14 DAY TRIAL // Chrome OS has been in the works for more than a year now. Officially unveiled about a year ago, Google hasn't made too many comments on the progress of its very own desktop operating system. However, the target date for release has always been fall 2010 and now we may have a more accurate one, November 11.
Several clues from the developers point to the fact that November 11 is the official release date of Chrome OS, or, at the very least, the code freeze date.
Chrome OS is currently at version 0.9.78.1. Supposedly, once the version number hits 1.0, Chrome OS will be ready to ship. TechCrunch reports that Chrome OS has now hit the release candidate phase.
The current milestone release is labeled R9 and the next and probably the one that ships will be R10. For the Chrome browser, the milestones are labeled as Mx with the current one being M8 corresponding to Chrome 8.0.
Google will not comment on the launch date further than what has already been announced.
“We are very happy with the progress of Google Chrome OS and expect devices will be available later this year. We’ll have more details to share at launch,” Google told TechCrunch.
The actual launch date of Google Chrome OS may not actually be that important since most people will be waiting for the actual devices to ship.
However, it's likely that Google will have some partner devices to show off when it officially launches Chrome OS, so the date depends on when device manufacturers are ready as well.
Of course, there will be enthusiasts who will grab the code and build their own Chrome OS, or rather Chromium OS. But, since the source code is available even now, there's nothing stopping curious users from grabbing it today.
In fact, a number of unofficial Chrome OS builds have been available for months now. But if you're waiting on the official stable release, it shouldn't be long now.