
Google rolled out the new Terminal 2.0 for Crostini Linux back in late July and with it came some much-needed UI improvements to make the Chrome OS developer environment a little more user-friendly. With the update, users can now customize the terminal as well as open multiple terminal instances in a single window. Most of it is simply for show and has little to do with the functionality of the Terminal app but you can access and customize keyboard shortcuts to curate your personal workflow.
As Google continues to woo developers over to Chrome OS for creating Android applications and utilizing various development environments, the Chrome Developer Team has dropped a handy little video to highlight the ins and outs of navigating and customizing the Linux terminal on Chrome OS. There isn’t really anything new to glean here but Developer Relations Engineer Joyce Toh does a great job of highlighting this powerful tool in the ever-growing Chrome OS toolbox.
The coolest part of this video is that it really highlights Google’s commitment to making Chrome OS a go-to platform for developers and not just a “cheap EDU device” as many would think. Think about it. Chromebooks can now leverage Android applications, the best of the web, powerful Linux apps and even a full Windows desktop if needed. The pain of printing with a Chromebook is quickly becoming a thing of the past and many new Chrome OS laptops offer all the same premium features that you’d find on other operating systems. I’m very anxious to see how Chromebooks are received by consumers over the next 12-18 months as users begin to realize that there is very little that you can’t do with Chrome OS.