Many users have heard of the term Chromium. What is it, most people imagine a little wrong, believing that this name means only a web browser designed to work on the Internet. In fact, there are still a lot of software products associated with this concept, which we will consider in more detail below.
Chromium: what is it?
So, let's start by describing everything that can be hidden behind this term. Suppose you are not very good at understanding computer technology and for the first time you hear about some software product, generally called Chromium. What it is? Most mistakenly believe that this is the browser, since the name itself is very consonant with the name of the popular Chrome browser. Most interestingly, it is also a development of the IT giant Google. But in fact, Chromium Browser is far from the only software product that has such a name. Today, the term Chromium is commonly understood as the following types of software:
- the engine, on the basis of which most of the famous and popular observers today work;
- open source browser;
- eponymous operating system;
- a kind of virus.
Engine Features
The first one in the list is the engine, that is, the software part on the basis of which the browser shell is formed. In a sense, it can be compared to a set of API tools (web programming platforms). However, the engine itself was not taken from the ceiling. The development was based on the once-famous software product called WebKit, which the creators of Chromium at one time began to actively support. Also declared support was provided for Mozilla.
In other words, by combining the two technologies into a single whole and starting to release the first versions of Chromium, the developers tried to create a single unified platform for use in other software products, focusing primarily on speed, security and comfortable work on the Internet. It is not surprising that it was she who formed the basis of the popular Chrome browser, which is considered the older brother of the Chromium browser in terms of advanced features created on its basis. By the way, recently Microsoft also announced the transfer of the Edge browser specifically to the Chromium engine.
Differences between Chromium browser and Chrome
Chromium and Chrome, if it is exclusively about browsers, many users confuse quite often. However, there are many differences between them.
Firstly, Chromium is an Open Source project, while Chrome is a closed commercial development, despite even free distribution. Secondly, Chromium appears in the form of, so to speak, a clean browser in which there is nothing superfluous, and Chrome is already initially equipped with additional features and plug-ins like support for Flash technology, MP3 and AAC audio formats (Chromium can only work with Vorbis, Theora and WEBM ) Thirdly, the elder brother has a built-in Chrome Update module that allows you to quickly and timely update the browser, and Chromium has to be updated manually, deleting previous versions. Finally, fourthly, Chromium has no built-in tools for tracking and sending user information to the developer’s servers, which were embedded in the Chrome shell and caused considerable discontent among users around the world.
Fake Chromium
Now a few more words about how and where the Chromium engine is used. What kind of software is this, I think, is understandable, but after all, it was the creators of the browsers who began to use it, posing as their own development.
The most famous fakes of the described browser are similar developments like SRWare Iron, Comodo Dragon, CoolNovo (another name for ChromePlus, which generally looks like complete plagiarism) with the addition of mouse gesture control and many others. Alas, not without our compatriots.
Take at least the same Yandex Browser or "Nichrome" from Rambler. Pure water of Chromium clones (by the way, and their creators themselves do not hide this).
Chrome OS (Chromium OS)
Now let's look at the Chromium OS of the same name. What kind of system, based on the fact that its creator is the same Google corporation, is not hard to guess. In general, it is called Chromes OS, but sometimes another name is applied to it.
The system supports work on almost all devices equipped with processors with x86 and ARM architecture. In other words, the Chromium installation can easily be performed on any desktop PC or laptop standard PC, oriented to work with Windows. In terms of mobile devices (smartphones and tablets), this OS can become a full replacement for Android, Windows Phone, Windows Mobile, or even pure Windows 8 RT.
There may not be as many opportunities in it as in Windows, but the performance is decent, not to mention the fact that almost all applications for Android and Windows run in it without problems, which allows you to use them on one device. By itself, this operating system is UNIX-like and is based on the Linux kernel.
What if it is a virus?
Finally, on the Internet you can now find negative statements about the Chromium browser. Some users classify it as a virus. Why? Yes, only because most often this browser is installed on the computer spontaneously (usually under the guise of affiliate software). But here the users are to blame themselves, because you need to pay attention to such suggestions during the installation of other software products. In addition, as practice shows, it is not so easy to remove the browser using standard Windows tools, since for a complete uninstall, you must manually clean the registry and delete the residual files.
As for pure fake viruses, which look exactly the same as the original browser, you can count a lot of them. The most famous among them are eFast Browser, Chroomium Browser, Tortuga Browser, Olcinium Browser, Qword Browser, Chedot Browser, BrowserAir Browser, Fusion Browser, BeagleBrowser, MyBrowser, Super Browser and some others. Without the use of special protective equipment and the implementation of many additional actions, getting rid of them is often very problematic.