Over on Google Plus, the company reports that it is currently working on a Chrome Packaged App version of its Chrome Remote Desktop web-based app. An experimental version is already available to test, but the team warns that it's not entirely stable and could break at any given time. Users are required to load it as an unpacked extension in chrome://extensions.
For the uninitiated, Chrome Remote Desktop allows the user to remotely access another PC through Google's Chrome browser or a Chromebook. Both PCs merely need Chrome installed in order for it to work – the service is completely cross-platform, providing remote assistance to Windows XP and above, Mac OS X 10.6 and above, and Linux users.
"Computers can be made available on a short-term basis for scenarios such as ad hoc remote support, or on a more long-term basis for remote access to your applications and files," Google said. "All connections are fully secured."
With the service moving to a packaged app, it means users still need Chrome installed, but the browser doesn't need to be open. Chrome Remote Desktop will look and feel like a native, standalone desktop app running outside the browser environment even though it's tied to Chrome. Packaged apps are written in HTML5, JavaScript, and CSS, but they have native-like capabilities that are much more powerful than those available to web apps.
For more information about Packaged Apps, head here. The source info regarding the Chrome Remote Desktop packaged app is located here.
