downloaded the beta, played with it for a few minutes and promptly uninstalled it. Dismissing it as pointless and redundant (not to mention not nearly as good as Firefox).

Recently I found out my brother uses Chrome and I asked him why and he mentioned a couple of things that got me interested in trying it again: It launches faster than Firefox and each tab runs in its own process so if one tab crashes it doesn't bring down the entire browser.

Has anyone else been using it for a while now? What do you think about it?

I noticed it doesn't have (true) extensions and thus AdBlock, so it's annoying to have ads showing up on websites I've never seen them on before, but other than that, what's the general consensus for people who have been giving it a try?

Hirudin · « **Reply #1 on:** July 15, 2009, 07:40 AM »

I was using it since it first appeared on Google.com until Firefox 3.5 (final) came out.

It does launch quite fast. A related problem I had with it is that there weren't many options for how it opens. IIRC you can either have it open all the tabs you had open before, or start fresh every time. There isn't an option like there is with Firefox (and IE I believe) that asks you what you want to do.

Screenshot - Wed, Jul 15 , 1_14_43 AM.png

What I found really bothersome is that if you close the program by closing the last tab with the little "X" on the tab it would open that tab again the next time you launch the program. I rarely want the last tab(s) to be re-opened so this is one instance where I would personally prefer to be asked every time I close the browser.

It may be a fact that it launches each tab as its own process, but in my experience if one tab crashes the rest will go with it anyway.

And, as you've mentioned, extension support is limited at best. I don't know the technical reasons there aren't extensions like AdBlock and Flashblock for Chrome, I can just tell you that their absence is glaring.

On the other hand it does a couple other things better than Firefox. If you drag a tab out of Chrome you can place it anywhere you want on your screen and it'll create a new browser at that location. With Firefox you can drag the tab wherever you want, when you drop it the new browser window will appear just as if you had hit "CTRL + N".

Screenshot - Wed, Jul 15 , 1_23_22 AM.png

Another small thing I like about Chrome is they made it so all "File Path" fields (like what is used to attach an image in this forum) are changed into "Choose File" buttons. Again, this isn't a big thing, but I'm frequently still surprised when the Choose File dialog pops up when all I did was click to put the cursor in an empty field.

Screenshot - Wed, Jul 15 , 1_29_16 AM.png

Also, they've combined the address bar with the search bar. Anything that has a domain (.com, .net, .org, .whatever) will be sent to the DNS server (I guess) and anything without a domain (or anything with spaces in it) will automatically be sent to your default search engine. Firefox will do this too, but it seems to try to get the IP for everything put into the address bar.

Another thing it does is it puts a resizing... uh... "chevron"* on every text box that allows you to make it bigger. It's real useful for forums. I bet there's a Firefox extension that will do the same thing though.

* sure, that's a good word for it

I'd still recommend giving it a try. The little things that bother me may not make a difference to you and the little things that I don't notice may be exactly what you're looking for.

Dormouse · « **Reply #2 on:** July 15, 2009, 09:23 AM »

FF has its extensions. They are its good point.

Chrome is fast. And given that FF and ie both have critical and unpatched vulnerabilities that only really leaves Chrome and Opera and a few others for the moment if you want to be secure (I exclude Safari personally).

JennyB · « **Reply #3 on:** July 15, 2009, 04:04 PM »

Quote from: Hirudin on July 15, 2009, 07:40 AM

It does launch quite fast. A related problem I had with it is that there weren't many options for how it opens. IIRC you can either have it open all the tabs you had open before, or start fresh every time. There isn't an option like there is with Firefox (and IE I believe) that asks you what you want to do. (see attachment in previous post)What I found really bothersome is that if you close the program by closing the last tab with the little "X" on the tab it would open that tab again the next time you launch the program. I rarely want the last tab(s) to be re-opened so this is one instance where I would personally prefer to be asked every time I close the browser.

I used Chrome for some months after I downloaded a new version of Opera and couldn't get my mail imported from the old one (fixed that now). I never got used to the way closing the last tab closed the whole browser, but I kept it because it loaded again so fast.

Quote

It may be a fact that it launches each tab as its own process, but in my experience if one tab crashes the rest will go with it anyway.

That's my experience too.

Quote

Another thing it does is it puts a resizing... uh... "chevron"* on every text box that allows you to make it bigger. It's real useful for forums. I bet there's a Firefox extension that will do the same thing though.

That's one thing I really miss in other browsers. I began to reply to this post in Opera, and then opened it in Chrome instead for the extra space and the spell checker.

