MIDITRAIL WINDOWS WINDOWS
I've run into a couple of instances where the Windows environment has started acting slightly weird for a handful of seconds, but that's really been more the exception than the rule. Windows windows within the Windows window.īy and large, in my experience - testing this on my own personal Pixelbook, which has a Core i5 processor and 8GB of RAM (notably less than the recommended 16GB level) - things have run smoothly and without any of the annoying lag you often experience when using a more typical remote virtualization solution. All your Windows stuff just always exists within that inner Windows, erm, window. You can open up multiple programs and manage 'em with the standard Windows multitasking methods.
You simply open up any program you want within the Windows environment, just like you would on a regular Windows computer, and then use it right then and there. Once you get past the weirdness of it all, though, y'know what? It mostly just works and does what it's meant to do - and does it rather well. Well, this is awkward: One operating system preparing to restart within another.
MIDITRAIL WINDOWS SOFTWARE
Welcome to the matrix: Windows booting up locally, in its own window, on a Chromebook.Īnd you occasionally get Windows-specific notifications within that inner Windows desktop, including prompts to restart the Windows system (an action that has no effect on the greater Chrome OS system) in order to apply software updates. Escher.) That means you end up seeing Windows boot up whenever you first open the system: JR It feels like you're using Chrome Remote Desktop or another similar sort of remote-access tool, but while the experience itself is somewhat similar to that on the surface, this Windows installation is actually on the Chromebook itself and not just streaming to you via a standalone Windows computer.Įven so, it's kind of odd - because it is a second desktop and effectively a separate operating system running inside your primary operating system. It's easy to see why: You ultimately have a second desktop within your regular Chrome OS desktop. Suffice it to say, that makes things inherently a little.awkward. The Windows desktop, within Chrome OS (whoaaaa.). And it's within that window that you then find, open, and use the traditional Windows software.
The nature of the whole "virtual machine" thing means you end up running Windows itself within an app-like window. Welcome to the world of Windows.on Chrome OSįirst things first, let's get one thing out of the way: Running Windows apps on a Chromebook in this new Parallels-provided setup isn't exactly like running a regular, native program on your device. It comes at a cost, too: a cool 70 bucks per user per year.Īnd lemme tell ya: Having had the chance to use it extensively this week, I think this is gonna be a pretty intriguing option and one that has the potential to exponentially expand Chrome OS's appeal. The magic works via a virtual machine that's installed on the Chromebook and then made to run locally on the device, which means you can use virtually any Windows program as if it were a local app - whether you're online with an active internet connection or not.įor the moment, at least, this whole thing is designed exclusively with the enterprise in mind: The Parallels Windows-on-Chrome-OS setup is available only on specific, approved hardware - high-end systems, basically, with an Intel Core i5 or i7 processor, at least 16GB of RAM, and 128GB of storage recommended - and only in company-wide configurations. Let me back up a sec and set the stage for my surreal little experiment here: Back in June, Google announced it was working with a company called Parallels to bring Windows app support into the Chrome OS environment. At least, not when you're using a Chromebook. And if my first official taste of this wild new reality tells me anything, it's that the traditional boundaries we tend to think about with platforms and operating systems no longer apply.
MIDITRAIL WINDOWS ANDROID
I've got Microsoft Edge open, too, all within the standard Chrome OS interface - complete with my usual set of web apps, Android apps, and even Linux apps in the mix. I'm writing this in the Microsoft Word app for Windows.on a Chromebook.
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