Download Google Chrome 2.0 Pre-Beta

Build 2.0.156.1

Forget about Build 1.0.154.36, Google Chrome is now at version 2.0.156.1 in pre-Beta stage, and available for download. Just 100 days after the introduction of the first Beta of its open source browser, in mid-December 2008 Google launched the RTW (release to web) version of Chrome 1.0. A few days short of a month later, the Mountain View search giant moved onward with the development of Chrome, and released the pre-Beta Build of version 2.0. Google is referring to the pre-Beta development milestone of Chrome 2.0 as Build 156.1, and has indicated that the release features a consistent evolution, compared to the source code of the 154.0 branch.

Google Chrome 2.0 Pre-Beta comes to the table with a “new version of WebKit,” Mark Larson, Google Chrome program manager (via GoogleSystem), revealed. “WebKit is the open source code Google Chrome uses to render web pages (HTML and CSS). 1.0.154.36 used basically the same version of WebKit as Safari 3.1, but the WebKit team has made a lot of improvements since that was released. 156.1 uses WebKit version 528.8 or, more precisely, revision 39410 from the WebKit source tree.”

In addition to the new version of the rendering engine, Larson also pointed out that Google Chrome 2.0 pre-Beta would enable users to take advantage of new features such as Form Autocomplete, full-page zoom, and auto scroll. Chrome 2.0 pre-Beta will keep track of all text users enter into fields on web pages, so that revisiting a page with a previously filled form will not require visitors to re-type the information already submitted. In addition, hitting middle-click (namely the mouse wheel) will now cause webpages to auto scroll.

With the delivery of Chrome 2.0 Pre-Beta, Google has also updated “V8 Javascript engine to version 0.4.6.0 (from 0.3.9.3). [Google's open source browser now supports] docking dragged tabs (when you drag a tab to certain positions on the monitor, a docking icon will appear); [and is capable of importing] bookmarks from Google Bookmarks. [Chrome 2.0 Pre-Bet also introduces a] new SafeBrowsing implementation; new network code (Google Chrome now has its own implementation of the HTTP network protocol); experimental user script support, and a new HTTPS-only browsing mode,” Larson added.

Google Chrome 2.0 Pre-Beta Build 2.0.156.1 is available for download here.