( CNN ) -- Google this week unveiled its Chrome Web Store , which aims to do for the Web what Apple 's App Store did for mobile devices : It provides a place to explore and `` install '' Web-based applications . The launch was announced alongside a new netbook running Chrome OS , Google 's browser-centric operating system . And the Web Store is part of Chrome , Google 's super-fast Web browser . Except that many Chrome apps can run in other browsers , since they 're actually just websites . Oh , and do n't mistake apps for `` extensions , '' which are add-ons for the Chrome browser . Confused yet ? Suffice to say , Google 's grand plans are ambitious , groundbreaking and darned difficult to explain to the average computer user . That 's why I think it 'll be some time before the world embraces Google 's vision for the future . Google 's grand plan . What is Google 's vision ? Ultimately , the company anticipates a future in which a Web browser is all you 'll need . In an era when much of our time is spent online , operating systems such as Windows and Mac OS are overkill . Instead , Google plans computers that boot up almost instantly and take the user straight to the Web browser . This will be made possible by Google 's super-simple operating system , Chrome OS . In this new world of Web-based software , meanwhile , desktop applications are replaced with Web applications -- all of your data and applications are stored on the Web rather than the device . Hence the launch of the Chrome Web Store . Missing pieces . Google 's Chrome ambitions are hard to explain because these pieces of the puzzle are yet to be combined . While the Chrome browser is growing in popularity , with nearly 10 % market share , the only Chrome OS computer launched so far is a test model available to a select few developers and journalists . In short , Google has essentially launched an app store for a series of devices that are yet to debut . Yes , you could use the Chrome Web Store as your starting point each day and jump into this new paradigm with both feet . But this is less intuitive when using a computer with existing desktop apps , browser bookmarks and other hallmarks of the existing paradigm . It 's a move that some early adopters may make , but a step too far for the mass market . Slow progress . In truth , I do n't see the Chrome Web Store gaining steam until we have devices in stores running Chrome OS -- expected sometime next year . Only then will consumers truly grasp this new approach to computing : A super-simple operating system linked to a Web-based app store . Until that day , color us confused .
Google this week launched its Chrome Web Store . The company anticipates a future in which a Web browser is all a computer user will need . Google has essentially launched an app store for devices that do n't function in public yet .