Thanks to a mysterious invitation sent out to the media last week, there's widespread speculation that Google will announce, or maybe even release, the desktop OS it's been talking about for over a year. The company has said that Chrome OS will launch before the end of 2010. But one has to wonder about the need for the operating system with the same name as the browser, since touch tablets have successfully been introduced running mobile OSes like Google's own Android and Apple's iOS.

If the target is netbooks, as Google execs have implied, then good luck to Google: The market unanimously rejected a non-market-leading OS when Linux netbooks were offered a couple years ago and quickly updated to run Windows XP. And Chrome OS is basically the Chrome browser running atop a Google-customized version of Linux. For those who simply want to browse the Web, watch online videos, and perhaps do a bit of work on documents, there's no reason why a lightweight Web-centric OS shouldn't be welcomed.

But then there's the issue of the stunning success of apps, brought on by Apple's iPhone and its pals. Google can spin app-like sites as apps, and maybe the public will buy it, but they're likely to realize that there's a difference between running an app across the Internet and running one locally. Since Google abandoned its own offline technology called Gears, it's moved to HTML5 for offline capabilities. The only problem: There are very few Web apps that take advantage of this yet.

The concept of "chromoting" traditional desktop apps like Microsoft Office has been discussed by Google developers as a way to supply people's need to run "legacy" apps like Microsoft Office, but that apparently will resemble PC remote control, which you can even do with an Apple iPad today, and which still requires an Internet connection. So there are big hurdles for this operating system to really take off. Here's our wish list for capabilities that might make the Chrome OS dream become a reality.

1. A true 10-second or less boot: Maybe Chrome OS will demand SSDs over hard drives, and in this case, let's hope we finally see the promised super-fast startup. I was disappointed to see that, even on the SSD-based new MacBook Air 11-inch, an actual boot from power down still takes over half a minute. Why does that need to be the case when you're booting from solid state memory?

2. Printing: It took several months before the iPad was able to print. Let's hope Google avoids the same blunder by making printing part of Chrome OS's repertoire from the get go. It's promised "Cloud Print" capability has to just work—with the myriad printing devices out there.

3. Lots of software partners in the Chrome store selling apps capable of running locally: If the apps require an Internet connection to run, people will get annoyed when they find themselves out of coverage range and needing to run an app. Google needs to motivate a huge group of inspired independent software developers the way Apple has with iOS.

4. iPod syncing: Sure, the new OS is likely to allow syncing with Android devices, since they come from the same mothership, but the majority of the world uses iPods and other iThings for their music. If Chrome OS is to be a full-fledged desktop OS, it needs to be able to accommodate people in this way.

5. Remote erase and geo-location in case of theft: This is one of the coolest capabilities of iPhones and Android phones: If your device is lost or stolen, then log into a Web site to find it, and if necessary, wipe it of all data and turn off all functionality. There's no reason Google shouldn't be able to do this, since its pitch for the OS is that everything on it is stored in the cloud.

6. Widespread hardware support. This will be a tough one. You should be able to plug in any webcam, pointing device, display, wireless modem, or printer and have it working quickly. If this doesn't happen, users are likely to quickly replace the OS on their netbook or tablet with something else. Maybe something starting with a "W."

7. A Facetime equivalent: If everyone on Chrome OS is always connected to the high-speed Internet, why not allow video calling? And possibly of even more importance, given their huge installed user bases, let us make video calls with Skype and Windows Live Messenger.

8. Simple integration with online media: We need Netflix, Pandora, Hulu, and more out of the box. It also means Flash and Silverlight need to be built in, but that shouldn't be a problem, since the Chrome browser already builds in Flash.

9. Run Android apps. You make two OSes, why not have the big one be able to run the smaller one's apps? The apps are based on Java, so including support for this runtime could also help with running apps locally without an Internet connection.

10. Rock solid stability and quick-touch response: There have been many reports of crashes in very recent builds of the OS. For Chrome OS to compete with iPads, which virtually never crash, it needs similar reliability. It also needs to match the iPads lightning-fast, touch-screen response.

These may be tall orders, and we may not see actual hardware availability tomorrow. The enormous resources of the search giant may make all this moot, in which case the OS will take off the way Android did. On the other hand, it might be another Google Wave or Buzz.