[citation][nom]G-Systems[/nom]MS: PC Total SolutionsApple: High-end, simple usersLinux: Computer scientists and enthusiastsGoogle: Cloud-based computingAll of these are different markets... [/citation]
The question remains: which of these markets are going to survive long-term? Cloud computing has been the "next big thing" for decades but until now hasn't really had much hope due to a lack of decent mobile devices. It's now feasible, and people are already using it for many things even without mobile devices. Look at what people already rely on Google for: Google Docs, Maps, Calendar, Mail, Search, Talk, News, Finance, etc. All of this is cloud-based, whether it is access via mobile or stationary computing devices.
As much as people like to talk about how much they don't like Google's business of selling us as products to advertisers, they are quite happy to surrender their business to the Google cloud. Then their personal information goes up on Facebook to top it off.
Now given the choice between a free OS by a company that has its name in the Macquarie Dictionary and an expensive OS that has previously caused problems, what will people choose? If Chrome OS satisfies the user's application requirements and works smoothly, there is no way they would pick Windows unless, of course, they are so stuck in their way of doing things that they can't accept the lack of a button that pops up a tooltip that says "Start" when you mouse over it. There will be people like this, there always are. But some of these people are from pre-Windows days as well, and therefore learning something new is not something they haven't done before, it's just something they haven't done in a long time.