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Googling Google

Christopher Dawson
Home / News & Blogs / Googling Google

Chrome is a browser? What's a browser?

By | April 12, 2009, 8:47pm PDT

New users to Chrome sometimes find themselves submersed in a world of confusion. Several users on the Google Chrome discussion group couldn’t figure out what exactly Chrome is, or how to get back to “plain old Google”.

It’s a wonder these internet pioneers figured out how to post their (extremely humorous) questions. Here are a few of the questions that have surfaced about Google Chrome:

“I want the old Google search engine, not Google Chrome. How do I go back to regular old Google? I want to change my default search engine from Chrome to Google. The tools don’t help me,” asks Orville.

“If I change from Outlook Express to Chrome browser does my E Mail address have to be changed to a G Mail address?” wants to know Haljoan.

“I don’t like the design of the Google Chrome.page. All of the toolbars I’m familiar with are missing, and I don’t even know how i got it. If I uninstall it, will I be able to get just plain Google?” wonders Stellar.

“Should I remove my original Google now that I have installed Google Chrome?”

– quotes posted on Google Operating System

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Topics

Google Inc., Web Browser, Google Chrome, Chrome, Web Browsers, Microsoft Outlook, Internet, Microsoft Office, Office Suites, Software, Garett Rogers

Garett Rogers has always had a deep interest in computers and the Internet, which led him to a degree in Computer Information Systems. He is currently employed as a programmer for iQmetrix.

Disclosure

Garett Rogers

Garett Rogers is employed as a programmer for iQmetrix, which specializes in retail management software for the wireless industry. He has no other formal associations with any software or hardware companies.

Biography

Garett Rogers

Garett Rogers has always had a deep interest in computers and the Internet, which led him to a degree in Computer Information Systems. He is currently employed as a programmer for iQmetrix, which specializes in retail management software designed specifically for the cellular and electronics industry.

Garett's journey into Google started with his employer asking him to "get a better rank on Google." Diving into search engine optimization sparked his curiosity for how things work and led him to create a blog dedicated to what interests him most--Google.

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Or use Remastersys to image the entire install inc Home dir...
DevJonny 16th Apr 2009
...and burn it to a disc, and voila! Personalised back up disc, or drop the Home Dir and you have your own Distro to hand out.
View in thread
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Like I said....some people...
storm14k 12th Apr 2009
...or rather many people don't understand how to use a computer period. All this "average user can't use Linux" crap is just that....crap. Many people have no clue what they are doing on any OS. They've simply become accustomed to "pictures" and shapes and would become completely lost if you simply rearranged them.
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Some People...
clindhartsen 12th Apr 2009
...are not adapt to change though. If they have been used to using Windows, for better or worse, changing the UI on them drastically will only cause confusion. To an extent, some would point at Vista with that, even 7 may be that worry, though a level of training will be needed no matter what just to get people caught up.

Nonetheless, it's a combination of training, time, practice, patience, and possibly a touch of interest to really get the whole understanding.
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Those are the people who wouldn't like Linux
CobraA1 13th Apr 2009
"All this 'average user can't use Linux' crap is just that....crap."

No it isn't. Your average user can't use Linux. This just spells out why: They hate any sort of change, and guess what? Linux is a huge change. The last thing you want is to get people completely lost.

. . . and that's why Linux, despite all of their dreams of becoming big on the desktop, isn't going to be a reality.
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Maybe a test is in order.
bricar2 13th Apr 2009
Let's take a pre-configured laptop with say Ubuntu on it and let the average computer Joe try doing his usual things. How bad could it go?

I agree to the average computer Joe that installing a Linux distro is out of the question and even daring to try a few commands on the command line might be too much. But let him try out a system that is ready to go and see what would happen.
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What would happen
aspit 13th Apr 2009
A rip would occur in the space-time continuum. That's what would happen.
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Of course
T1Oracle 13th Apr 2009
Anything that flips the MS fanbois world on its head automatically causes a rip in the space time continuum.

However, in an alternate universe known as reality... most people will see icons, click them, see Google, and then forget that it's not Windows.

There will be points where they get lost, but if they don't expect Windows then they will take it as part of the learning process.

If need evidence of this then look at cell phones, each one is entirely different yet they continue to sell far more of those than computers.

Some people are slow learners but the ones who are adopting new technology already expect a learning curve.
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What would happen? LOL
TechMoid 13th Apr 2009
pretty much as stated above, except when they try to print/scan/copy something. Then they would say WTF?! Windows can do this.......
what do I do with my music?.... whats this Flash thingy all about?......where's my finance software? huh, I have to connect to some dutch/german overseas ocx exchange what?!
Hey, my cell phone is not tranferring files to the machine.....Where's tha paint/photo program....Gimp? whats that? why does it have a zillion windows......screw it, windows can do I what I want and I dont have to learn anything..
So, what would happen?
No rip in the space time continuum, just wasted time. I dont mean to bash Linux distros...I am a windows user, and I have used some linux,( it's my fall backback option on an additional drive) albeit in limited fashion due to the statements above. Oh well , bash me away....:-)
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Pure, unadulterated bull......
linux for me 13th Apr 2009
I take users from windows to linux all the time and not one, has found linux to be any harder than Windows. Actually, many of them state that linux is easier to use than Windows.

