Clouds are here to stay
The occasional downpours of the season and cloudy skies make the topic of 'Cloud Computing' a good one to discuss. Cloud computing is all the rage now. "It's become the phrase du jour," says Gartner senior analyst Ben Pring. Let's say you're an executive at a large corporation. Your particular responsibilities include making sure that all of your employees have the right hardware and software they need to do their jobs. Buying computers for everyone isn't enough -- you also have to purchase software or software licenses to give employees the tools they require. Whenever you have a new hire, you have to buy more software or make sure your current software license allows another user. So what if, instead of installing a suite of software for each computer, you'd only have to load one application. That application would allow workers to log into a Web-based service which hosts all the programs the user would need for his or her job? Wouldn't that make you job much easier, not to mention the money it would save you? As a metaphor for the internet, "the cloud" is a familiar cliché, but when combined with "computing," the meaning gets bigger and fuzzier. Some analysts and vendors define cloud computing narrowly as an updated version of utility computing: basically virtual servers available over the internet. Others go very broad, arguing anything you consume outside the firewall is "in the cloud," including conventional outsourcing. Cloud computing encompasses any subscription-based or pay-per-use service that, in real time over the internet, extends IT's existing capabilities. There's a good chance you've already used some form of cloud computing. If you have an e-mail account with a Web-based e-mail service like Hotmail, Yahoo! Mail or Gmail, then you've had some experience with cloud computing. Instead of running an e-mail program on your computer, you log in to a Web e-mail account remotely. The software and storage for your account doesn't exist on your computer -- it's on the service's computer cloud. Cloud computing is at an early stage, with a handful of providers large and small delivering cloud-based services, from full-blown applications to storage services to spam filtering. Two big companies this year have announced the launch of their cloud computing systems. Microsoft Corp. announced Microsoft Office 365, the company's next generation in cloud productivity that brings together Microsoft Office, SharePoint Online, Exchange Online and Lync Online in an always-up-to-date cloud service. Office 365 makes it easier for organisations to get and use Microsoft's business productivity solutions via the cloud. With Office 365, people can work together more easily from anywhere on virtually any device, while collaborating with others inside and outside their organisation in a simple and highly secure way. Microsoft has also opened a limited beta program for Office 365 in 13 countries and regions. Office 365 for enterprises introduces choices for midsize and large businesses as well as government organisations, starting for a small charge per user, per month. Office 365 for enterprises also includes the option to get Microsoft Office Professional Plus desktop software on a pay-as-you-go basis, for the first time. On the other hand, Apple has introduced its iCloud, which comes free with its iOS 5. A sort of 'hard drive in the sky' as the iCloud advertorial puts it, It provides a way to access everything on all your devices. iCloud stores your content so it's always accessible wirelessly from your iPad, iPhone, iPod touch, Mac, or PC. It gives you instant access to your music, apps, latest photos, and more. And it keeps your email, contacts, and calendars up to date across all your devices. No syncing required. No management required. When you update your iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch to iOS 5, your Apple apps become seamlessly integrated with iCloud. So all your content and information is available and up to date, no matter which device you're using. There r various types of cloud computing available, like Saas(Software as a Service) or Utility Computing and MSPs (Managed Service Providers). The SaaS type of cloud computing delivers a single application through the browser to thousands of customers using a multitenant architecture. On the customer side, it means no up-front investment in servers or software licensing; on the provider side, with just one app to maintain, costs are low compared to conventional hosting. There are many reasons for organisations to move from traditional IT infrastructure to Cloud Computing . Today, with such cloud-based interconnection seldom in evidence, cloud computing might be more accurately described as "sky computing," with many isolated clouds of services which IT customers must plug into individually. On the other hand, as virtualisation permeate the enterprise, the idea of loosely coupled services running on an agile, scalable infrastructure should eventually make every enterprise a node in the cloud. It's a long-running trend with a far-out horizon. But among big trends, cloud computing is the hardest one to argue with in the long term. Well, with the summer heat beating at us nowadays, here's wishing the 'clouds' pour down on us pun intended.
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