Ok, so I guess you’re pretty excited for Google’s entry into the operating system market with Google Chrome OS. I don’t know how anyone could get pretty excited over an OS running a web browser and nothing else, but if you’re into cloud computing and you would want to have a feel of what Chrome OS might turn out, you should try BrowserLinux.

BrowserLinux is a fast and small linux distribution for surfing the web. In fact it’s so small that it claims that it eats up only 78Mb upon installation. It’s actually based on Puppy Linux, which is by itself one of the most lightweight Linux distros available.

Unlike Google Chrome though, BrowserLinux is not all browsers. It also has a few applications installed, and you have options to add extra software if you want to.

The applications that come preinstalled on BrowserLinux are:

• Web-browser (Firefox 3.5.5)
• Flash 10
• PDF-reader
• Music Player (Alsaplayer)

To install BrowserLinux, you need to download the ISO and run Unetbootin.

Okay, if you’re looking to install this on your main computer, I really wouldn’t advise doing that. Having a lightweight operating system is well and good, but to run a system as stripped-down as this, you’re going to run into something that’ll need an application not available for your OS. Better stick with a bootable flash drive if I were you.

I’ve been totally excited about Chrome OS for some time now, and I was eagerly looking forward to the big yesterday. But the screenshots that came out left me with a feeling of “that’s it?!”

Okay, I knew all along that Chrome OS will be cloud-based and that you won’t be able to do much with it without an internet connection. Fair enough. I just wasn’t expecting that they’d turn out this uninspired design that looks no different from Chrome, the browser. Read more…

Apparently, Acer’s Android netbook will be available to the general public by November. The reported of the netbook is around $300 to $350, and it won’t be all that much cheaper than the current 10-inch Aspire One since it still runs Windows and will have comparable specs.

So now I’m wondering why install Android in the first place if Windows is still going to be running alongside it. I’d rather wait for the Google Chrome OS netbook, mind you.

You can expect to purchase netbooks running Moblin 2.0 soon, according to Liliputing.

Intel Open Source Technology Centre Imad Sousou says that vendors will begin announcing netbooks running Moblin 2.0 within the next week or two. The news came out of an interview with ZDNet UK, where Sousou discussed the current state of Moblin Linux. The operating system is optimized for use on netbooks, particularly those with low power processors like the Intel Atom, and small screens with resolutions of 1024 x 600 pixels or lower.

Intel was originally the driving force behind Moblin, and still kind of is. But management of the project has been handed over to the Linux Foundation. But the custom Linux distribution is designed to play well with netbooks by introducing power saving features, quick boot optimizations for Atom and other processors, and a custom user interface that makes it easy to treat a netbook almost more as a web-centric consumer electronics device than a computer.

Moblin Linux is one of my favorite distros so far and I’m pretty excited to see it available in a netbook in the future.

If you’re looking for another netbook-specific Linux OS that isn’t based on Ubuntu, look no further. Fedora Mini is being developed behind the scenes as I write.

The Fedora Mini SIG is a group of Fedora contributors that are interested in Fedora on small devices. Initially aimed at ensuring that the hardware used in devices such as Netbooks and Mobile Inter Devices (MIDs) work out of the box with Fedora. Eventually, we may also include and build a spin which is targeted at these devices through the use of another user interface experience. It could also be used to produce various spins for Gnome Mobile development, Intel’s Moblin project, Hildon etc

Currently, Fedora Mini currently supports most Intel Atom processors as well as Intel Celeron M (Dothan), Via C7-M, and AMD Geode LX processors. Unfortunately, while Intel GMA 900 and 950 graphics are supported, GMA 500 graphics are not. You can find a complete list of supported hardware including screen resolutions, wireless controllers, and Bluetooth modules at the wiki.