Google Chrome 8 is Now Stable

A recent post on the Google (News - Alert) Chrome blog site stated that the Chrome team was happy to announce the stable release 8.0.552.215. In addition to over 800 bug fixes and stability improvements, the Chrome 8 now contains a PDF viewer that is secured in Chrome’s sandbox. Plus, it also contains latest security fixes, which are listed on the site above.

The built-in PDF viewer lets the browser render PDF files as seamlessly as HTML web pages, without the need for a standalone Adobe reader installation, according to Chromium engineering director Marc Pawliger. All PDF files are also contained in a sandbox, which means they are isolated and will not affect the security or performance of any other parts of the system.

Another interesting feature was mentioned on PCWorld site . It wrote that Chrome 8 is the first version of the browser to boast full support for Google's upcoming Chrome Web Store, which many market watchers believe will be  launched soon. The Chrome Web Store is designed to offer an array of Web-based applications, both free and paid. Specifically, it is architected around Chrome browser and the under-development Chrome operating system (OS).

With Chrome OS, Google is stepping into the territory of its adversaries, namely Microsoft (News - Alert) and Apple. Both of them make OSes and offer popular software applications for desktops, laptop/notebook/netbook PCs and consumer/mobile devices. Meanwhile, Google is also getting ready to launch Chrome OS powered netbooks.

A recently released data by Net Applications, posted on PCWorld site, shows that November was the biggest growth month to-date for Chrome. It grew a full 5.6 percent in global market share for the month of November, bringing its browser market share to 9.3 percents. In fact, the market research firm’s data concludes that it is the second-highest single month gain for any browser.