The Most Interesting Things in Google Chrome 17 Are Hidden Behind Flags

Google Chrome is always getting small updates and new features, but since these trickle in over time, especially if you're using one of the testing versions of Chrome, it's hard to notice changes.

But old time Chrome users know that the best things are always hidden away, if you want to be on the cutting edge, it's not enough to use the dev channel version of Chrome or even the Chromium 'nightly' builds, the really interesting stuff is in the 'Flags' section.

Note that anything in there is experimental and likely to break, so if you're looking for stability, chrome://flags is not for you. That said, here are some of the cool things coming soon (possibly) to Google Chrome.

HTTP Pipelining

The very latest experiment, only available in the latest Chromium builds is HTTP Pipelining. HTTP Pipelining is way of sending several HTTP requests at the same time, without waiting for a response before firing away the next message in line.

Support for the HTML5 <track> element

Another experimental technology in Chrome, not enabled by default is the <track> HTML5 element.

"Enable the track element (not yet fully functional) for captions, subtitles, chapters, and audio descriptions on video elements," the description of the flag reads.

The experimental Bookmarks section of the redesigned New Tab Page

You may also notice that the Bookmarks section in the redesigned New Tab Page, which was recently pulled and replaced with the older bookmark bar is now available behind a flag.

WebUI for more dialogs

Google Chrome is also replacing native dialog windows with built-in ones, based on web technologies. These have the advantage of looking the same on any operating system they show up on, which could also be seen as a disadvantage, and of not blocking the browser in certain circumstances or opening up a new, unnecessary window. They are especially important for Chrome OS.

New downloads UI (not implemented yet)