New Technology Awareness - Google Operating System
This week the most visited website in the world, Google, announced their plans to market the new Google operating system called Google Chrome OS. Most Personal Computers (PCs) currently run on operating systems from either Microsoft or Apple. Unlike Microsoft and Apple, the Google Operating System is an open-source project so many outside developers are likely to develop on it. Another benefit is that Google is offering this new operating system for free. We are yet to see how the marketplace will accept the new Google Chrome OS, but one thing is sure that this will shake up the PC market. We may soon be seeing electronic discovery requests that involve the Google Chrome OS so asking the question of a custodian "Is it a PC or Mac?" may not be enough. Our new line of questioning may need to be "Is it a PC with the Microsoft OS, Google Chrome OS or a Mac?".
Linux has had a presence in the PC market for a long time, particularly in the server market. Those of us dealing with corporate systems have already been asking if it's Windows, Linux, Unix, or MacOS for a long time.
With Google indicating this will be based on open source, forensic computer examiners aren't expecting this to be a revolutionary OS so much as an evolutionary OS. Existing methodologies should be easily ported to deal with this new platform.
Posted by: Tony Patrick, B Inf Tech, CFCE | July 13, 2009 at 03:54 PM