Stable build of Chrome available for OS X

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When Google launched Chrome it was for the Windows platform initially. Google CEO, Eric Schmidt, has publicly stated the Google Chrome will be released in the near future for OS X but if you're willing to use pre-beta software from Google then you can download Chrome right now.

Google has stated that the software "still lacks certain privacy features, and is not appropriate for general consumer use" which is a gentle reminder that the software is not complete. But, if you are like most tech enthusiasts and are willing to look past the flaws in the beta, then you will find a surprisingly stable build of Chrome that can be used for day to day web browsing.

The link to the download can be found below and it is a developer build but early reports are stating that it is the most stable release to date. If you make the dive into Chrome let us know how it is but don't expect any quick bug fixes from Google as there is still time until the browser is ready for mass consumption.

Download: Google Chrome for OS X

(6 replies) #1 da00 on 12 Oct 2009 - 20:17

Nice to hear, Google Chrome is awesome.

#1.1 +dead.cell on 12 Oct 2009 - 20:20

#1.2 .Neo on 12 Oct 2009 - 22:25

I fail to see what's particularly awesome about Chrome compared to Safari on Mac OS X. It certainly isn't its horrific non-standard interface or the lack of basic features other browsers have. The amount of crap it leaves behind throughout ~/Library/ and Library/ isn't exactly impressive either.

Last edited by .Neo on 12 Oct 2009 - 22:37

#1.3 Neoauld on 12 Oct 2009 - 22:42

.Neo said,

and safari's just leaded wth features right, like bookmark sync and extensions

#1.4 .Neo on 13 Oct 2009 - 01:05

At least Safari is letting me manage my bookmarks properly in the first place. Something Chrome still fails to do on my Mac. It must be those amazing themes Google put out...

#1.5 m.keeley on 13 Oct 2009 - 02:15

It's a beta, there's plenty of things missing which they list.

#1.6 geoken on 13 Oct 2009 - 14:02

I don't know if Chrome will make as much sense on OSX because a lot of the things Chrome tries to streamline are forced back on you by the OS.

For example, one of Chrome's big features for me is that it was designed to have no menu. I always used extensions to hide the Firefox menu and I liked that Chrome not only did this by default, but also arranged it's options in a manner that centered around that. With OSX this feature is lost because the menu bar is there regardless of how hard they work to not need it.

Another big feature for me was the hybrid tab area/window border. I'm not sure if this made the transition to the OS X version. In Windows, the tabs don't only look like they're in the window border, they actually are in the window border. This means that the usable height of the window border is doubled without actually impacting the app (since they're sharing the space). It also means that when the window is maximized the tabs can go right up to the top of the screen (giving each tab infinite height).

#2 st_tammy on 12 Oct 2009 - 20:20

I hope this won't combine with Snow Leopard and delete all my files!

#3 Enigma-Penguin on 12 Oct 2009 - 20:22

This is still a dev build though, fun to mess around with and all but far from ready to be put in peoples hands. I'm running it now, it'll be good when it's actually done

(5 replies) #4 m.keeley on 12 Oct 2009 - 20:34

Now all we need is a stable build of OSX

#4.1 thealexweb on 12 Oct 2009 - 20:37

m.keeley said,

lol, I suppose that point could be argued, Mac OS X is having major security woes at the moment but most of them will probably be patched up again.

#4.2 +Mike Chipshop on 12 Oct 2009 - 21:08

haaaaaaaaaaaaaaha

#4.3 mkvans on 12 Oct 2009 - 22:44

LOL! that made my day!

#4.4 +Elliott on 12 Oct 2009 - 22:48

Hardiharhar. You'll be happy to know that OS X has never crashed on me in 7-8 years of using it on multiple Macs (and Hackintoshes). More than I can say for Windows and its plethora of excellent drivers (both from Microsoft and third-party vendors).

#4.5 m.keeley on 12 Oct 2009 - 23:09

I've had a few crashes, not many perhaps 3 or 4, about the same as I've had in Windows over the same period. Just been reading about the latest 10.6.2 seed, 500MB and 150 areas Apple wants testers to concentrate on! As usual 10.6 was released too early and there's obviously not enough beta testers or initial releases wouldn't always be such a mess.

As for Chrome I'm really growing to like it, not trying it under OSX for now as there are too many pieces missing, it's really fast and has a nice clean interface.

Last edited by m.keeley on 12 Oct 2009 - 23:15

(1 reply) #5 +what on 12 Oct 2009 - 20:46

It's still rubbish though. Can't believe it's taken them this long to get to this stage.

#5.1 Juski814 on 12 Oct 2009 - 22:23

I agree, seems like they really have other OS's on the back burner for Chrome...

(2 replies) #6 protocol7 on 12 Oct 2009 - 22:44

I'll stick with Firefox. It runs on PowerPC.

#6.1 m.keeley on 12 Oct 2009 - 23:16

Well not much else does ;-)

#6.2 protocol7 on 13 Oct 2009 - 00:37

Everything else I need does. Anyway, a web browser requiring Intel just reeks of lazy porting.

#7 +Elliott on 12 Oct 2009 - 22:49

Chrome is definitely shaping up on OS X. I still prefer Safari, but I do like Chrome's JavaScript engine and I'm hoping Safari adopts it or updates SquirrelFish to compete with it.

(2 replies) #8 Crankenstein on 12 Oct 2009 - 23:31

I gave Chrome, Firefox, and Opera a chance... Got tired of them crashing/rendering web pages incorrectly. Went back to Internet Explorer and fixed all those problems

#8.1 Tekkerson on 12 Oct 2009 - 23:40

Cool story bro.

#8.2 m.keeley on 13 Oct 2009 - 01:56

Under Windows I've recently started to use Chrome as my main browser now that Roboform works with their Chromium build. Main things I like are speed and the unified address bar. I also like the way you can close a tab with the X in Chrome without having to first open the tab which you have to do in IE (I know it's the same in FF & Safari).

IE is now my 2nd choice, although fine it's just not as quick, and FF has now been relegated to 3rd.

Will never think of use Opera until they open it up, Roboform have been trying to get them to for years without success. They keep saying they'll add Roboform beating features themselves but never do.

#9 st_tammy on 13 Oct 2009 - 23:48

I've tried Firefox for a while but it's such a resource whore and slows down crashes now and again on OSX.

I've tried Chrome but I've gone back to Safari. (Chrome is pwnage on Windows though).

Safari just works.

#10 ev0| on 14 Oct 2009 - 16:48

I've been using a chrome build (3.0) for about 6 months on OS X.

#11 Binary on 15 Oct 2009 - 01:55

Right now it's unusable for me as I can't set a minimum font size. I need my fonts to at least be 12 on a 20" monitor.

And that's without zooming Everything including pictures.

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