Chrome rocks. I don't care what others say

There are conflicting opinions on Chrome.

Whatever your opinions, this is release major. It�s a game changer.

Based on my initial impressions, I really like this browser. It�s just the kind of next-generation thinking that�s needed in the browser space.

I don�t care about all the all plug-ins that aren�t available, because I don�t use them. And Chrome gives me enough toys that it more than makes up for the loss of a few plug-ins.

Walt Mossberg gave it a decent review, but sited a few things he didn�t like:

My verdict: Chrome is a smart, innovative browser that, in many common scenarios, will make using the Web faster, easier and less frustrating. But this first version � which is just a beta, or test, release � is rough around the edges and lacks some common browser features Google plans to add later. These omissions include a way to manage bookmarks, a command for emailing links and pages directly from the browser, and even a progress bar to show how much of a Web page has loaded.

Whatever. I don�t use bookmarks (believe it or not). A command for emailing links and pages directly from the browser? Again, this is a non-issue for me. How about simply CTRL-D to select the URI, then CTRL�C to copy it, then ALT-TAB to get to your email program? Seems pretty easy and fast to me. And a progress bar? Again, who cares. Chrome is so dammed fast I don�t really need one anyway.

As far as speed, Mossberg�s results, which showed that it wasn�t faster than Firefox, are directly contradicted by Adrian Kingsley-Hughes� more scientific method of testing, which indicate that Chrome is blisteringly fast.

I haven�t run any benchmarks, but this thing really does smoke. Yes, it�s fast, but it�s also the user experience. You may not get a page immediately but you feel that it�s faster based on the browser presentation.

Matt Cutts at Google also has a nice roundup of common Google Chrome objections.

And yes, there is a new security issue (carpet bombing) but I'm certain Google will patch this very quickly.

Alex Eckelberry