Aura is the name of the new window management system for ChromeOS, the first commercially-available stateless operating system. This is what it looks like: windows, a "desktop," and a ribbon of applications at the bottom of the screen. It's still in beta, but available to anyone with a Samsung or Acer Chromebook by selecting "Developer" mode.
The point is, stateless doesn't need to look much different than the interfaces we are already used to. One of the concepts emerging from the Chrome OS deployment (I've used it every day for the last 10 months) is that much of the criticism has been around the idea that we're "post-PC" and the browser is dead. In fact, we're moving to "post-browser" as well. You don't need a row of tabs across the top of a browser, nor pull-down menus, a URL bar, or any of the broswer iconography to deliver applications and data from the cloud.
Stateless devices are a conceptual leap for some of us. The difference is, most all processing, storage, and applications themselves live on the web. This is the central idea: the device itself only needs to provide connectivity, display, and user interface.
So although, as some have already pointed out, this looks a lot like Windows 7, it's still purely stateless. I can smash this Chromebook with a hammer until it's in pieces on the floor, then hit the power button on a new one, get a login prompt in 10 seconds, and every bit of my computing experience a few seconds after that. I can change my password from my phone before a thief ever has a chance to try and log in, rendering the device a blank slate.
If you are in an enterprise, it is time for you to start piloting this technology now.
--coming soon, a new article: 5 steps to stateless you and your enterprise can take today.
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