Ok, so you were once one of the dominant names in computing with your innovative way of putting together computers to customer specs. You had happy customers and made a serious dent in established computing giants market share. Then batteries started to catch on fire, “Dell hell” became part of the online lexicon and the world has started to wonder how much they will need desktops or laptops in the future. So what’s next?

Well, it can’t hurt to connect yourself with a proven innovator and a leader in the Internet space right? That may be why Dell is talking to Google about its Chrome OS. Reuters reports

Dell Inc is in talks with Google Inc over the use of the Chrome operating system on its laptops, a top company executive said on Monday.

“We have to have a point of view on the industry and technology direction two years, three years down the road, so we continuously work with Google on this,” Amit Midha, Dell’s president for Greater China and South Asia told Reuters in an interview.

“There are going to be unique innovations coming up in the marketplace in two, three years, with a new form of computing, we want to be on that forefront … So with Chrome or Android or anything like that we want to be one of the leaders,” Midha said, adding that there were no firm announcements to be made but talks were underway.

So where is this ‘news’ probably of great interest? In Redmond, WA one might suspect. While not said directly, it is certainly implied in the Dell executive’s remarks that Google’s Chrome OS and its cousin Android are of interest to Dell because it is trying to look into the future.

One has to wonder that when Dell looks into its crystal ball are there still Microsoft products being considered as part of the “new form of computing”? While Microsoft will not be likely to just “go gentle into that good night” it’s not in the middle of many discussions about the future for computing these days is it?

How do you see this playing out in the future? What will the role of Microsoft and Google be 10 years from now and is there anyone on the horizon that can be added to the mix?