Google isn’t just a search engine anymore. Last week, the company unveiled its own Web browser, Google Chrome.

The browser aims to create a more simplistic experience on today’s application-based Web, according to a Google press release.

Like Google’s Web page, Google Chrome is based on simplicity and power.

“It gets out of your way and gets you where you want to go,” Google’s Web site states.

The browser is designed to be as unobtrusive as possible and take up minimal space on the screen, Carolyn Penner, Google spokeswoman, said in an e-mail.

“I think it’s incredible,” said Matthew Burks, Information Technology specialist. “It’s much faster than Firefox, Safari and [Microsoft Internet] Explorer.”

It is powered by V8, a JavaScript engine which helps speed up Web applications, Penner said.

“It’s sophisticated technology that makes Google Chrome fast and stable,” she said.

The browser’s best feature is its high speed, Burks, a microbiology and biochemistry senior, said. The home page takes less than half a second to open, he said. Additionally, the browser’s home page shows the user’s nine most visited Web sites as small snapshots.

“You can immediately know what you were looking for,” said Burks, who uses Google Chrome as his main browser.

Another feature of Google Chrome is isolated tabs, Penner said. Google designed each tab to act as a stand-alone browser, so if one tab crashes, the others will be unaffected.

Burks said this is not always true.

“That’s what they say, but it has crashed the whole browser before when one of my tabs froze up,” he said. “It’s still in beta, so you can’t blame them. It’s just a theory.”

Google Chrome also allows for secure Web browsing. It displays a warning message before entering a potentially harmful site, according to Google’s Web site.

Additionally, users can enter incognito mode, a safe mode, which allows them to delete their surfing history after they close the window, the Web site stated.

The browser is still in beta testing and only available for Windows. According to Google’s Web site, it is working on building a version for Mac.

Many consumers can wait until the beta period ends to download the browser, Nick Key, IT spokesman, said in an e-mail. It will take some time before Google Chrome becomes a mainstream browser, he said.

“Additionally, there is a security vulnerability in the beta version. OU IT suggests you do not install Chrome on your computer until Google addresses this issue,” he said.

Google Chrome could heighten the rivalry in the competitive browser market, Burks said.

Internet Explorer is used by more than 90 percent of the consumer market and is the default on most machines, Burks said.

Microsoft Internet Explorer 8 is the company’s most recent version, Dean Hachamovitch, general manager of Internet Explorer, said in an e-mail.

“Web browsing is crucially important for hundreds of millions of people, which is why we invest in Internet Explorer so heavily,” Hachamovitch said.

It will be up to users to decide which browser is best for them, Penner said.

“We’re not in the business of making comparisons with other browsers,” she said. “There are already great options out there.”

Although few have made Google Chrome their main browser, it may not stay that way for long, Burks said. It will eventually become compatible with cell phones as well.

Google’s browser is likely to be successful because the company specializes in Web sites, Burks said. He said the company is not trying to completely crush Microsoft or Firefox, however.

“They just realized they could do a better job,” he said.

Key said Google Chrome will have to prove its quality before users will begin to use it in large numbers.

Most Firefox users will probably switch to Google Chrome eventually, Burks said.

“I’m pretty sure within a year or two, it’ll take over Firefox, but I really don’t see it taking over Internet Explorer as the dominant browser.”

Google Chrome features

• Speed: Powerful JavaScript engine, V8

• Use Web applications without opening the browser

• Stability: Tabs operate separately and are less likely to crash simultaneously

• Search: Combined search and address bar

• Staying in control: “Incognito mode” prevents browser history from tracking visited sites

• Import settings quickly from current browsers

How to get it

• Beta currently available for Windows OS only

• Download from www.google.com/chrome

Source: Google press release