Chromebook, ChromeOS and Google Chrome browser news
Chrome OS 78 brought Virtual Desktops to Chromebooks but left out a key gesture for quickly switching between workspaces using a trackpad swipe. Here’s how to add it, along with an upcoming change to make it better.
I was thrilled when Google added a dedicated release notes view to Chrome OS. But after upgrading two of my Chromebooks to Chrome OS 78, the old notes appear. There’s no excuse for that.
Chrome OS 78 has arrived for Chromebooks and Google touts four new features. Of course, there’s always more in the software updates, so here’s what you need to know about them.
Earlier this year there were references to a “Click to call” feature for Chromebooks and it appears that Click to call will arrive in Chrome OS 78. Once it arrives, clicking a hyperlinked phone number will place the call on a supported Android phone.
Google’s Password Checker, which will alert you if it sees your account credentials in database of 4 billion known breached accounts, lands on the web. Here’s how to use it on your Chromebook until Google integrates it into Chrome OS.
Linux users on Chromebooks will be happy to see an updated Terminal app, currently expected to land in Chrome OS 78. This system app will support multiple Terminal session tabs in a single app and bring additional customization options.
Chrome OS 78 is expected to bring a shared text clipping feature that will let you send clipboard contents to or from a Chromebook to any other device running Chrome, including Macs, PCs, and iOS devices.
Google introduced a Password Checkup extension in February, and flagged 315,000 passwords as unsafe due to data breaches that first month. Chrome OS 78 will natively include a similar feature for improved online protections.
While the new Virtual Desks feature of Chrome OS landed with version 76, the keyboard shortcuts to use them on a Chromebook didn’t. And they won’t be here for Chrome OS 77 either.
Is the Linux partition taking up too much storage capacity on your Chromebook? A feature to resize that disk was expected for Chrome OS 75 but has been pushed back to Chrome OS 78 for now.
Chrome OS 74 added Linux container backup & restore functionality to Chromebooks but it’s tucked away in the Settings. It may be moving to the native Files app, which is a more intuitive location for the restore.
