Since its debut more than four years ago, (yeah, it has been four years) Linux on ChromeOS has made some significant improvements and added some major value to the Chrome operating system as a whole. While not a full-blown Linux desktop environment, the Crostini container gives users access to powerful Linux packages that can’t be […]
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3 ways to play Minesweeper on your Chromebook
I’m a child of the 80s and I cut my proverbial computing teeth on devices that ran DOS and COBOL but my first real-world experiences on a PC were with good ole’ Windows 3.0. It wasn’t long before Microsoft introduced Windows 3.1 and with it, a little game called Minesweeper. Some of you may have […]
Continue Reading‘Bruschetta’ is bringing third-party VMs to Chrome OS
Chrome OS is becoming more versatile by the minute. It won’t be long before our beloved operating system is capable of doing anything that any other PC can do. Just this week, I was able to get Lightworks up and running on the ASUS Chromebook CX9 and I can say that we aren’t far off […]
Continue ReadingHow to install Lightworks Video Editor on your Chromebook
As crazy as it may sound, it has been more than four years since we unearthed the container project that would eventually be responsible for bringing Linux to Chromebooks. It has also given us new tools such as Windows on Chrome OS thanks to the efforts of Parallels. When Google first announced Linux on Chromebooks […]
Continue ReadingFirst Look: Chromebook “extra container management” in Chrome OS 98
Earlier this month, I covered down a new feature that’s in the works for Chrome OS that will give users a native user interface for managing Linux containers. While still a work in progress, the “extra container” management has finally made an appearance in the Canary channel of Chrome OS and we have our first […]
Continue ReadingThe Chrome OS virtual keyboard is joining the dark side, adding Linux app support, and more
The Chrome OS virtual keyboard – the on-screen typing experience – has undergone plenty of changes for the better over the past year. In Chrome 85, it got a major facelift featuring key borders (love it or hate it) and even became resizable. While we knew it was going to receive light and dark mode […]
Continue ReadingManaging Linux containers is about to get a lot easier on Chrome OS
Earlier this year, after roughly three years, Google finally lifted the “Beta” label from the Crostini project that brought a Linux development environment to Chromebooks. While many may feel that the Linux side of Chrome OS is only for technical users, developers, and tinkerers such as myself, the ability to install in run Linux packages […]
Continue ReadingCrossOver 21 is now available: how to use it to run Windows apps on your Chromebook
It’s been a while since we’ve touched on CrossOver. It’s a commercial product from CodeWeavers, the developers behind Wine and Proton, which allows Windows applications and games to run natively on Linux and macOS. Thankfully the janky old days of CrossOver running on Chromebooks through limited Android integration is now behind us. They have moved […]
Continue ReadingExclusive: how to enable Vulkan in Crostini on your Chromebook right now
The time has come: welcome to our exclusive guide on how you can use Vulkan in Crostini! This unlocks the full gaming power of Chromebooks by allowing more modern games to work. More importantly, it also allows Steam’s Proton compatibility layer to work at its full potential, which means the majority of Windows games will […]
Continue ReadingRunning benchmarks with Vulkan in Crostini (Linux for Chrome OS) yields surprising results
We recently cracked the case of how to get Vulkan graphics acceleration working in Crostini. I’ve got a full guide on how to do this yourself coming up as my next article so stay tuned for that if you’d like to be able to tinker with this a bit yourself! With the power of Vulkan, […]
Continue ReadingDebian 11 ‘Bullseye’ is headed to Chrome OS
I’m honestly not sure if the Linux environment on Chromebooks is actually being embraced by the masses but the fact remains that “Crostini” adds an entirely new level of productivity and capability to the Chrome operating system. In March of last year, Google updated the Linux container on Chrome OS from Debian 9 to the […]
Continue ReadingGoogle pauses Chrome OS update, breaks Linux container
Last week, Google rolled out an incremental update to Chrome OS 91 and it didn’t take long for numerous users to start reporting a serious bug that was crippling the CPU and a number of Chromebooks. The bug report, now triaged, has been updated from priority 3 to priority 1 which is the second-highest level […]
Continue ReadingAs if it matters, your Skylake Chromebook can finally use Linux apps
We are three years into the Crostini project that brought Linux app support to Chrome OS. Unfortunately for users of devices like the Samsung Chromebook and ASUS Chromebook C302, Linux has eluded the 6th Gen Skylake processors from Intel. This was a bad situation all around given the fact that these Chromebooks were the cream […]
Continue ReadingGaming on Chrome OS in a pre-Borealis world
While we all impatiently wait for official support for Steam via Borealis, let’s talk about how you can start playing Windows games today with Steam Play (Proton) using Crostini (Linux on Chrome OS). The experience isn’t the best, but it’s frankly better than nothing. This article will assume that you have Linux installed on your […]
Continue ReadingLinux leaving Beta in next Chrome OS update and that’s a big deal
Google I/O 2021 is a wrap and despite there being no hardware to speak of, there were a ton of new features and updates announced that will be heading our way over the coming weeks and months. During the “What’s new in Chrome OS” session, Emilie Roberts and Sanj Nathwani highlighted some new features that […]
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