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Google Chrome now works on iOS

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Re: Google Chrome now works on iOS

#81

Post by grhino »

recoiledsnake wrote: post #49
grhino wrote: post #37

Earlier quoted context omitted.

https://www.computerworld.com/s/article/9188721/Mozilla_Forg... http://blog.mozilla.org/mobile/2010/09/28/firefox-home-looki... I have not heard them use the monopoly complaints against Apple. I'm sure Mozilla is worried about Apple, but is using a different strategy since an argument that Apple is abusing monopoly is weak or underdeveloped. Mozilla might believe that Apple is a better actor in the open web space tha…

From the Mozilla blog post you linked: >We are working to bring as much of your Firefox experience as possible to Firefox Home. People have asked about adding more browser-like features to Firefox Home, but there are technical and logistical restrictions that make it difficult, if not impossible, to build the full Firefox browser for the iPhone. We are focused on building Firefox Home as a rich, cloud-based applicati…

I agree that Mozilla could be choosing to battle Microsoft here instead of Apple battle for the positive reputation and press.

Mozilla could be wary of a long-term Microsoft gambit. When does Windows and Windows RT just become Windows?

Apple gets to do things that Microsoft as a proven monopoly and past abuser of that monopoly. I'm as worried about the future Apple as I'm about the current Microsoft. As long as Apple continues to clearly differentiate its more open software ecosystem MacOS from its less open software ecosystem iOS, perhaps it's not as much of a worry?

Re: Google Chrome now works on iOS

#83

Post by [deleted] »

nextstep wrote: post #10

But, Chrome on iOS will still be a "second class citizen" the way Opera mini and the other browsers on the AppStore. If you want to open a link in Chrome, you will need to copy/paste the URL, no "Open in Chrome" functionality like Safari has. For better or for worse, Apple has not opened up system-wide integration of third party apps, and I don't seem them allowing you to change your default browser anytime soon.

[deleted]

Re: Google Chrome now works on iOS

#84

Post by wlesieutre »

It doesn't seem to let you set custom search engines, which is a bit disappointing. More options than Google, Yahoo, and Bing was one of the reasons I'd been hoping for this.

Even without that, the easily accessible incognito mode (Safari's is through the system wide Settings app), request desktop site, and bookmark sync is still worth more to me than Nitro/V8.

On the jailbreak side, Browser Changer doesn't support Chrome yet. Hopefully that will come soon.

Re: Google Chrome now works on iOS

#85

Post by Terretta »

cooldeal wrote: post #15

The headline should read Google Chrome Skin now works on iOS. For all intents and purposes, the heart of the browser, i.e the rendering and scripting engines are not running on the iPad or iPhone. Would it be accurate to state that IE now works on the iPad if Microsoft ported the IE browser chrome(UI) to the iPad?

> The headline should read Google Chrome Skin

That would be redundant. Long before Google had a browser, the URL bar, buttons, scroll boxes, etc, of a browser (as opposed to the rendering engine) were called chrome.[1]

Developers didn't refer to browser skin, developers referred to browser chrome.

This is — quite literally in the original sense of the term — Google Chrome for the WebKit rendering engine.

1. "chrome: the browser UI around the web page" - https://developer.mozilla.org/Talk:en/Chrome

Re: Google Chrome now works on iOS

#86

Post by jonursenbach »

Terretta wrote: post #85
cooldeal wrote: post #15

The headline should read Google Chrome Skin now works on iOS. For all intents and purposes, the heart of the browser, i.e the rendering and scripting engines are not running on the iPad or iPhone. Would it be accurate to state that IE now works on the iPad if Microsoft ported the IE browser chrome(UI) to the iPad?

> The headline should read Google Chrome Skin That would be redundant. Long before Google had a browser, the URL bar, buttons, scroll boxes, etc, of a browser (as opposed to the rendering engine) were called chrome .[1] Developers didn't refer to browser skin, developers referred to browser chrome. This is — quite literally in the original sense of the term — Google Chrome for the WebKit rendering engine. 1. "chrome:…

Google Chrome is built on top of WebKit, so this is rather Google Chrome for Safari.

Re: Google Chrome now works on iOS

#87

Post by TazeTSchnitzel »

wlesieutre wrote: post #84

It doesn't seem to let you set custom search engines, which is a bit disappointing. More options than Google, Yahoo, and Bing was one of the reasons I'd been hoping for this. Even without that, the easily accessible incognito mode (Safari's is through the system wide Settings app), request desktop site, and bookmark sync is still worth more to me than Nitro/V8. On the jailbreak side, Browser Changer doesn't support C…

I'd imagine custom search engines etc. will come soon. They just want to get it out there for now.

Re: Google Chrome now works on iOS

#88

Post by bzbarsky »

ricefield wrote: post #17
speg wrote: post #9

Earlier quoted context omitted.

While Chrome for iOS will include a number of key features, including incognito mode and tab syncing across devices, the browser will still use Apple's WebKit-based engine required by the App Store developer guidelines. It also will lack the Nitro JavaScript engine that Apple uses to speed Safari's performance.

So, no V8 or Nitro, but Chrome/Chromium uses Webkit, so renders should be the same (just slower) right?

The WebKit on iOS is rather different from all other WebKit ports in various ways (e.g. there are various -webkit CSS properties that are only supported by WebKit on iOS and not WebKit anywhere else). And of course there are lots of Chrome features.

So the renders may or may not be the same, depending. And various DOM features that are part of UIWebView won't be the same (e.g. any DOM or HTML feature that Chrome has but Mobile Safari does not will be missing).

Re: Google Chrome now works on iOS

#89

Post by TazeTSchnitzel »

kylebrown wrote: post #61
SoftwareMaven wrote: post #51

Earlier quoted context omitted.

UIWebView is slower for security reasons. (Non-Apple) Apps aren't allowed to mark memory as an executable code space, which JITs require. Perhaps there would be some way for Apple to solve that for Nitro without introducing security concerns for all apps, but I'm not convinced. I much prefer knowing apps can't surreptitiously create new executable parts of themselves.

I don't understand why they can't sandbox the UIWebView. That's how mobile Safari (presumably) is secured, as is Chrome. It has to render/execute untrusted content in any case.

Performance, probably. To sandbox it I imagine it would have to run in a separate process, and then you'd have to pass messages back and forth, which might be slow. But who knows.

It may be one of these things they were planning to do later, and then someone pointed out it would possibly be detrimental to what they want the iOS ecosystem to be, so they scrapped plans.

Re: Google Chrome now works on iOS

#90

Post by TazeTSchnitzel »

dannygarcia wrote: post #79

It's ridiculous that there are no debugging / console tools included. It's difficult for me to take this browser seriously as a web developer – especially when compared to Mobile Safari in iOS6.

Give them time, I'm sure they'll add that soon.

Although having to use UIWebView might constrain them.

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