Over all I install more linux desktops and servers than Windows, and many others converted from Windows. So I can say, based on experience, your claim is knee deep.
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And
balaknair 14th Apr 2009
ironically, they're the ones who would actually benefit by switching to Linux- no malware, software installation only from safe repositories, better community support for the questions of the sort mentioned in the article.

That aside, most flavors of desktop Linux today offer a much easier computing experience than Windows, it'll take no more than a week to learn how to get the most out of an Ubuntu install for a neophyte used to Windows. It's the power users who have a harder time switching.
Of course, once the number of these 'clueless' folks using Linux reached a tipping point we'd start seeing a wave of malware being written for Linux. The target isn't the OS, it's the user.
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Hogswallop
dave.leigh@... Updated - 15th Apr 2009
Case in point: the last person I migrated to Linux was happily telling someone that she had gotten "that Ubuntu Windows" and she didn't get viruses anymore. Her favorite feature, weirdly enough, was the file manager because the preview is so good. She thought it was a photo manager.

With this kind of user, you give them a browser, OpenOffice, add Flash and video codecs, set up the printer, and let them go. They'll rarely if ever even touch the office suite. All they want is a machine that's set up for them and that doesn't break. If they could buy it in a store that would be 2 points to Linux.
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completely agree, i would extend it to:
benitodarder 15th Apr 2009
"some/many people shouldn't be allowed to get less than 10 meters close to a computer"

usually this kind of people is really funny when you let them use vmware/vnc and get 2 desktops in their monitor...
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RE: Chrome is a browser? What's a browser?
boxiongboost 12th Apr 2009
I don't think Chrome causes confusion. -- Actually I should hate Chrome because it doesn't work well with my website (http://www.cdncast.net/weibo/?p=830).
I like to use Chrome for two following reasons:
1. It have bigger read area.
2. It saves a click to start search.
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You "website" is poorly designed . . .
CobraA1 13th Apr 2009
"Actually I should hate Chrome because it doesn't work well with my website"

Your "website" seems to have some poorly coded JavaScript on it. The "outlines" that are overlaid on top of the text don't always seem to align correctly on the web page, even when in a major browser.

"I like to use Chrome for two following reasons:"

I like to use it because of how easy it makes it to handle tabs and windows.

BUT - in most major browsers, the reasons you listed are only because you don't know how to use them fully:

-Heaving a bigger read area isn't much of a big deal, because in current browsers I can hit F11 and go to full screen mode.

-All major browsers have a search box in the upper right, which can be set to any search provider. I have both Firefox and Internet Explorer set to use Google as the default when searching using the box.

. . . and despite what you've circled for "this should NOT be a reason" - guess what? It is a reason for many people. Sorry, but you don't get to determine why people do or do not like things. Apparently some people like their toolbars.
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F11
Clayman1000x 15th Apr 2009
Hey, thanks for that F11 tip, I never knew about that, now I can view some tookbars again.
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RE: Chrome is a browser? What's a browser?
Cosmo54 13th Apr 2009
Have tried Chrome a few times, but it stinks compared to Opera. happy
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I just can't get myself to like it.
CobraA1 13th Apr 2009
. . . and as much as I'd like to like Opera - I just can't get myself to like it. It doesn't seem to be much different than other browsers, except that it has this weird white/black color theme going on that I don't like very much. All things being equal, I like Firefox the best because it has some nice addons I use.
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Some People Just Don't Get It
hrpuffnstuff 13th Apr 2009
I was once called by a nurse in a hospital yelling at me to get down here and fix her icons on her Windows PC because they moved over an inch. Turned out she had changed the resolution of the screen and once changed back was fixed.
It doesn't matter what OS, PC or device for that matter. Some users just don't get it .
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Well....
teddybairs1 13th Apr 2009
It is true. Some people honestly don't know tetris from openoffice.org. And they don't know the difference between a web browser and a search engine.

In some ways though it does reflect how integrated the web and web apps have become in an average or sub-average computer user's experience. When they don't know the difference between the desktop and the internet... it seems to me that you could probably hand these people an Ubuntu computer, point them to the web browser, and they'd probably continue on their merry way oblivious of the OS in question. Assuming they could turn the computer on themselves.
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Exactly. nt
T1Oracle 13th Apr 2009
nt
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ABSOLUTELY TRUE
dave.leigh@... 15th Apr 2009
And you don't have to worry about them screwing it up or getting eaten by viruses.

