[koalaman]

You could not watch Netflix on Linux until Chrome came along.

You also didn't have very good security from browser exploits until Chrome.

Chrome also made the web significantly faster to use.

Chrome was critical in unblocking the use of Linux on desktop.

[ndriscoll]

I've been using exclusively Linux on the desktop for almost 10 years now. If there was an unblocker, it was wine/Proton, or for laptops, NetworkManager (I remember having a bit of difficulty configuring wpa_supplicant for my university in 2008). I don't even have Chrome/Chromium. Linux on the desktop is enough of a niche/bubble still that it wouldn't surprise me if a large number of other users don't have Chrome either (e.g. I don't use or care about services with DRM, and have it disabled in my browser). Honestly besides flexbox and TLS updates I'm not sure I know of anything useful that's been added to browsers in the last 20 years.

[lukan]

"Honestly besides flexbox and TLS updates I'm not sure I know of anything useful that's been added to browsers in the last 20 years."

Wasm and webgl/webGPU are really useful for anything performance related.

[NetOpWibby]

+1 for Wine, I didn’t bother with Linux until Wine showed up.

[lukan]

"Chrome was critical in unblocking the use of Linux on desktop."

Sure, but it was about more people using the internet in general.

The very small minority using linux desktop (hello, I am among them) could and did use the internet before chrome.

And from a technical point of view, I do love chrome dev tools. But that is besides the point.

[mopenstein]

Isn't Android Linux based? The development of chrome on desktop Linux have any benefits for mobile Linux?

[belter]

Al Capone did a lot of good on his neighborhood...

[mensetmanusman]

Chrome didn’t murder anyone

[korse]

This is the first time I've heard a dedicated Linux desktop user complaining about the inability to watch paid streaming content. What is the world coming to! \o/