WITH CHROME, GOOGLE SET OUT to build a browser that's not merely a viewer for Web sites and pages but also a platform for running Web applications. Its minimal, "get-the-browser-out-of-the¬way" aesthetic complements this goal. But is this enough to supplant IE, Safari, and Firefox?

Chrome is an amalgamation of Google's V8 JavaScript rendering engine, the open-source WebKit rendering engine (used by Safari), and code from Firefox. This means it should correctly present any sites that work in Safari, though in my testing that wasn't always the case. It also means the address bar's prediction and security features should work just like those in Firefox, and that was in fact so. This first beta of Chrome is Windows only, but the company is working on Mac and Linux versions.

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Chrome has one of the simplest download and install processes I've ever seen. The first time you start browsing, it offers to import your bookmarks from Internet Explorer or Firefox. The two highlights of Chrome's interface are its prominent tabs and dual-purpose address-and-search bar, dubbed the "Ominbar." One shortcoming of Chrome is its very primitive bookmark support. Perhaps even more restrictive is the general lack of customization available and the absence of a download manager.

Chrome is quite snappy, however, when dis¬playing and navigating Web sites, and it works beautifully with the new Yahoo! Mail. And a Safe Browsing feature supplies the same antiphishing and malware protections you'll find in Firefox 3. Chrome's Incognito mode lets you move around the Web without leaving traces. However, Google's new browser is certainly a bright new toy, but it's not necessarily an engine of productivity at this point.-Michael Muchmore