Google Chrome Beta 3 arrives, people dance with glee

The browser that was supposed to take over the world seemed to die a painful death. Chrome may be lightening fast, but the browser market only has room for one or two champions.

Maybe you have lost track of it like me. Thankfully, Dark Vision Hardware -- that reputable source of browser information, second only to ArsTechnica -- has an update that the folks at Google have quietly released beta 3.

There was a parade in Mountain View where co-founders Sergey Brin and Larry Page led a processional of clowns and monkeys dressed as train conductors. They sang songs with lyrics like "my oh my, beta 3 has arrived" while drinking soda through curly straws and giving each other low-fives. There were fireworks, a pie eating contest, and raucous applause from the three people in attendance, a.k.a. those who are still using the browser who have not switched back to Firefox, a.k.a. the last hold-outs metaphorically clinging to a lifeboat as the Titanic sinks into the abyss of darkness.

Okay, I made some of that up, but there wasn't a lot of fanfare. According to the Google Blog (and really, who else can say these things better?), the beta fixes some bugs, moves some stuff around, and extricates those dreaded "spoofing pop-ups" that can wreak havoc with Windows and the beloved registry, not to mention causing spousal embarrassment.

Tucked under the floormat: they also fixed the most annoying bug of all. I mentioned this before, but there was a weird right-click error that was wiping out my text. Apparently it had something to do with the inline spell checker in text fields, because it is now fixed. My life is now fulfilled.

None of this makes me want to switch back, though. I'm sure the Chrome developers are working hard on this high-profile project, moving on to another set of fixes right after they sweep all the bird poop off their solar array, jump in the on-campus hot tub, and grab a few sandwiches in the cafeteria. Seriously, is it a priority? It doesn't seem to get any attention anymore.

Here's what I think: Chrome was a test to see if people really dumped FF and IE. They didn't, so it is now on the backburner. I imagine they have three or four developers working on it.

I think they also realized it is very difficult to monetize a browser. Mozilla has not figured out how yet. They make most of their money from the Google search box. Microsoft dumped IE development because they probably couldn't figure out why anyone would release free software.

Maybe Google will figure this out, maybe Chrome will be a success. Until now, here's to Dark Vision Hardware. Guys, keep reporting the news, we need you.

(Note: I have nothing against Dark Vision Hardware, but they are not the first site I think of for finding out about a new Chrome beta. They are, however, one of the first to be listed in Google search results, and I think I just helped that.)