According to Oracle CEO Larry Ellison, cloud computing existed long before the term itself was coined.
Two common functions of the earliest cloud computing are email services and web hosting.
But if everybody’s been on the cloud, since the days of email and websites, then what is cloud computing anyway?
Wiki defines cloud computing as the delivery of computing as a service rather than a product.
The most significant part of that service is shared resources, like software and information.
When shared resources like software programs (think MS Office here) or information from data storage are provided to computers and other devices over a network like the Internet. That is cloud computing!
Centralized computing, once decentralized, is now being offered again as cloud computing with a modern twist. Previously, all the elements of a network (bandwidth, software, hardware, servers and operating systems) were used exclusively within the four walls of the company. Now, these same services are available outside the boundaries of the company over a huge cloud – called the Internet – through third party providers.
Why cloud computing? It reduces your costs by being scalable – you pay only for what you use. This helps small and medium players by making technology accessible and affordable. It also helps employees collaborate and work from different locations and even different time zones, which increases efficiency.
Concerns? As with all technological benefits there are potential concerns. You must know how reliable your Internet provider is. Cloud services require dependable and continuous access to the Internet. An interruption in Internet service entails your entire network functionality. You also need to be careful with the security of your data in the cloud as you may not necessarily know who has access to it or where it is being hosted.
If you are not sure about whether cloud computing is right for your business, give us a call and we’ll tell you all you need to know.