Chrome OS (Chromebooks/boxes).

[Infrasonic]

https://www.aboutchromebooks.com/news/h ... hromebook/

... Based on what I reported yesterday, that some Reddit users removed and re-enabled the Google Play Store, I attempted that. And it worked for me. I’m now able to run apps in Android 11 on my Chromebook without any issues so far, aside from some general sluggishness...Cont.

...There’s one other thing that might help if you’re still experiencing Android 11 app issues on your Chromebook with Chrome OS 90. Resetting all of your flags at chrome://flags has reportedly helped as well. I did not do that, for what it’s worth...cont.

[Infrasonic]

https://chromeunboxed.com/framework-lap ... pressions/

For the most part, unboxing a new Chromebook is a pretty standard thing. You usually get a Chromebook in some sort of paper-like sleeve, a charger, and a big cardboard box. While I fully support recyclable packaging for Chromebooks, I also appreciate when companies like Acer – with their Chromebook Vero 514 – take the time to still make that environmentally friendly box a bit more interesting than normal.

With the Framework Laptop Chromebook Edition (Framework Chromebook from here on), this is all taken to the next level because not only is the packaging unique for this particular Chromebook, so is the Chromebook and all the other goodies inside it. Never before have we seen a device running ChromeOS capable of what the Framework Chromebook is, so you know this unboxing is a pretty special one...

Cont.

[Infrasonic]

https://chromeunboxed.com/chromeos-offi ... on-at-last

...Now, a new update in ChromeOS Canary, which was spotted a little while ago by C2 Productions on Twitter, shows the company testing out a new pop-up dialogue for Office Editing on its laptop operating system.

In the Files app, double-clicking a .docx or another Office-type file in your local storage will now present you with an option to either open it in Google Docs or Microsoft Office itself. Of course, you’ll have to have the app installed in order to trigger this, as well as the “Enable Office files upload workflow” developer flag enabled...

Cont.

[Infrasonic]

The latest chromeOS update Version 108.0.5359.172 is giving me loads of bluetooth issues, disconnects, turning itself off etc.
I upgraded last night and initially it was fine but after a couple of hours all the problems started.

It's not the first time BT issues have happened after an update but it's been stable for a year or so now so it's really annoying for me as I use BT headphones and earbuds for long periods on a daily basis.

Apparently the latest January Android 13 update has some BT issues as well - so maybe hold off on both updates for a bit!
(Too late for me as I updated my Pixel 6a as well...).

[Infrasonic]

The latest chromeOS update Version 108.0.5359.172 is giving me loads of bluetooth issues, disconnects, turning itself off etc.
I upgraded last night and initially it was fine but after a couple of hours all the problems started.

It's not the first time BT issues have happened after an update but it's been stable for a year or so now so it's really annoying for me as I use BT headphones and earbuds for long periods on a daily basis.

Apparently the latest January Android 13 update has some BT issues as well - so maybe hold off on both updates for a bit!
(Too late for me as I updated my Pixel 6a as well...).

Okay, it might actually be the Android update that is causing the CB BT issue as since I turned BT off on my Pixel 6a the CB BT issue has disappeared - the Pixel and CB run some 'phone hub' desktop sync routines via BT, nice to have but not essential.
Hopefully they issue a fix soon.

[Infrasonic]

https://chromeunboxed.com/google-decoup ... os-lacros/

Over the past two years, Google has been working on a project known as Lacros, a move aimed at separating the Chrome browser from ChromeOS. In the end, Lacros will be the Chrome browser you get on every Chromebook and because it won’t be attached to the core of the OS any longer, it will facilitate quicker browser patches without requiring a full OS update. Though it’s been a long road, it appears that the release of the new Lacros browser on Chromebooks might finally be on the horizon...

Cont.

[Infrasonic]

https://www.phoronix.com/news/Distrobox-Adds-ChromeOS

Distrobox Adds Support For ChromeOS - Allowing More Linux Apps To Run On Chromebooks

Distrobox as the open-source project allowing easy access to running other distributions/apps via Podman and Docker has merged support for ChromeOS.

