Google has quietly released Google Chrome beta 3 - the updated version of the browser that is yet to live up to the expectations of many. According to the Google Blog, the search giant has fixed some persistent bugs in its fledgling browser, moved some features around and is trying to tackle those dreaded "spoofing pop-ups" that wreak havoc on Windows. Like the classic Google homepage, Google Chrome is simple, clean and fast. In fact, its speed seems to be the main element of its operation that has impressed users. The file is very light, weighing in at just 475KB, and only takes a few seconds to download.
The browser may be clutter-free and easy to use - but for some, it is just too simple. This could have been a great opportunity for Google to include links to its main features within the browser, such as Gmail or Google Docs. Instead, the default start page offers a list of thumbnails to your most frequently viewed web pages, which can take quite a while to load. Any Firefox bookmarks that you have saved can be transferred to Google Chrome, however, though some users reported troubles with this when Chrome was first launched.
In this new beta release, Google has fixed some of the top issues pointed out by users. Scrolling with laptop touch pads now works, while videos are easier to load, and no longer stop abruptly or freeze the browser. You can also now add words to the spell check feature, so that they are not shown as misspelled. However, there's still much more than could be done to make Chrome a real Firefox or IE-killer.
Most comments made in response to the update on the Google Chrome Blog are positive, praising the new changes while some point out further faults with the browser. There also appears to be a lot of anticipation for the Linux version.
A popular complaint made is that Chrome users are unable to subscribe to an RSS feed. But, even if Google keeps working on Chrome to make it more user friendly - and ultimately more like Firefox or Safari - could they ever really succeed enough to become one of the most popular browsers alongside Firefox and Internet Explorer? One thing's for sure - with Google, anything's possible.
