In 2011, I was selected to be a part of Google's Chrome OS Test Pilot Program. I received a free Google Cr-48 laptop, and it was an absolutely charming machine. The rubbery, matte-black chassis had absolutely no branding anywhere on it. Upon opening the lid, the system would boot into Chrome OS, which, at the time, was literally nothing more than a fullscreen Chrome browser—no desktop, no apps, nothing. I used the Cr-48 throughout college, often as a thin client that would connect to my des...
