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Chrome OS is getting full-fledged Linux apps
Google Chrome is getting a big upgrade with the ability to run Linux apps, with a preview set to be released on the Google Pixelbook today before rolling out later to other models, according to a report from VentureBeat.
It's a major addition to Google's web-based operating system, which up until now has offered web-based Chrome applications and, more recently, the ability to run Android apps. But the option to run full-fledged Linux software marks the first time that real desktop applications have come to Chrome OS.
According to Chrome OS director of product management Kan Liu, users will be able to run Linux tools, editors, and integrated development environments directly on Chromebooks, installing them from their regular sources just like they would on a regular Linux machine. According to Liu, "We put the Linux app environment within a security sandbox, running inside a virtual machine," with the apps running seamlessly alongside Android and web applications on Chrome OS.
(Score: 2) by darkfeline on Thursday May 10 2018, @08:02PM
Uh, no, not all programs are applications.
Firefox is a program and an application.
The Linux kernel is a program but not an application.
sed is a program and a utility, but not an application.
python is a program and an interpreter, but not an application.
Not all executable files are programs. For example, you can add a shebang line to a video file that runs a media player, which would allow you to execute the video file, but the video file itself isn't a program (without heavily abusing the definition of "program").
Smartphones generally only support applications, which is why the abbreviation "apps" is so commonly used now, however real computer also support applications, and "apps" is a valid word for referring to these types of programs.
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