The Cloud of the Future

Unless you have been living under a rock for the past year then you know something about "Cloud Computing" or even used some form of "Cloud Computing". Just recently I have started using the various tool (or some might call them app or applications) that Google provides, and I must say that I find them useful for some of the tasks that I need to do during the day. However I have found some inconveniences and disadvantages so for my first review I will be looking at the pros and cons of cloud computing.

The biggest advantage to cloud computing is the fact that you can use it on almost any computer and you will have access to you documents and files all you need is an internet connection. Also if your computer crashes your information will be safe as it is stored on the server for whatever service you are using. Chances are pretty good that if you use a cloud computing service your information will be encrypted (usually at or above the DoD (Department of Defense) Standards for encryption) so if someone does compromise the security of your files then the information will be safe (at least for a year or two theoretically). When one has to send out files to be revised or edited the usual way is by email and attaching and reattaching the document, however, with Google Docs you can get a link to your document and send that to your editor. Then you can both be working on it at the same time, and you will not get confused with which revision the document is.

And now for the disadvantages of cloud computing. The biggest advantage can also be the biggest disadvantage given the fact that your data is stored on some server that you don't own. your data could be stolen or compromised without your knowledge. Also when you don't have access to the internet, or the access you have is slow, you will be unable to use the services that you need. Things like Google Docs will be inaccessible, and on top of that you won't have access to your documents. There are however some ways to overcome these disadvantages and reap the benefits of cloud computing.

The main way to overcome the disadvantages is called EyeOS a service that you can install on to any server with PHP5 and Apache installed. EyeOS is a cloud computing desktop that can (when the appropriate programs are installed on the server and the client) do almost anything that a normal desktop can do. For example with EyeOS you can play mp3s and edit word documents (the server needs to have Open Office installed) all the client needs is flash player (if you can watch YouTube videos then you have flash player installed).

So there are many pros and cons to cloud computing. you need to decide for your self what you are going to use it for and, if the pros outweigh the cons.