Don’t get your hopes up, people! An interesting screenshot made its way to the social space today. Posted by a famed leakster, the image stirred a little storm in the proverbial teacup.
It purported to show EdgeOS, a supposed new operating system in development. This new release is said to be based on Windows 11 and could be taken as an attempt by Microsoft to take the fight to Google and its Chrome OS platform.
Only, it isn’t.
The leakster in question is FireCube, a popular venue that often reveals upcoming Windows features and stuff of note. And they have posted this fake screenshot:
According to the accompanying information, this leak is for Microsoft’s planned rebrand of Windows 11 after switching to a new web-based tech power shell.
And the screenshot itself is simply an edited version of a winver window that appears to have been quickly edited. Take note of the messed up first line, or the fact that the build number does not line up or is spaced properly.
Intentional?
Could be.
This is, of course, just meant as a fun little joke, and the faked image is not meant to mislead you into believing that Microsoft is in the process of developing EdgeOS as a real competitor to the Chrome OS platform that powers Chromebooks.
There’s less than 1% of chance of this happening — now or ever.
That said, while the banter is welcome, another drive is currently underway at Redmond. That drive is to add features upon features to the Edge web browser, bloating its existence.
The company has added an entire sidebar that contains applets like a calculator, unit converter, and speed tester over the last couple of months. The Photos app is also being integrated into the browser, and there are even links to the entire Office suite and the Outlook calendar.
Not to mention all the gaming features added to Edge, which are enough for Microsoft to label it as the best for playing games.
With more such features, the web browser could well become a mini OS.