I think I'll keep Chrome as the default browser for local files, for forums and (naturally) for Google Mail, Groups and Reader, and use Opera for everything else.

wreckedcarzz · « **Reply #4 on:** July 15, 2009, 04:26 PM »

I gave Chrome a 2nd shot on my computer about two weeks ago, and uninstalled it about 3 or so days ago. Mostly just following the opinions already stated, it is fast and it runs javascript (most notably Google's websites like Gmail and YouTube) faster than Firefox (although with 3.5 this isn't so much of a gap anymore, and it may be a dead point). The window-based Incognito browsing is nice, you can have as many normal windows as you want alongside as many Incognito windows that you want - Firefox turns the entire browser upside down when you enter Private Browsing Mode (so if you are like some people I know, your going to cry when you go to switch back and all those hundred(s) of tabs come flying back to be reloaded at once...).

I kept Firefox 3.5 (the Release Candidate) installed when I got Chrome, and while I would open Chrome for just quick IM links or the like, I would always open Firefox when I was planning a long term browsing session (ex longer than 10 minutes or so). Why? I simply cannot lose all my Firefox addons, and with my recent installation of Greasemonkey, that point is simply made more apparant. The lack of addons like AdBlock, Download Statusbar, Fission, Stop-or-Reload (Chrome does this by default, though), ForecastFox, DownloadHelper and NoScript made Chrome feel more like a nice flashy hotel room with a big TV to coax you in, rather than a place I could (comfortably) call "home".

I like how I can make Firefox whatever I want it to be. Until I can sit down and find quality addons that rival those of what I have now, with a better looking theme (am I the only one that hates the way Chrome looks? It's so monotone

) and options that allow me to, like Firefox, customize just about everything I want "No thanks, Google" is all I have to say.

sajman99 · « **Reply #5 on:** July 15, 2009, 07:51 PM »

In addition to eliminating usage tracking and addressing other privacy concerns, the Chromium-based SRWare Iron already has a preliminary implementation of AdBlock which may satisfy most users. The adblock.ini indicates the implementation is based on http://fanboy.co.nz/adblock.

If a user's primary gripe with Chrome is the absence of AdBlock, SRWare Iron could be worth a look--they even have a portable version. http://www.srware.net/en/software_srware_iron.php

Eóin · « **Reply #6 on:** July 15, 2009, 08:13 PM »

I've been using Chrome on the pc I've also been trailing Win7 on and am very happy with it. Still though I miss one or two features from FireFox, mainly NoScript and Xmarks.

I for one though really like how Chrome looks with Aero Glass. Must also give SRWare Iron a spin.

jeromg · « **Reply #7 on:** July 15, 2009, 08:22 PM »

I also tried Chrome when it was announced, as suggested by a friend of mine I read the end user license agreement... scary to say the least.
My view on this is that google has forgotten its original motto "don't be evil", they just launch a browser to get more data about what people are doing on the web and use that to improve their engines and above all to improve the monetization of their work through ads.
If you have the smallest concern about your privacy, don't use Chrome... Use firefox or even IE (given the scrutiny MS gets, you're probably safe)
By the way, you should also try alternative search engine, I must admit I don't use google a lot these days (try ask.com, exalead.com or even bing.com, their results are as good as, if not better than google). I hate monopolies and to me, google is probably one of the most perverse of all monopolies.

Jerome

Dormouse · « **Reply #8 on:** July 15, 2009, 09:22 PM »

If you worry about info going to Google, you can always turn it off or use Iron. Definitely no reason to use ie; you might be safe from MS with ie but you're certainly not safe from anyone else.

I do check all the search engines, still find Google more useful than the others.

And I don't argue with the fact that they have produced more web based stuff that is useful to me than anyone else.

Agree about monopolies, but at least they made their own by being better than all the established companies. MS were given theirs by IBM & Apple effectively pinched stuff from Xerox and somehow established ownership of it. And in terms of leveraging their monopoly against their users, Google are a long way behind Apple and MS (in that order).

justice · « **Reply #9 on:** July 16, 2009, 09:20 AM »

It's great and I'd love to use it all the time but I really need Roboform

SKA · « **Reply #10 on:** July 16, 2009, 11:36 AM »

Anyone used Chrome Privacy guard with args (CPCA)-
http://jamesburgess.co.uk/journal/2008/12/12/chrome-privacy-guard-args-cpga/

or the original CPGuard :
http://blog.gjl-network.net/blog/index.php?archives/166-English.html&serendipity[lang_selected]=en

Does it really work(to randomise the GUID) ?