ChromeOS has allowed Debian applications to easily run on Google Chromebooks while now with this Distrobox support for ChromeOS, it opens the door for allowing other graphical applications to run from nearly any Linux distribution. This ChromeOS + Distrobox integration was led by Red Hat engineer Eric Curtin.

cont.

[Infrasonic]

I recently had to uninstall some Android apps as the Android container (Linux Virtual Machine: arcvm in Chrome Task Manager) was using way too much CPU (over 50%) from boot onwards. If I kill the process in TM the CPU drops back to an idle of below 10%.

I didn't manage to 100% tie it down to one specific local app but my suspicion is it might have been Dropbox as that install coincided with the CPU spike and after uninstalling it the issue disappeared.

On Windows the cloud sync apps like OneDrive/Google Drive/Dropbox have a high impact rating at boot in Task Manager, so if you are having issues with ChromeOS there have a look at the Android cloud sync apps first.

If you've got an older ChromeOS device still on Android 9 the container will be ARC++ in Chrome Task Manager.

HTH!

[Infrasonic]

https://chromeunboxed.com/chromeos-116- ... -seamless/

ChromeOS 116 makes the move to the new Lacros Chrome browser an absolute breeze

Cont.

[Infrasonic]

https://chromeunboxed.com/google-adding ... -date-aue/

...Google is adding two more years of support to all existing Chromebook models. This means that if you’re currently using a Chromebook, you can now enjoy an extended support period, giving your device a 2-year-longer lease on life. This move underlines Google’s commitment to ensuring that all Chromebook users have a reliable and secure experience for an extended period.

And adding this extra support also means Google is also offering a jaw-dropping 10 years of automatic updates for all new Chromebook devices. That means a decade of seamless updates are now scheduled for the newest devices currently available and new Chromebooks announced from this date forward; far more than any other operating system offers today. Starting in 2024, if you purchase a Chromebook released from 2021 onward, you’ll automatically receive 10 years of updates (from the time of manufacture)...

Cont.

[gpadsa]

Retired an 8-year-old chromebook yesterday because of hardware not OS (used linux not chromeos on it from the start) - an asus c300 that became too painfully slow a few years ago for anything but emergency use. It was a great computer when it was new & excellent price although Intel Celeron N3060 @ 1.60GHz cpubenchmark=657 does look like the super low price clouded the judgement back in the day

gpadsa

[Infrasonic]

Retired an 8-year-old chromebook yesterday because of hardware not OS (used linux not chromeos on it from the start) - an asus c300 that became too painfully slow a few years ago for anything but emergency use. It was a great computer when it was new & excellent price although Intel Celeron N3060 @ 1.60GHz cpubenchmark=657 does look like the super low price clouded the judgement back in the day

gpadsa

I bought my Lenovo Chromebook for £169 in the sales. Celeron N4000 CPU, 4GB RAM, 64GB eMMC storage, SD card slot (128GB max).

I'll get another one but with better specs - i3+/8-16GB RAM/128GB NVMe SSD.

That way I've got more headroom for the Android and Linux container VM's which I use daily but they can get a bit sluggish on the current Laptop.

[csearle]

Moderator Message:
The part of the discussion pertaining to Linux updates is now here. Please can this thread remain focused on Chrome OS (Chromebooks/boxes). Thanks - Chris

[TedSwippet]

Retired an 8-year-old chromebook yesterday because of hardware ...

And in the opposite direction, I recently managed to get up-to-date Firefox (116) running on my 12-year-old Samsung XE303C12 chromebook. 32 bit ARM based, so cobbling the pieces together was ... fiddly (run from USB, elderly unsupported Kali Linux live image with a tweaked Archlinux in a chroot; because for some reason Arch armv7h kernels don't boot).

Given the age of the machine, I'm surprised at how responsive it feels.