"Google released Chrome OS as open source today. It did not, however, release a beta of the operating system for users, and said that hobbyists who would want to install it on their existing netbook or other hardware were out of luck.
"Developers can compile the source code and run Chrome OS in a virtual machine to test Web app compatibility, Google said.
""From what was shared, it appears to be in the early stages of development," a Microsoft spokeswoman said via e-mail.
""From our perspective, however, our customers are already voicing their approval of the way Windows 7 just works -- across the Web and on the desktop, and on all sizes and types of PCs -- purchasing twice as many units of Windows 7 as we've sold of any other operating system over a comparable time," the spokeswoman said."