SKA

invenit · « **Reply #11 on:** July 19, 2009, 01:01 AM »

Chrome is my default browser for WinXP (even though I mostly use Firefox 3.5.1 with Sandboxie & noscript for casual surfing). Nothing beats Chrome in my experience for speed when I access my email newsletter/webzine links from Google via Thunderbird.

jfbowles · « **Reply #12 on:** July 27, 2009, 12:10 PM »

I need Robo Form. Chrome does not support it. Or robo Form does not support Chrome - Which is it? There is a program called "Fast Pass" that purports to be as good as, or better than, Robo Form. That's questionable. I tried to get it to work with Chrome but couldn't manage to make it work. It's supposed to...

Josh · « **Reply #13 on:** July 27, 2009, 12:17 PM »

I am in the same boat as you with requiring roboform. It is the sole reason I do not use opera. I would also like to mess with chrome, and while I have played around with it and actually enjoy it, roboform is a deal killer. I need it to work. And it looks like it is on the way:

http://www.roboform.com/browsers.html#browser_mozilla

YEAY!

cyberdiva · « **Reply #14 on:** July 27, 2009, 02:31 PM »

Quote from: Josh on July 27, 2009, 12:17 PM

I am in the same boat as you with requiring roboform. It is the sole reason I do not use opera.

You might try Last Pass. I learned about this on another thread here at DC. I too was looking for something that works well with Opera, and I found it in Last Pass. As the thread I cited explains, it will also work with FF, etc., and if you already have RoboForm installed, each time you use RoboForm, Last Pass will ask whether you want it to remember the info. That makes it expecially easy to add lots of info pretty quickly. I think I prefer RoboForm, but I'm delighted to have Last Pass as well, and I love it on Opera. And, unlike RoboForm, Last Pass is FREE.

johnk · « **Reply #15 on:** July 27, 2009, 03:56 PM »

Quote from: Josh on July 27, 2009, 12:17 PM

I am in the same boat as you with requiring roboform. It is the sole reason I do not use opera.

I have often wondered by how much Opera's user base would increase if the program supported third-party add-ons. Every time you see a thread on the browser war, there are always a few posts which say: "I'd love to use Opera but can't live without Roboform" (and I'm one of them). I understand Opera's standpoint re security of add-ons, but still...

eschen · « **Reply #16 on:** July 28, 2009, 06:48 AM »

Chrome and the latest Safari are definately better than Firefox if you use them for surfing only. For development Firefox is still the best tool (still wait for a port of its Firebug plugin). Firefox is too memory hungry, unstable, slow and the user experience is not as good. I'm still sad that they gave up the original Mozilla trunk for this crapped architecture that Firefox still has. Although, I wait for a better Chrome. Meanwhile I prefer Safari a bit.

Hirudin · « **Reply #17 on:** July 28, 2009, 08:09 AM »

When I was first considering going back to Firefox (from Chrome) I tried to do a couple of "tests" to see which one was faster. What I did probably wasn't scientific, but it was conclusive enough for me.

I would open both browsers, click the bookmark button in Chrome then click the same bookmark button in Firefox. Firefox would actually finish loading the page before Chrome, even though Chrome got a head start.

Maybe by messing with the settings the results would have been different.

Hmmm, I just tried it again. They were both very fast but about even, if one is faster it's not appreciably faster in my opinion.

mahesh2k · « **Reply #18 on:** July 28, 2009, 09:56 AM »

Chrome is crashing ever since i uninstalled Visual studio 2005 from PC. when i tried to use "Spell checker" it used to prompt some dialog box asking for restart chrome. This was happening frequently with chrome. Sometimes it was even used to crash if Flash/Silverlight pages stopped responding.

Steven Avery · « **Reply #19 on:** July 28, 2009, 03:40 PM »

Hi Folks,

I was recently on a computer with limited resources, XP 512 MG - so I think in a situation like that Firefox with some windows open becomes a problem rather quickly, close and reopen being the norm. So I loaded and suggested trying Chrome (this is relatively light stuff anyway).

Note that Chrome is actually the Google version of the open source Chromium, which keeps a low profile.

