Chrome OS Google
From Computerworld ChromeOS Explosion – Dec2020
A subtle-seeming Google purchase paves the way for a dramatic expansion of Chrome OS’s reach — and a dramatic reimagining of what a Chromebook even is.
Neverware and the Chrome OS connection
I first wrote about Neverware nearly five years ago, but the company’s actually been around even longer than that. Its primary purpose is creating a piece of software called CloudReady, which is basically a version of Chrome OS without all the Google-specific elements baked in.
CloudReady + Google = ?
The most important takeaway of Google’s Neverware purchase comes from a recently published FAQ on the purchase — with the emphasis being mine:
“Over the long term, CloudReady will become an official Chrome OS offering.”
An official Chrome OS offering!
And that means people — and perhaps most critically, companies — could take an abandoned old Windows or Mac computer out of storage and turn it into a fully functional, official-update-receiving Chromebook, with minimal cost, ample advantages, and few to no asterisks attached.
From a business perspective, that should be a massive opportunity to bring existing hardware back to life and cut down on the need for new purchases. (Remember, too, that Google just unveiled a new system for enterprises to run Windows apps on Chrome OS — a suddenly very relevant-seeming twist.) Neverware says such systems will eventually be managed via the standard Google Admin console. And support for them will be provided directly by Google, just as it would with any traditional enterprise-managed Chrome OS devices.
We recommend reading the full article From Computerworld ChromeOS Explosion