AH! Google’s browser - Chrome - is out - while waiting for the linux version, I downloaded a copy on the Win XP test machine, to see what is the fuzz all about. And of course I had to share some preliminary thoughts on the news of the month.

While the technical innovations of Google Chrome are interesting, I will focus mainly on two GUI innovations of the Google Chrome: the “Mother Tab”, and the choice of moving a number of controls from main window to tab-level.

Mother Tab
What I call Mother Tab is really a new way to open (ctrl-t) a new tab in Chrome. The tab won’t be empty, but it has 5 main UI modules:

1. a most visited webpages grid
2. a search form
3. a recent bookmarks
4. a recently closed tabs module
5. a bookmark area

The purpose of this is to streamline interaction by providing the top web destination and the most recent ones at a glance when users open a new tab, following the idea that “users want to go somewhere” when they open a new tab.

I find it very useful, although I would have liked to be able to set my own default grid. But I count on the fact that in time, the statistical record of visited websites will be at least as good as Firefox 3’s new location bar suggestions. But here’s a screehshot:

Particularly interesting the placement of a bookmark bar, which is a good way to introduce the next novelty.

Moving Controls from main window to Tab

This move seems to be beneficial in several respects. Firstly, it reduces the overhead of controls and options, removing from main view extra clutter. Secondly, and consequently, it allows increasing the useful real estate, so that more content is shown with the same window size. Thirdly, and referring to the Bookmark bar mentioned above, it brings access to both “favorite” bookmarks and full bookmark list again following the principle that if you ope na new tab you wish to go somewhere. Finally, it just looks neat

In conclusion - and leaving aside the supposedly great technological innovations relating to javascript and crash control - after a very short usage, Google Chrome looks like a very good product. What remains to be seen is whether and to what extent the dev community will embrace it and create plugins and extensions matching those of Firefox…..

Tags: google, UXD musings, Web