Cloud computing is a hot buzz word in the IT industry
today. The basic idea behind cloud computing is that dedicated hardware
and software at home locations and workstations are not cost effective and that
a "cloud" of servers with hardware and software resources, pumping
content to your PC is a more economical solution.
The idea, despite some snags -- like privacy
issues or the need for high performance in applications such as gaming --
is a savvy one and is fast becoming the focus of some of the tech industry's
biggest players. According to research firm Gartner, cloud computing is
the most influential IT tech since e-business.
Google has already vested
heavily in cloud computing and hosting and has plans to greatly expand its
offerings over the next few years. Electronics giant Microsoft is following
closely in Google's footsteps with its own efforts. Now Google's
struggling nemesis Yahoo has cloudy dreams of its own -- and it's not flying
solo. Yahoo has enlisted the services of two power players in their
respective markets: Intel and HP.
Initially the trio will offer six datacenters with useful applications
available to pre-selected researchers. The centers will serve as a
proving ground to the new technology, which still is relatively
undeveloped. John Manley, director of HP's strategic research lab states,
"Cloud computing represents a new era of computing. Working at that kind
of scale means there will be many unanswered questions and raise new problems
for computer science. We want to create an environment that can begin to
answer some of these challenges."
He adds, "The web democratized creativity and allowed anyone to create
something new and innovative. Cloud computing is the next stage for that.
To my mind it is the natural evolution of the internet and if we look back in
15 years time we will be astounded by what cloud computing has allowed to
happen."
Intel, Yahoo and HP each will host one of the six centers, while the remaining
three will be hosted from the Infocomm Development Authority of Singapore, the
University of Illinois, and the Steinbuch Centre for Computing in
Germany. Each center will feature 1,000 to 4,000 machines, and the
centers are capable of being expanded when greater capacity is needed.
Researchers for the three companies will examine how to make cloud computing
more secure and reliable. They will also seek to develop more streamlined
management methods, which will help cloud administrators manage their hardware
and software resources, as well as user traffic.
The centers will be running by the end of this year. Gartner analyst
David Mitchell Smith lauds the move, saying that it is a turning point in the
adoption of cloud computing. Says Mr. Smith, "Anytime you get three
companies of that stature looking to advance it, is significant. We
consider cloud computing to be the next really big thing and the sky's the
limit to the services it will enable over the next ten years."