Google sets sights on Apple and Microsoft -- brings Adobe Photoshop to Chromebooks

Google is trying to grow its budding operating system platform, continually updating and enhancing features. Customers can now work in certain environments offline, for instance. But what lacked was some of the core features of rivals Windows and OS X. However, that slowly changes as well.

Photo editing, for instance, was one feature that, while not absent, certainly wasn't top of the line. Until now you had to rely on an app such as Pixlr, which many Chromebook customers use. But Google today announces that Photoshop is arriving, though not (at least yet) offline.

"This streaming version of Photoshop is designed to run straight from the cloud to your Chromebook. It’s always up-to-date and fully integrated with Google Drive, so there’s no need to download and re-upload files—just save your art directly from Photoshop to the cloud", says product manager Stephen Konig of Google.

This is another step in Google's march toward the business and education world. Konig specifically points out that "For IT administrators, it’s easy to manage, with no long client installation and one-click deployment to your team’s Chromebooks".

This latest effort could attract even more business, bringing in artists to the OS. It's also a blow to both Microsoft and Apple.