For the past few years, it has been a term synonymous with the future. Edgy computer lingo that only the engineers at tech companies and your IT guy at work could understand. The buzz word has been making circles around the web, TV, radio, and main stream publications. However for the common man, it's a complete mystery. What is it? How does it work? Would it work for me or my business? What most people do not understand is that they have been using cloud computing for years, they just did not know it.
Cloud computing's basic principles are to allow users to store files in a location that they are not physically present. Instead of storing pictures, videos, or documents locally at the machine they are present, the file is uploaded routed through the internet and dropped off at a secure location. For some, the act of uploading and downloading now sound simple. As mentioned, people have been using cloud computing for years. Gmail, YouTube, Picasa. These sites as well as thousands of others operate using cloud computing. None of the actual data is needs to be stored on the user's computer to open or edit the file. It is always there. Accessible anytime. .
There are many benefits to using cloud computing for file storage. While storage media has gotten less expensive, and more expansive (in terms of gigabytes or terabytes), file size have increased as well. The extra space that the cloud can provide is always welcome. Also, the convenience of cloud computing is almost irreplaceable. Being able to access important documents from any location at any time as long as internet capabilities are there is a huge boon to business and personal productivity.
One example of cloud computing software is called Dropbox. Dropbox was a company founded by MIT graduate Drew Houston, after he had the idea for the service after repeated forgetting his flash drive for classes. The idea was simple. Set up a service that was easy to use, always on, always had your data secure, and allowed you to access it using a device of your choice.
