First off, Google does not want to build it's own browser based on the Firefox code. What in the world is 'wrong' with Firefox that would give them a good reason to do this? Firefox is a giant locomotive going downhill with a full head of steam. Why would Google release another browser today, and start at 0% market share and no momentum, when they can simple push firefox fiercely, and start at 6-7% with a running head start?
Those Google folks know a good thing when they see it, and they aren't stupid enough to throw this one away. What they are smart enough to do, however, is keep some key folks close to the vest, and work on greater and greater inegration with their services in the main Firefox releases (the default search bar was just a drop in the pond compared to what's coming).
So what is coming, you ask? Well, we got a nice hint today from Blake Ross:
My question to you is this: pretend that the Mozilla Foundation had at its disposal anything in the world. Pretend it has access to Amazon’s databases, or eBay’s, or Google’s or iTunes’. Forget that Firefox is just client-side software right now, and imagine that the Foundation could build a massive server-side component to complement it.
Oh wait! It does have access to Google's databases. And Google's stash of a couple billion dollars too! It would certainly help if Google knew anything about that whole "massive server-side component" thing...
Google wants a browser that gives them the same level of default integration that MS gets with IE and MSN Search. Not an entirely unfair request. For now, that browser is Firefox. If that project should go in some other direction in the future, then they always have the option of releasing a tweaked verion. Now if we could just get Firefox on every win32 desktop by defalt...
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