Avoiding the mistakes of Android in Chrome

I've long been a fan of open-source technology.  I am often deeply frustrated by the proprietary approach taken by some manufacturers and I quickly become annoyed when confronted with situations where my freedom of choice is constrained.

Sure, I'm a Windows user but that doesn't mean that I'm happy about it.

I loathe the digital rights management (DRM) systems that prevent me

G-RRR-RRRR

from playing my music on any device of my choosing.  I detest the region locking that prevents me from playing optical media from other countries.  I avoid music distribution services that require me to install their database for storing digital copies of those tracks.  I simply refuse to patronise services or product ranges that impose these draconian constraints on my right to choose.  

"I am not a number, I am a free man" . . .

Now that I've got that out of the way, let me add that although I celebrate the free spirit of open source, I also appreciate that it is not without its own problems.

Android is bloated and slowing down

Take Android for instance.  Manfacturers, phone service providers can and do customise the hell out of this operating system.  The end result is a complete mess.  New releases of Android from Google are vanilla offerings but because the phone manufacturer or the service provider insists on adding a pile of custom fixes, it can take months before it's rolled out to the customer base.  When it does appear it's weighed down with bloat and in dire need of a diet.  For older devices where the providers are no longer interested in support, that next release may never become available.  

Chromium versus Chrome

Google seems keen to avoid this quagmire with their other faster, slicker, all-round more promising offering, the Chrome operating system.   With Chrome, Google will have control over source code and any changes made to it.  That all sounds rather proprietary, don't you think?  Well, yes it is but here's the difference.  Google will maintain control over the Chrome offering but they will provide an open-source version as Chromium.   Positive changes made by the community to Chromium may well be adopted officially into Chrome but some of the more hare-brained customisations will not be allowed to pollute the pure version.

That to me sounds like a great way to go.   So what will catch on, Chrome or Chromium?  Clearly Google will throw plenty of money at Chrome whereas some equally cash-rich manufacturers and providers may favour the flexibility that the Chromium alternative offers.

It will be very interesting to watch how the two stables co-exist in this fascinating technology space.

Chrome versus Chromium - what's the difference

Google Chrome likely to replace Android