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Monday, February 13, 2012

Review: Chrome 17, faster than ever, more secure than ever. - ZDNet (blog)

Summary: Google’s popular Chrome Web browser just keeps getting faster and more secure with every release.

Google's Chrome 17 Web browser is better than ever.

Google’s been really busy lately. They may be releasing “G-Drive,” a personal cloud storage service ala Dropbox. They have released a beta of the Chrome Web browser for Android. And, with all that, their developers have also been hard at work keeping Chrome on top of the Web browser hill.

Chrome 17, the latest and greatest, is fast. But, then Chrome has long been faster than its competition: Mozilla Firefox, Microsoft Internet Explorer, Opera, and Apple Safari. This latest update though has more than pure speed. It also comes with some new, useful features.

The best of these is security related. Besides such squashing potentially dangerous security bugs, Google now automatically runs checks on executable .exe and .msi files. If the program doesn’t match a built-in white list of OK programs, Chrome then automatically checks in with its Safe Browsing site to see if the Website you picked the program is known for of malicious downloads.

If the file isn’t from a known source, Chrome automatically sends the URL and IP of the host and other meta-data, such as the file’s hash and binary size, to Google. The file is then automatically classified using machine learning analysis and the reputation and trustworthiness of files previously seen from the same publisher and Web site. Google then sends the results back to Chrome, which warns you if you’re at risk.

Google also wants you to know that “It’s important to note that any time Safe Browsing sends data back to Google, such as information about a suspected phishing page or malicious file, the information is only used to flag malicious activity and is never used anywhere else at Google. After two weeks, any associated information, such as your IP address, is stripped, and only the URL itself is retained.”

Don’t trust Google? Fine. You can turn Safe Browsing off. Mind you, I think you’d be an idiot to do this. Windows users, in particular, are in constant danger from malware and this is a simple, slick way of cutting down on potential viruses. From where I sit, you’re in a lot more danger from malware than you are from paranoia about Google tracking your file downloads.

Another handy feature is what Google calls Omnibox pre-loading. What that mouthful means is that when you start typing a URL into the Chrome’s address bar, aka the Omnibox, you’ll see various suggestions about what site you might be looking for. That’s in been in Chrome for a while Google has taken the next step though. If Chrome’s is absolutely sure it knows what site you’re going to, it will start pre-loading the site. So, for example, when I start to type in “zd,” “plu,” or “Fac,” Chrome 17 will start loading, respectively ZDNet, Google Plus, and Facebook.

This can have the effect of making Chrome look even faster than it is… so long as it’s guessed correctly. In my experience, Chrome gets it right almost every time, but then I tend to visit the same dozen or so sites over and over again. If you visit dozens or hundreds of sites, you’d be unlike to notice any improvement. If it doesn’t seem to be working for you, or, worse still, it starts pre-loading the wrong sites so your performance seems worse, you can switch it off by un-checking “Predict network actions to improve page load performance” in Options > Under the Hood.

With that out of the way, let’s move to the testing. I’d been running Chrome 17 on my usual mix of PCs. That includes several Linux desktops, including my Linux Mint desktop, several Macs running Snow Leopard and Lion; and a couple of PCs running Windows XP SP3 and Windows 7 SP1. It ran on all my platforms.

Like all modern browsers, Chrome gets a perfect score on the Acid 3 compatibility test, which checks how well a browser complies with various Web standards such as CSS, JavaScript, and Extensible Markup Language (XML),

On the HTML5 Test, which checks to see how compliant the Web browser is with the HTML5 Web page standard, Chrome 15 scored 374 out of a possible 450. Coming in second was Firefox 10 with a score of 332.

For performance testing, I ran Chrome against the latest releases of Firefox, 10.0, and Internet Explorer, 9.08, on a Gateway DX4710 Windows 7 SP1 test box. This PC is powered by a 2.5-GHz Intel Core 2 Quad processor and has 6GBs of RAM and an Intel GMA (Graphics Media Accelerator) 3100 for graphics. It’s hooked to the Internet via a Netgear Gigabit Ethernet switch, which, in turn, is hooked up to a 100Mbps (Megabit per second) cable Internet connection.

For my first performance test, Chrome went up against the other contenders on Mozilla’s Kraken 1.1 benchmark. In Kraken, which like most Web browser benchmarks measures JavaScript performance, lower scores are better. Here, Chrome left Firefox and IE eating its dust with a score of 3677.6ms. This was actually slower than Chrome 16. Still, that was far faster than the others. Firefox came in next with a score of 4342.6ms. To Firefox’s credit that’s much faster than Firefox 9.

On Google own JavaScript V8 Benchmark Suite, where higher scores are better, Chrome, roared by the others with a score of 8,153. Firefox, once more, was much better than it had been, but it still came in far behind at 5,145. IE trailed well behind the open-source browsers with a score of 2,230.

