Apple announces WebKit2 with Chrome-like process splitting

Apple's big announcement of the day might have been iPhone OS 4, but another reveal that's gone slightly under the radar might actually turn out to be a bigger deal: WebKit2, which now runs browser elements as separate processes, much like Google Chrome. Actually, Apple's devs say it goes a little farther than Chrome, since the process model is built into the foundation so other non-Safari clients can use it. That's pretty wild stuff, considering how prevalent WebKit has become across the mobile space and the fact that Chrome itself uses the rendering engine. No word on when this will all go final, but hey -- it's all open source, and you can actually grab Mac and Windows binaries right now. Let us know how it goes, won't you?

[ummmwhat Posted Apr 9th 2010 1:30AM]

@redeyeskranti quick question...is there a way in android to close a program from the app so it doesn't continue to waste memory and battery once i'm done with it? or is a task manager as innovative as they can get?

is there ANY platform in the world that actually doesn't give you the option to close a program without doing it from another program?

i'm just curious....cuz i think the fact that the kill all widget and task manager app being the things i use three or four times more than any other feature on my N1 is kind of sad.

another sad thing is that i have to carry a charge cable in my pocket with me because the battery goes so fast.

i'm sorry....you were going on about android being the end all be all?

the N1 will get the dubious distinction of being the phone i used for the shortest amount of time in my life....in other words...in its time, compared to what was out there, its the worst phone i've ever owned.....new iphone can't come soon enough.

[Wesscoast Posted Apr 9th 2010 4:04AM]

@redeyeskranti

Apps are widgets, you check them for 2 seconds then put them away.

Widgets on a phone in their Android form are pointless.

[ArticiaS Posted Apr 9th 2010 6:44AM]

@Wesscoast

That's why there are not only facebook and twitter widgets but also for Email, exchange,...

Right it doesn't make sense to have them running all the time....

[TheGM Posted Apr 9th 2010 8:24AM]

@ummmwhat There's no task manager for Android. The N1 also has great battery life. You close any widget by removing it from your homescreen. Apps are automatically closed as others need more memory, or you can close them yourself by backing out.

Nice Try though.

[Greg7388 Posted Apr 9th 2010 1:18AM]

I stopped using webkit nightly builds for a while now. I may just go back to that (I assume that's where this is available from?)

[XRX Posted Apr 9th 2010 1:26AM]

Hmm apple fancompany engadget .....................you will end up whole of the E3 conference news in one page, I am sure about it...........and when it comes to apple news so muchh of hype is created.........and all the kind and polite words are used for apple articles..........each and every details are given in separate article.......i cant remember that you have ever made fun of apple..............
you make stupid cartoons of steve balmer
You bash or give out negative comments on many sony products.......
But never on apple............
why not start a separate Engadget apple site..........

[Mentat Posted Apr 9th 2010 1:36AM]

@XRX

You do know there is an exclude apple engadget don't you?

[Atkins Posted Apr 9th 2010 1:38AM]

@Mentat Maybe..............
he..................... doesn't?.............

[XRX Posted Apr 9th 2010 1:39AM]

@Mentat

yep i know that but i use engadget RSS feed...............they do not filter apple news...........in rss feeds.

[Jack Posted Apr 9th 2010 2:17AM]

@XRX

why............ are............. you............. using.................so .................many............ periods?

[jfally Posted Apr 9th 2010 1:51AM]

WTF is that Jobs wearing colors?!

[Atkins Posted Apr 9th 2010 1:55AM]

@jfally This is not a fashion blog. Stick to the subject.

[glennS Posted Apr 9th 2010 2:04AM]

Before people bash Apple, or praise Apple, perhaps you should do some background reading about WebKit. For sure, Apple has made it mainstream, but it actually has its roots in KHTML, developed for the KDE linux desktop. Just sayin...

[Jack Posted Apr 9th 2010 2:18AM]

@glennS

That's great and all, but Apple is the one developing it, bundling it up and handing it out. Credit where credit is due.

[Gazoobee Posted Apr 9th 2010 2:29AM]

I notice no one is bothering to point the finger at Google for implementing tab processes but *not* releasing it to the open market. If Apple did this the typical Engadget naysayers would be all over them with criticisms.

Google could have just as easily implemented it's tab process protection in the WebKit like Apple did, but the "open" Google kept the idea for themselves, while evil "closed" Apple is giving it away for free?

[Kwame Nkrumah Posted Apr 9th 2010 11:08AM]

@Gazoobee

I wonder, but trust Engadget commentators not to notice it.

[Apocalyptic 0n3 Posted Apr 9th 2010 2:46AM]

Firefox is also introducing it for add-ons in the next minor release (3.6.4, I believe). Not full blown process splitting, but it works for me.

[t2af Posted Apr 9th 2010 4:13AM]

does this mean that it will be as secure as chrome ?

[bluefisch200 Posted Apr 9th 2010 4:52AM]

Google is the company with the most input into WebKit, not Apple..

[Atkins Posted Apr 9th 2010 6:21AM]

@bluefisch200 This is only since November last year and is based on number of commits, not importance. Read this:
http://news.softpedia.com/news/Google-Is-Now-the-Biggest-Contributor-to-Webkit-134325.shtml
And then this:
http://trac.webkit.org/wiki/Companies%20and%20Organizations%20that%20have%20contributed%20to%20WebKit

[xconan Posted Apr 9th 2010 6:25AM]

@bluefisch200
there are a few others in addition to google and apple working on the webkit development:
redhat, kde - khtml, rim, qualcomm, nokia, adobe, debian, garmin, gentoo, gtk, palm, and unbuntu

[Wesscoast Posted Apr 9th 2010 7:21AM]

@bluefisch200

LOL... ?!?!? Wow. That's cute.

[soren121 Posted Apr 9th 2010 6:22AM]

That's a lot of processes.

[RonC Posted Apr 9th 2010 8:49AM]

IE was first with process splitting. It's IE-like. Chrome is IE-like too.

[Lomoco Posted Apr 9th 2010 8:58AM]

Downloaded the April 9th Nightly Build- seems snappier than regular Safari 4. Ran the Acid3 test several times:

1st result: Took 6 attempts on test 69
2nd result: Perfect
3rd result: Perfect
4th result (with other Safari running): Perfect, but took a slightly longer

It's the first time I've seen the Acid3 test passed without a single solitary flaw.

[Surrealchemist Posted Apr 9th 2010 9:40AM]

This might be good for my palm pre.

[Firehazel Posted Apr 9th 2010 9:49AM]

Is it just me, or is the picture of Steve Jobs with the two Safari logos funny? He looks somewhat taken aback that there is a Windows logo in the Safari icon he's facing...
Otherwise, neat! I somewhat like using Safari for Windows, but Chrome is more optimized for the OS. I hope this can make it faster for Windows users.

[ror Posted Apr 9th 2010 9:54AM]

Apple supports open source and standards when those things for their own benefit, which is fine. that's their right, but let us not pretend that Apple is consistent in this area

[sntXrrr Posted Apr 9th 2010 10:46AM]

I believe webkit was open source before Apple starter using it. Apple does this only out of self-interest, which is pretty normal for à commercial entity.

[Verythrax Posted Apr 9th 2010 12:42PM]

So, Chrome will implement it and will continue to be the best. Not a big deal.

Eric S.

[jrbrewin Posted Apr 10th 2010 5:03AM]

when you say "chrome like process splitting", i assume you mean "IE8 like process splitting", since it pioneered the concept before chrome. :-)