Google has  released a new web browser built from the ground up and based on WebKit, the same rendering engine that Safari uses. The browser, dubbed Chrome, is open-source software built with security, compatibility and speed in mind – and of course it’ll integrate various Google services in it.

Google chose a rather interesting way to announce their open source web browser project. In a 38 page comic book the company explains some of the browser’s features, such as the fact that it will include a new JavaScript virtual machine and the Google Gears add-on by default. Chrome is said to be a better solution for complex and rich Web applications, delivering better performance as well as “smoother drag and drops” in interactive applications.

The book points to www.google.com/chrome, but there doesn’t seem to be anything live there as of this writing. It’s worth noting that while Google is officially entering the web browser fray, they’ve also reiterated their commitment with Firefox and other opens source projects to “help drive the web forward” – just last week they extended its support of the Mozilla foundation until 2011.

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