TransMedia, the software maker trying to challenge Microsoft and Google in the world of Web operating systems and collaboration, Dec. 7 will launch a fresh version of its Glide operating system with a focus on desktop and Web search. Glide OS 4.0 adds a search box and a bidirectionally synchronized file management system to the Web browser it is plugged into. Users who need to find content can use the search box to search the content local to their computer, as well as Web content from Google, Microsoft Bing, Yahoo, YouTube, Twitter and other sources.
TransMedia, the software maker trying to challenge Microsoft and Google in
the world of Web operating systems and collaboration, Dec. 7 will launch a
fresh version of its Glide operating system with a focus on desktop and Web
search.
Glide OS 4.0 is a Web
operating system and application suite packed into a browser plug-in for
Microsoft Internet Explorer, Mozilla Firefox, Google Chrome or Apple Safari Web
browsers. Glide OS essentially wraps desktop functionality around Web content
from any computing device powered by an Internet connection.
Glide OS 4.0 also includes productivity and collaboration applications, such
as word processing, spreadsheet, photo editor and calendar apps.
With search engines and social networking services serving as the metaphor
for the Web, the Glide OS 4.0 adds a search box and a bidirectionally
synchronized file management system to the Web browser it is plugged into.
Glide then lets users manage their personal files, search results and other
online content on their computer, and any local content and files are mirrored
in the cloud.
Glide OS 4.0 now lets users capture text, images, audio and video content
online and transfer that Web content to their local desktop. Conversely, users
can automatically publish files from their local desktop to the Web.
Users who need to find content can use the search box to search the content
local to their computer, as well as Web content from Google, Microsoft Bing,
Yahoo, YouTube, Twitter and other sources.
Glide OS' multi-select feature captures several files or search results, and
exports the Web content to a Microsoft Word 2007, 97, 2003, XP, PDF, RTF or
Glide Write document.
Users then create a target folder right from the user interface, and Glide
OS 4.0 will automatically drop that Web content to a synchronized personal or
synchronized collaboration folder for offline and online access.
The effect is to let Glide OS turn the Web into a user's personal hard
drive, TransMedia CEO and Chairman Donald
Leka told eWEEK in an interview.
For all of the flexibility it provides in letting users leverage a Web
operating system for their desktops and laptops, Glide OS 4.0 is a breath of
fresh air in a world largely controlled by Microsoft Windows, which comes
installed on PCs.
"It's really quite amazing to me that Google or Microsoft hasn't done
something like this yet, where they've actually wrapped the OS and productivity
and collaboration applications around content itself in a very direct
way," Leka said.
However, Microsoft and Google do have their own Web operating system plans.
Microsoft Windows Azure, slated to roll out to businesses Jan. 1, is marrying
traditional on-premises software with a Web-based service.
Google Chrome Operating System, which was released to open source last week but won't appear on
netbooks until late 2010, ignores local applications in favor of the Web.
Leka's Glide OS is more like Windows Azure in the sense that it is marrying
desktop and hosted software models, but the refreshed interface in Glide OS 4.0
recalls Google's cloud computing approach more than anything the world has seen
from Microsoft of late.
Leka said he thinks TransMedia has a shot at some strategic partnerships
with Google and Microsoft, which could layer the rights-based Glide OS 4.0 over
content on various computing devices.
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