The buzz around cloud computing has come and gone over several months, but like their namesake hanging over us from where the metaphor came, the clouds just won’t go away.
So when I say that if your head is not in the clouds and it should be, I’m saying that cloud computing is here to stay. That being the case let me try to help you get a better handle on it so you can better understand it, and really see where it will fit into your life.
Clouding computing is best described as a shift in the way “computing” is done. It is a shift away from what has been known as the client-server model where servers, workstations, PCs and laptops operated on local and wide area networks and users shared information and resources. The shift comes because with cloud computing, information, resources, data, applications and the like are made available on a utilitarian type basis. So just like any other utility, lights, water, gas, etc, when you turn the switch on to use it, it’s there and you pay only for how much you use. Cloud computing makes services available for consumption over the Internet very much like any other public utility.
This model works for several reasons. Costs are kept low because you only pay for what you need and actually use. This is great because you don’t have to purchase expensive applications that only one user may only use once a quarter. Backup and business continuity issues are managed by the service provider. This is a great way to mitigate your risk and reduce recovery time to almost nothing. Access anytime, from anywhere, using pretty much any device is another great plus.
If you’ve used services from Amazon.com, created a document using Google docs, accessed the iTunes Store, or even used an online photo service like iStockphoto, you have used various forms of cloud computing. I don’t foresee that 10 years from now it will be called cloud computing, but continued innovations in mobile technology and devices like Apple’s iPad will cause cloud computing to proliferate throughout both the public and private sectors.
To create a cloud you have to be DEEP! The cost of creating a cloud computing platform is huge so if you are going to do it your pockets had better be deep. The technical development and support human resources required are extensive so your tech team has to be deep. That said with the advancement of virtualization technology (covered in more detail in a subsequent blog entry), the ability to successfully create and maintain a cloud infrastructure has improved dramatically over the past 12-24 months.
Here’s the problem with cloud computing. I’m not sure problem is the right word; it’s more like an “Achilles Heel” keeping the infrastructure architecture of cloud computing from really taking off. It has to do with privacy of your information and the inability of government to quickly respond to innovation in technology and provide the appropriated regulatory guidelines. It’s been this way since the mainframe days and I don’t see it changing any time soon.
So should you be getting your head into the clouds? Well as an end user consumer you may already be there and don’t even know it. As a corporate user in the business environment you may notice your company’s IT department taking steps to provide better access to corporate assets. This may be an attempt to move towards a cloud computing platform. As an average Joe or Jane looking for a good investment, you may want to keep an eye out for companies that are developing technologies that promote a cloud computing architecture.
In the final analysis cloud computing is here to stay, by 2020 is may be called something else but the fundamentals will remain the same. Let’s just hope that privacy policy and regulatory compliance does a better job of keeping pace.
~K.
So when I say that if your head is not in the clouds and it should be, I’m saying that cloud computing is here to stay. That being the case let me try to help you get a better handle on it so you can better understand it, and really see where it will fit into your life.
Clouding computing is best described as a shift in the way “computing” is done. It is a shift away from what has been known as the client-server model where servers, workstations, PCs and laptops operated on local and wide area networks and users shared information and resources. The shift comes because with cloud computing, information, resources, data, applications and the like are made available on a utilitarian type basis. So just like any other utility, lights, water, gas, etc, when you turn the switch on to use it, it’s there and you pay only for how much you use. Cloud computing makes services available for consumption over the Internet very much like any other public utility.
This model works for several reasons. Costs are kept low because you only pay for what you need and actually use. This is great because you don’t have to purchase expensive applications that only one user may only use once a quarter. Backup and business continuity issues are managed by the service provider. This is a great way to mitigate your risk and reduce recovery time to almost nothing. Access anytime, from anywhere, using pretty much any device is another great plus.
If you’ve used services from Amazon.com, created a document using Google docs, accessed the iTunes Store, or even used an online photo service like iStockphoto, you have used various forms of cloud computing. I don’t foresee that 10 years from now it will be called cloud computing, but continued innovations in mobile technology and devices like Apple’s iPad will cause cloud computing to proliferate throughout both the public and private sectors.
To create a cloud you have to be DEEP! The cost of creating a cloud computing platform is huge so if you are going to do it your pockets had better be deep. The technical development and support human resources required are extensive so your tech team has to be deep. That said with the advancement of virtualization technology (covered in more detail in a subsequent blog entry), the ability to successfully create and maintain a cloud infrastructure has improved dramatically over the past 12-24 months.
Here’s the problem with cloud computing. I’m not sure problem is the right word; it’s more like an “Achilles Heel” keeping the infrastructure architecture of cloud computing from really taking off. It has to do with privacy of your information and the inability of government to quickly respond to innovation in technology and provide the appropriated regulatory guidelines. It’s been this way since the mainframe days and I don’t see it changing any time soon.
So should you be getting your head into the clouds? Well as an end user consumer you may already be there and don’t even know it. As a corporate user in the business environment you may notice your company’s IT department taking steps to provide better access to corporate assets. This may be an attempt to move towards a cloud computing platform. As an average Joe or Jane looking for a good investment, you may want to keep an eye out for companies that are developing technologies that promote a cloud computing architecture.
In the final analysis cloud computing is here to stay, by 2020 is may be called something else but the fundamentals will remain the same. Let’s just hope that privacy policy and regulatory compliance does a better job of keeping pace.
~K.
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