Chromium
http://code.google.com/chromium/
Download (.zip recommended for placement)
http://build.chromium.org/buildbot/continuous/win/LATEST/
Is Chronium Better than Google Chrome ? - Cliff Notes
http://clif-notes.blogspot.com/2009/07/is-chromium-better-than-google-chrome.html

Opera has a big problem for me in that the integration with Linkman, adding a URL, can fail, a primary function in a browser. Outertech says that at times Opera does not want to properly declare its Opera-ness. (It is well-known that Opera can be a bit stodgy in dealing with API situations.) Also I have not gotten the functionality that I like from Tab Mix Plus, however that might be there. So I will retry Chrome or Chromium (had Chrome up before the last XP install). Overall I tend to like its minimalist approach. And use it in tandem with Firefox and see how it goes, I am a big believer in always having more than one browser at hand. If the tabs are good and the Linkman integration is good, I'll probably be pretty happy.

Shalom,
Steven

J-Mac · « **Reply #20 on:** July 29, 2009, 07:02 AM »

Quote from: jfbowles on July 27, 2009, 12:10 PM

I need Robo Form. Chrome does not support it. Or robo Form does not support Chrome - Which is it? There is a program called "Fast Pass" that purports to be as good as, or better than, Robo Form. That's questionable. I tried to get it to work with Chrome but couldn't manage to make it work. It's supposed to...

No, you might be thinking of LastPass - I never heard of "Fast Pass" - and LastPass indeed has won me over from Roboform. Something I didn't think would ever happen. And no, LastPass doesn't purport to support Chrome, as Chrome does not yet allow add-ons. However they DO offer bookmarklets for Chrome and Opera. I haven't tried them in Opera yet but they work very well - surprisingly well - in Chrome.

Jim

cyberdiva · « **Reply #21 on:** July 29, 2009, 02:22 PM »

Quote from: J-Mac on July 29, 2009, 07:02 AM

No, you might be thinking of LastPass - I never heard of "Fast Pass" - and LastPass indeed has won me over from Roboform. Something I didn't think would ever happen. And no, LastPass doesn't purport to support Chrome, as Chrome does not yet allow add-ons. However they DO offer bookmarklets for Chrome and Opera. I haven't tried them in Opera yet but they work very well - surprisingly well - in Chrome.

I have been using LastPass in Opera and find it works very well. I've put it on Firefox as well, where I also have RoboForm. Now, when I use RoboForm to log onto a website, LastPass asks whether it too should save this info. I usually say yes, so it is then available to me when I use Opera.

sjcs · « **Reply #22 on:** July 31, 2009, 08:41 AM »

Initially, i didnt use chrome because of the lack of adblock, however once my firefox started taking ~1min to open, I looked into alternatives and found out that you can use privoxy to block ads, and apparently it even makes chrome load pages faster (although i dont know how thats meant to wokr :S)

A quick guide to setting it up is here.

superboyac · « **Reply #23 on:** April 22, 2010, 02:39 AM »

For the first time, i have started using Chrome semi-regularly. I will agree with many here: it is fast. I mean, really. It's a lot faster and more responsive than firefox.

Firefox is still my main browser because I have it set up just the way i like. But I'll tell you what, if i can get Chrome set up the way my FF is setup, i'll switch for good. I love speed.

J-Mac · « **Reply #24 on:** April 22, 2010, 03:13 AM »

Quote from: superboyac on April 22, 2010, 02:39 AM

For the first time, i have started using Chrome semi-regularly. I will agree with many here: it is fast. I mean, really. It's a lot faster and more responsive than firefox.

Firefox is still my main browser because I have it set up just the way i like. But I'll tell you what, if i can get Chrome set up the way my FF is setup, i'll switch for good. I love speed.

I always run into errors and crashes with Firefox since I think 3.5 and I do keep Chrome ready to go at all times. Whenever Firefox gets a bug up you-know-where I just fire up Chrome, change it to the default browser - because it's a bitch using Chrome but forgetting and clicking links and having them open Firefox. I'd consider Chrome more seriously as my primary browser IF they would support extensions more vigorously, trim down the massive memory usage, and allow me to move the darned tabs from the very top of the screen. I'm using the developers version so I do have extensions installed but they work very intermittently. Chrome is lightning fast though; amazingly fast actually. I am always surprised when Firefox acts up and crashes and I fire up Chrome instead. I get ready to go pour a cup of coffee so all open tabs will be fully loaded by the time I get back but I can't even hardly get out of my chair and Chrome is ready to go. I know that a few of my extensions cause some slowness in Firefox but Chrome beats the pants off it speed-wise even if I start Firefox in Safe Mode.

Jim