On the oldest JavaScript test, SunSpider 0.9.1, where lower results are better, Chrome didn’t show well at all. IE won this one with a score of 282.6ms, Firefox came in second with 274.8ms, and Chrome was in the rear with 307.1.

On the Peacekeeper Web browser test suite, which looks at JavaScript performance and also glances at HTML5 compatibility, video codec support and other Web browser features, Chrome won once more. On this benchmark, where higher is better and Chrome took first with a score of 2,425. IE took second with 1,626 with Firefox hot on its tail with 1,619.

Taken as a whole, Chrome remains the fastest browser around. When you include its new features, it’s clear to me that Chrome is continuing to be the top Web browser.

Related Stories:

Google Chrome Web browser finally comes to Android

Can Firefox be a Web browser contender again? Firefox 9.01 Review

Review: Chrome, the Sweet 16 Web Browser

Opera 11.6: Better but not good enough (Review)

Google Chrome, I love ya but…

Steven J. Vaughan-Nichols, aka sjvn, has been writing about technology and the business of technology since CP/M-80 was the cutting edge, PC operating system

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Ten States Get Leeway on School Law - Wall Street Journal

President Barack Obama on Thursday authorized 10 states to ignore key provisions of the No Child Left Behind law, a move to circumvent the unpopular legislation that won cheers from the states but prompted concern from Republicans and some civil-rights groups.

The Obama administration said it would grant Colorado, Indiana, Kentucky, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New Jersey and Tennessee the power to design their own school accountability systems, instead of using the one mandated by the decade-old federal law. Florida, Georgia and Oklahoma received waivers on condition they adopt specific policies promised in their applications.

New Mexico had also applied for a ...

View the original article here

Sunday, February 12, 2012

Conservatives see tough challenges on road to White House - CNN

Conservative politicos say 2012 GOP nominee must push positive agenda against President ObamaRalph Reed: Controversy over contraception coverage may push turnout in swing statesBlogger Erick Erickson: "It seems like we are setting ourselves up to lose if the economy improves"Washington Times reporter says GOP candidates haven't come up with clear message in 2012

Washington (CNN) -- Republicans looking to take back the White House in November face a challenging political environment, a trio of conservative political observers said Thursday at an annual gathering of conservative activists.

The recent controversy over health insurance coverage for contraception may help to turn out Catholic swing voters in key states, but the observers also said the Republican Party would do well to have its own positive agenda and clear messaging if it wants to unseat President Barack Obama.

"None of the signs that I see are particularly good," said Ralph Z. Hallow, chief political writer for The Washington Times.

Hallow added that polling he has seen indicates that intensity or enthusiasm about voting has moved from Republicans to Democrats. "I regard that as a very bad sign," he said.

The newspaperman continued, "The enthusiasm among Republican voters for any of the (GOP presidential) candidates is dangerously low so that ... none of these folks generates the enthusiasm needed in November to bring more Republican-voting independents and Republican activists and so on to the polls."

Conservative blogger Erick Erickson, who is also a CNN contributor, said the situation stems partly from the state of the Republican Party after the last GOP president left the White House.

"I actually blame (George W.) Bush for this," Erickson said to a packed ballroom. "Every president generally has an heir apparent when they leave office."

Vice President Dick Cheney did not succeed Bush as the GOP's presumptive standard bearer in 2008, preventing the party from having a "referendum" on Bush's legacy by either choosing Cheney or someone else as the nominee, Erickson said.

"Because (Bush and Cheney) left a void there, we went all the way back to 2000 and started over again -- a lot of us having the same fights we've had. And we're now in the situation where all the (GOP presidential) candidates, including (Mitt) Romney to a degree, are a bit of a victim of this void that was left by not having an heir," he said.

"I think the Republican Party has yet to reset itself from the Bush years to be able to move forward."

Ralph Reed, founder and chairman of the Faith and Freedom Coalition, appeared less pessimistic than Hallow and Erickson. Reed said he believes that what is shaping up to be a long Republican primary process may work to the GOP's benefit in the general election against Obama.

Reed described the 2012 GOP nomination race as "the most wide open, the most fluid, the most topsy-turvy" presidential primary he has seen since first becoming involved in presidential campaigns in 1980.

"Whoever emerges from this process -- whether it's Romney or somebody else -- is going to be a better, a more-disciplined, a tougher candidate when they have to stand on a stage with Barack Obama," Reed said.

Reed pointed to the controversy over a pending Obama administration regulation that requires religiously affiliated institutions to provide health insurance coverage for contraception to its employees as one issue that could help fill the enthusiasm gap the GOP is facing with its conservative base.

Reed said the regulation, which the White House has hinted it is looking to soften after an outcry from Catholic bishops, "shows not just an insensitivity to but an outright hostility by this president to religion and religious values."

