Google Native Client Puts x86 On the Web 367
t3rmin4t0r writes "Google has announced its Google native client, which enables x86 native code to be run securely inside a browser. With Java applets already dead and buried, this could mean the end of the new war between browsers and the various JavaScript engines (V8, Squirrelfish, Tracemonkey). The only question remains whether it can be secured (ala ActiveX) and whether the advantages carry over onto non-x86 platforms. The package is available for download from its Google code site. Hopefully, I can finally write my web apps in asm." Note: the Google code page description points out that this is not ready for production use: "We've released this project at an early, research stage to get feedback from the security and broader open-source communities." Reader eldavojohn links to a technical paper linked from that Google code page [PDF] titled "Native Client: A Sandbox for Portable, Untrusted x86 Native Code," and suggests this in-browser Quake demo, which requires the Native Code plug-in.
The important (and finally valid!) question (Score:4, Funny)
Does it run Linux??
Re:The important (and finally valid!) question (Score:2, Funny)
I just tried Debian PPC, and apparently, no it doesn't.
Re:doesn't sound too secure yet (Score:5, Funny)
*Someone may have thought of this already.
Did they really just... (Score:5, Funny)
The only question remains whether it can be secured (ala ActiveX)
HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA *gasp* HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAAHHAHA *wipes eyes*
HAHAHAHAHAHAAHHAAHAHAHAHAHAHAH
GREAT IDEA (Score:5, Funny)
google x86 (Score:3, Funny)
Does this mean I can run old DOS games in a browser?
Silent Service II!
Re:doesn't sound too secure yet (Score:4, Funny)
Re:The important (and finally valid!) question (Score:4, Funny)
So as if javascript isn't bad enough, now we're going to have the inevitable beowulf cluster running across the tabs of our browsers?
More importantly.... (Score:5, Funny)
Does Linux run on it?
(Prompting a possibly valid "In Soviet Russia" gag).
Re:doesn't sound too secure yet (Score:3, Funny)
It's a Java system! I know this!
Re:doesn't sound too secure yet (Score:3, Funny)
Yep, they're re-inventing the wheel, how cool is that?
With Java applets already dead and buried (Score:3, Funny)
Nothing on Netcraft yet...
Re:doesn't sound too secure yet (Score:5, Funny)
(I just love it when my browser runs unmanaged code full of unverified branch statements!)
Bah! Where's your sense of adventure?!?
Quake in the browser! (Score:3, Funny)
Clearly, playing Quake in the browser is the killer app for this technology.
Re:google x86 (Score:4, Funny)
Re:google x86 (Score:3, Funny)
Re:doesn't sound too secure yet (Score:5, Funny)
Um the way things work with software is the program sends opt-codes to the CPU which interns translates them to particular basic actions.
Ah ha!
So that is the secret!!
Cheap intern labor!
Re:doesn't sound too secure yet (Score:5, Funny)
Knock Knock.
Who's there?
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.
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(long pause)
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.
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Java.
you can have both! (Score:3, Funny)
JIT emulation is the worst of both possible worlds! The extra overhead of the bytecode to native translations and the extra overhead of emulation!