What Chrome has brought to browsers

When it was released in 2008, Chrome offered many advantages over competing browsers. These days, you have to admit that these benefits have disappeared for the simple reason that most of the improvements it brought have been taken over by competitors, including Microsoft's Edge!

Reaction from Steve Ballmer, CEO of Microsoft at the time, to the new browser:

As for Google, they say it's thin client computing, but they've created a new browser that's practically a big operating system designed to compete with Windows but that runs on top of it.

This is exactly what Internet Explorer 9 and even more so Edge has become.

Improvements in Chrome

Most were later implemented in other browsers; these are actually web improvements.

Clean interface
It allows you to focus on what is important: the content of the page. This is even more useful when using a web application such as the Google Docs online word processor. On a laptop or netbook, having more room for content is very important.

Omnibox
The address bar is designed to be intelligent; he offers a completion that suggests what to do next. This is both a URL and a search string, given the habit of Internet users to type the name of the site in the search string, and not the full URL in the URL string...

Accounts
In Chrome, these are separate applications. You can also drag the page to the desktop to create a separate window. This allows you to work on two pages at the same time, for example, in GMail to write a letter while viewing a document .

Site slideshow
As shown in the screenshot on the right, the launch presents a slideshow of previously visited sites - an idea that comes from the Opera browser .

Compiled JavaScript
We know that other browsers will join Chrome in this regard; the V8 compiler executes JavaScript code up to 40 times faster. Firefox will soon be equipped with TraceMonkey and Safari with SquirrelFish .

HTML 5 и WebGL
HTML 5 elements have already been included in Webkit, including Canvas, a graphics rendering surface chosen by Chrome before other browsers. This advantage disappears. Canvas can be used with Chrome, Firefox Edge, and Safari .
But WebGL is more advanced.

Closed mode
The ability to view without leaving traces, without cookies, without cache memory, this function is available in Chrome and is called Incognito.

Open Source
The code is open, there is an opportunity to see what the browser is doing, and this will allay the fears of those who think Chrome is spying on them. It also facilitates development and allows for unofficial versions, some of which run on Mac and Linux.

PDF Reader
Built-in reader for viewing documents in printable PDF format, eliminating the need for an Adobe plugin.

Shortcomings

Local PHP
If you want to download a PHP page locally, Chrome will ask you which software to display it with! Why not Chrome itself? For the webmaster, this prevents them from testing pages before placing them online.

Syndication channels
Chrome does not display RSS feeds formatted as web pages, nor does it automatically subscribe to them.

Hidden commands
Searching for commands requires guidance in front of you; this is the downside of this very clean interface.

Conclusion

Chrome no longer has any major advantages over other browsers, which have all adopted its smooth interface, multiple processes, and URL string search.

Further information