And, Reed said, the controversy could make the difference with Catholic swing voters in key battleground states, including Ohio, Michigan, Indiana, Pennsylvania and Florida.

But Reed and Erickson both opined that to maximize their chances of retaking the White House in November Republicans should have a positive agenda and not settle just for attacking the president's record and policies on the economy and other issues.

"It isn't going to be enough to just be anti-Obama," Reed said. "Whether it's Romney or (Rick) Santorum or (Newt) Gingrich, we have to have a forward-leaning, positive, conservative reform agenda that will excite and energize the grass roots."

With recent indicators suggesting the struggling economy may be improving, the GOP has a particular challenge in November. While unemployment is improving according to recent data, Reed said other economic factors could be in play for voters.

"It's not just the single unemployment number; it's whether people feel like they've got money in their pocket," Reed said.

Erickson said he sees the economy alone as a losing strategy.

"I think the race should be about more than the economy," the blogger said. "Unfortunately, I think the Republicans have decided that they're going to go with electability instead of issues. And if electability is your case and the electability is based on (fixing the economy) and the economy fixes itself, then why do we necessarily need a nominee who the Obama campaign is going to spend millions and millions of dollars on to make unlikable?

"There needs to be something more to it. (Reed) is right. We have to have more of an agenda."

Erickson added that he thought Republicans had "dropped the ball on telling the story of Barack Obama. They never have. They always thought that they could use the economy (against Obama)."

"He picks the winners and losers," Erickson said of Obama, "not the free market. And there's a story to be told there, I think, that resonates with people in the country."

By focusing so much on the economy, Erickson said he fears the GOP is setting itself up for defeat in November. "I hate to be so pessimistic about an election we should win, but it seems like we are setting ourselves up to lose if the economy improves," Erickson said.

Hallow added that he thought the Republican presidential candidates have yet to crystallize clear, concise messages in support of their Oval Office bids.

"Unless the nominee has a message -- a simple message that you can get out in three sentences -- I don't think we have a chance or Republicans have a chance," Hallow said.

Besides Rep. Ron Paul, Hallow asked about the rest of the GOP 2012 field: "Why are any of these candidates running? What is it that they're going to do to change America?"

Pointing to Romney's lengthy economic agenda that is dozens of pages long, Hallow said, "This is not how you do it."

He added, "(Ronald) Reagan did it right and that's going to be necessary again this time."

The three men spoke Thursday during the Conservative Political Action Conference in a panel discussion on the 2012 political landscape that pollster Scott Rasmussen moderated.

Get all the latest news in Campaign 2012 at CNN's Election Center. There's the latest news, a delegate counter and much more.updated 5:24 AM EST, Thu February 9, 2012

With new questions about the strength of his candidacy, Mitt Romney indicated he's prepared to wage a more aggressive campaign against Rick Santorumupdated 5:49 AM EST, Thu February 9, 2012

Analyst John Avlon notes a stubborn sign of dissatisfaction with the status quo: Republican turnout is down.

Exactly why do religious conservatives love Rick Santorum? There are obvious reasons but plenty of less obvious ones, too. updated 1:15 PM EST, Wed February 8, 2012

Rick Santorum responds to an appeals court ruling against proposition 8, calling it another sign of liberal intolerance.

After a drubbing by conservative rival Rick Santorum, Newt Gingrich plans to head to home turf as part of his strategy to revitalize his campaign. updated 1:38 PM EST, Wed February 8, 2012

Did you ever really think a Massachusetts Mormon was going to waltz his way to the Republican presidential nomination?updated 5:12 AM EST, Wed February 8, 2012

Rep. Ron Paul says problems in the U.S. have come because those in Washington didn't take the oath of office seriously.updated 5:36 AM EST, Wed February 8, 2012

Rick Santorum awoke to a new reality Wednesday after sweeping Missouri, Minnesota and Colorado a day earlier. updated 5:09 PM EST, Tue February 7, 2012

Barack Obama's re-election campaign is returning about $200,000 in donations collected by two Chicago men.updated 2:22 PM EST, Tue February 7, 2012

Clint Eastwood's Super Bowl ad touting Detroit has a lot of people talking -- and some people say it had political undertones. updated 8:07 AM EST, Tue February 7, 2012

CNN's Gloria Borger points out that both Mitt Romney and Newt Gingrich have core, basic issues they've yet to overcome.updated 9:16 AM EST, Tue February 7, 2012

Tim Pawlenty, former Minnesota governor, weighs in on Mitt Romney's campaign and explains his criticism of Rick Santorum. updated 12:35 PM EST, Mon February 6, 2012

David Frum wonders if the best route for Newt Gingrich is to quietly exit the field, hope Mitt Romney loses in November and then claim "told you so" rights.updated 9:11 PM EST, Sun February 5, 2012

Candy Crowley points out the mood of the American worker come Election Day will hold sway over any economic statistic.