To the cloud?
That's where everyone, from commercial users to large companies to the United States Government, seems to be going. Although the concept of cloud computing is relatively new, it has impacted the way we all think about data storage and program use, even if you have no idea what it is. You are not alone in this oblivion; until yesterday, this blogger had no idea what cloud computing was, but I knew I needed to find out.
This is precisely the reason that this week's article is about cloud computing: few people have a clear idea of what it is, but it's about to change everything about how we work with others.
Cloud computing is best thought of as "pools" of computer resources and data storage in which each pool is run by an individual, major company, such as Google or Microsoft. The programs offered by the company will be accessible to every computer in the cloud, just as it is now on the internet or through software installation, but the best part is that you don't need to buy individuals resources and there are no compatibility issues. Essentially, the hardware itself becomes virtualized. Continuing with the pool analogy, it's more like renting a kick-board or flippers in the pool instead of buying your own. This greatly reduces the cost of operating large (and small) businesses, one of the benefits of cloud computing.
Yet another useful feature of the cloud is that any computer within the cloud can be accessed by another computer (hopefully with a password of sorts to prevent any kind of unauthorized access). Aware of the security breaches this kind of openness would cause for its users, the companies who create and maintain the clouds are extremely careful and sensitive to any kind of problem. While these systems seem prime targets for attack, companies recognize this and take extensive measures to prevent it from happening.Specialized teams at cloud headquarters act as highly observant lifeguards on the edges of the pool, ready to jump and save any piece of data that's in danger. In truth, even if a malicious person wanted to bring down the entire cloud cluster, there are so many nodes (sources of data) that it would take far too long for him to succeed.
One of the best parts of the cloud is the almost-endless data storage. While users pay for the ability to store data on a cloud, it's actually a better investment than having multiple back-up files on flash drives and external storage units. Even if you have multiple computers, the cloud will make it so that you have multiple machines, with their files and their programs, on the one computer you are using at that moment.
To gain access to a cloud, first you need to purchase it from a vendor, which could be Microsoft's Azure, Google's App Engine, or any other one not mentioned here. It is a matter of best fit for you and what you need to be able to do on the cloud. Your computer, the client, is able to interact with the application on the cloud in the same way you, as a human, interact with your computer's normal (not cloud) programs. The platform works with the cloud's infrastructure, and controls the deployment of programs, minus the cost and extensive tech support. The infrastructure is the cloud itself, and it varies for each cloud's operating system, but the overall goal is to connect it to a massive server, which is where the data and programming is stored. These are maintained at buildings far away from where your computer is, so you don't have to worry about it at all.Although there are certain parts of each level which interact with each other, the majority of the information is trapped in one layer, minimizing the potential for security breaches and system downtime. The clouds are so effective that it is successful and operative 99.999% of the time (which means it's down for about 31 seconds every year).
Overall, the cloud seems to have so many benefits that even the Obama Administration has declared that the number of federal data centers will be cut by 40% in five years (about 420 of them in total), and that various agencies "identify applications to move to the cloud within 18 months," according to Government Computer News magazine. There will be more about this in next week's blog article. As for now, you've been inundated with enough cloud information.
Special thanks to Eric Caruso of Brown University for his help in explaining to me (in simple English) what a cloud is.
That's where everyone, from commercial users to large companies to the United States Government, seems to be going. Although the concept of cloud computing is relatively new, it has impacted the way we all think about data storage and program use, even if you have no idea what it is. You are not alone in this oblivion; until yesterday, this blogger had no idea what cloud computing was, but I knew I needed to find out.
This is precisely the reason that this week's article is about cloud computing: few people have a clear idea of what it is, but it's about to change everything about how we work with others.
 |
| http://tomlambert.com/cloud-computing-will-rule-the-world/ |
Yet another useful feature of the cloud is that any computer within the cloud can be accessed by another computer (hopefully with a password of sorts to prevent any kind of unauthorized access). Aware of the security breaches this kind of openness would cause for its users, the companies who create and maintain the clouds are extremely careful and sensitive to any kind of problem. While these systems seem prime targets for attack, companies recognize this and take extensive measures to prevent it from happening.Specialized teams at cloud headquarters act as highly observant lifeguards on the edges of the pool, ready to jump and save any piece of data that's in danger. In truth, even if a malicious person wanted to bring down the entire cloud cluster, there are so many nodes (sources of data) that it would take far too long for him to succeed.
One of the best parts of the cloud is the almost-endless data storage. While users pay for the ability to store data on a cloud, it's actually a better investment than having multiple back-up files on flash drives and external storage units. Even if you have multiple computers, the cloud will make it so that you have multiple machines, with their files and their programs, on the one computer you are using at that moment.
 | |
| The layers of a cloud |
Overall, the cloud seems to have so many benefits that even the Obama Administration has declared that the number of federal data centers will be cut by 40% in five years (about 420 of them in total), and that various agencies "identify applications to move to the cloud within 18 months," according to Government Computer News magazine. There will be more about this in next week's blog article. As for now, you've been inundated with enough cloud information.
Special thanks to Eric Caruso of Brown University for his help in explaining to me (in simple English) what a cloud is.