Just don't give them root access. And use one of my favorite stupid pet tricks... when it's just how they like it, simply tar/gzip their home directory. If they do manage to screw it up you can restore it in a heartbeat.
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Or use Remastersys to image the entire install inc Home dir...
DevJonny 16th Apr 2009
...and burn it to a disc, and voila! Personalised back up disc, or drop the Home Dir and you have your own Distro to hand out.
0 Votes
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Some people think the internet is Google.
absent 13th Apr 2009
It's true, I've actually met them. Google is so synonymous with searching the net that some people actually mistake it for the internet. This goes beyond colloquials like calling all vacuum cleaners Hoovers.
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These are the people . . .
davagain Updated - 13th Apr 2009
...who used to think that "AOL" = "the
internet". There will always be a significant
chunk of the population that doesn't care about
the details, just wants the tool to work. This
is a repugnant concept to a geek such as yours
truly, but even I must (grudgingly) admit it's
not really that unreasonable.
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Yup
professordnm 13th Apr 2009
How many users have we seen instinctively type a URL into the Google Search window?

You really want to find out what frustration is really like? Just take a tour of duty selling computers, software, etc., at Office Max or Staples. You'll be wanting to shoot yourself at the end of the first shift.
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I can only imagine...
gamefreak9310 13th Apr 2009
Though I keep telling myself that once I get on
to college or even during high school, I want
to get a job at Best Buy or somewhere like
that... I feel like that would be my dream job
but then when I get to thinking about people
who are like these people, I just want to throw
up...
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I talked to one recently
ThePrairiePrankster Updated - 14th Apr 2009
I help produce continuing education websites for adults. I also provide initial end user support. A gentleman called and said he couldn't navigate on our site. He mentioned that he saw it on Google but it doesn't work. After a few moments of fruitless troubleshooting I asked the caller to read to me the URL of the site (thinking it was the one I help produce and manage) and he read off the following:

http://images.google.com/images?q=......

I asked him to type in the correct URL, which does not contain anything with google dot com in it. Lo and behold, my participant found that the links to register for a course now worked and he was able to logon and get to learning. He exclaimed that I was a genius and expressed amazement that the Internet is greater than Google....
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RE: Chrome is a browser? What's a browser?
compudog 13th Apr 2009
You know, most people don't care. They want to save time by using a computer, not spend more time learning how to use one. Even John Dvorak once said that if you need a manual to begin using a program, it's bad software. He's right. The reason people don't understand the difference between a browser and and their email client or a website is because THEY DON'T CARE - THEY JUST WANT TO USE THEIR COMPUTER!
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RE: Chrome is a browser?
Olderdan 13th Apr 2009
1) I gave my (admittedly intelligent) 10 yr old
grandson a new computer. It runs Ubuntu/Wine so he has
WoW, Diablo and YouTube and Open Office very well. He
is a happy camper. So your (admittedly) above average
child can use the Internet on a Linux desktop!

2) Years ago, I was called by the Executive VP's
secretary. Her computed stopped working. I ran up to
the 13 floor, and dashed into her office. What's
wrong? She showed me. Turn it on. When the floppy
stops making noise hit enter three times. And go to
work. But now, the AUTOEXEC.BAT file dropped her back
to an A> prompt because her disk was full and her
computer (the application) said "continue? Enter =
no".

Yes - her computer didn't work because she didn't
bother to READ the SCREEN. Not even Ubuntu can fix
*that*.

-- Olderdan
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RE: Chrome is a browser? What's a browser?
JDThompson 13th Apr 2009
Reminds of "AOL is the internet."
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RE: Chrome is a browser? What's a browser?
lon.gibson@... 13th Apr 2009
Prime example of why some people should only be allowed to use steno pads and dull crayons...
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P.T. Barnum
Roger Ramjet 13th Apr 2009
is smiling happy
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These are the same users that install everything...
dunn@... 14th Apr 2009
These are the same users that install everything they can download off the Internet without even knowing what they are installing.

Yes, the same users that fall for trojans as they don't even think twice about whether a program is needed or even safe, much less what is it's meant to do.

The clueless users that have to have their systems constantly reimaged or cleaned.

Bets are that these users also are running bots on their systems.
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Yep
ThePrairiePrankster 14th Apr 2009
These are the people that keep us employed...LOL
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RE: Chrome is a browser? What's a browser?
bb_apptix Updated - 14th Apr 2009
And some people think Linux can take over the desktop? Dream on...

(I like Linux, but you can't just give it out to anyone... these Chrome users, for instance)
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Wake up
don@... 14th Apr 2009
I have installed Windows and Linux (KDE 3) machines for people who had had very little computer experience and they are both hard to use.

The big problem with Linux was there were too many applications, but once we removed some choices, they were a little less difficult than the Windows machines.

Support was much easier on the Linux boxes though.
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Contributr
Clone Windows?
Ed Burnette 15th Apr 2009
Maybe people like this would do better with Linux if somebody tried to clone the Windows UI as pixel-perfectly as possible.

Of course Vista is not a pixel-perfect clone of XP, which was not a clone of Windows NT or Windows 95. So users can adapt after complaining a lot about it.
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These Chrome users...
dave.leigh@... 15th Apr 2009
...are the ones that SHOULD be on Linux.
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What's even more sad is this article.
kyron.gustafson@... 15th Apr 2009
How mean spirited is this article!

I can see my Dad posting a question like this. He is challenged with just the process of sending email.

Shame on you for making fun of the technically challenged.
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lol
marcfinnwilson@... 15th Apr 2009
(nt)

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