Faster, Stable Google Chrome 3
After a year's development, a new, stable version 3.0 of Google's open source Chrome browser is now available. Developers promise "significant speed improvements," although current beneficiaries are Windows Vista and XP users only.
As Google program manager Anthony Laforge announced in his blog posting, "this stable release incorporates many of the improvements and features that we tested out in our most recent beta release, including a 150% increase in Javascript performance since our very first beta." The official Google blog supports his assertion with two benchmark graphics and comparisons with Chrome versions 1 and 2.
Chrome 3 underwent a complete redesign of the New Tab page where the most commonly accessed webpages become thumbnails that you can rearrange and pin to a persistent spot on the screen. To continue along the "most used and favorite" theme, the Omnibox at the top of the browser that serves as both a search box and self-completing address bar now has an optimized presentation with a drop-down menu and helpful icons. Chrome 3 also incorporates the new HTML5 features of integrating videos as easily as graphics into a website. Then there's the abundance of browser themes, with a themes gallery showing the selections, comparable to what Mozilla Firefox has been providing as an add-on for some time.
The official Google blog has some interesting background figures: the past year involved 51 developer, 21 beta and 15 stable updates, with 3,505 bugfixes that went into Chrome 3. Downloads for Chrome 3 for Windows XP and Vista are on the Google webpage. The Linux variant should be out by the end of the year and is currently in a developer version.
Issue 254/2022
Buy this issue as a PDF
News
-
KDE Plasma Developers Introduce a GNOME-Like Overview
A new overview effect makes it easier for users to interact with both Plasma Activities and Virtual Desktops.
-
Rocky Linux 8.5 Now Available with Secure Boot Support
The latest iteration of CentOS alternative, Rocky Linux has arrived and includes numerous updates as well as support for Secure Boot.
-
System76 Developing a New Desktop Environment
The makers of Pop!_OS are currently in the early stages of creating a brand new, non-GNOME, desktop environment.
-
Hetzner Opens New Location in the USA
The Hetzner cost-effective Cloud solution has arrived in the United States to offer cloud servers that offer solid performance without a high price.
-
KDE Plasma 5.24 Introduces Fingerprint Reader Support
The next release of the KDE Plasma desktop environment will include support for fingerprint readers for session authentication and more.
-
Ubuntu 21.10 Released and Finally Includes Gnome 40
The most anticipated update to Ubuntu is finally here and the workflow couldn't be better.
-
Linux Can Now Run on Apple’s M1 Chipset
Linux users looking to take advantage of Apple Silicon are about to get their wish with the M1 chipset.
-
MX Linux 21 RC Candidate Available For Testing
The MX Linux development team has released the RC images for MX Linux 21 for testing purposes.
-
Fedora 35 is Shaping Up to Be an Impressive Release
Although the beta version of Fedora’s upcoming release is behind schedule, the Linux distribution is still slotted for October and will include numerous bug fixes and some exciting new features.
-
Canonical Extends Support For Ubuntu 14.04 and 16.04
The company behind Ubuntu offered a much-needed lifeline to those who still depend on older versions of the open-source operating system.