We called out earlier that Chrome OS is an operating system based on Linux. Now, let's dive into how it's different from other Linux-based distributions. Unlike other operating systems, Chrome OS has one main purpose: to be a secure and simple way for the user to interact with the web. Not so long ago, the idea of having an operating system dedicated to running a web browser would've seemed weird like it was under using the computer. But today, you can do so much just through your web browser. You can communicate through email, create and share documents, edit photos and even connect remotely to another computer and the list continues to grow. The development of new web applications increases the number of things users can do all within the web browser. This means that for a lot of people, most of their daily computer use happens inside the browser. So, having an operating system built around a web browser makes a lot of sense. That said, Chrome OS is more than just a web-browsing operating system. It can also run Android and Linux applications inside containers. The user interface in Chrome OS is customized so you can only see the chrome interface. Process management, memory and input and output are still happening behind the scenes. But you don't need to deal with any of that. You only need to deal with the browser. Chrome OS machines come pre-installed with the operating system. So, there's nothing for us to install. When you log into a Chrome OS machine, you're also signing into the Chrome browser. Let's do that now. I've logged into my Chrome OS machine. It's pulling up my Chrome settings and extensions from the configuration stored in external servers provided by the Chrome infrastructure. This means that Chrome OS machines are interchangeable because most data is stored in the cloud, not locally. We'll learn more about the cloud in future lessons but for now think of the cloud as being somewhere else. Two other characteristics of Chrome OS are that it's extremely simple to use and very hard for users to meddle with. Since users don't have administrator rights on their Chrome OS machines, they won't be able to alter the system configuration. Also, Chrome OS has an automatic update mechanism that includes a fail-safe in case anything goes wrong. This means that the user doesn't need to worry about problems or hacks in the system because it's designed to stay up and running. Finally, Chrome OS has strong security, which we'll learn about in an upcoming course. For now, you just need to know that Chrome OS allows users to browse the web without worrying about malware and to share machines while keeping their data private. It also ensures that data won't be compromised if the machine is stolen. In short, there is no need to worry about harmful software that might be out there because Chrome OS defends against these threats. As an IT support specialist, you may find that some of the users in your organization will choose Chrome OS for their daily work. Since it's so easy to use and rarely breaks, we won't cover daily support in further detail.