There has been a lot of talk about “Cloud Computing” lately, leaving one to wonder what all the fuss is about. Microsoft and Google seem to be leading the race to the clouds- so to speak.

But what exactly is cloud computing anyway?

“The Cloud” is simply a metaphor for the Internet (based on how it is depicted in computer network diagrams) and is an abstraction for the complex infrastructure it conceals. Cloud computing is Internet-based (“cloud”) development and use of computer technology (“computing”).

It is a style of computing in which IT-related capabilities are provided “as a service”, allowing users to access technology-enabled services from the Internet (“in the cloud”) without knowledge of, expertise with, or control over the technology infrastructure that supports them.

Cloud computing incorporates the Software As A Service (Saa s) technology which allows users access software modules directly from a server. That is to say-as Wikipedia puts it- that the application is hosted as a service provided to customers across the internet.

By eliminating the need to install and run the application on the customer’s own computer, SaaS alleviates the customer’s burden of software maintenance, ongoing operation, and support. Conversely, customers relinquish control over software versions or changing requirements; moreover, costs to use the service become a continuous expense, rather than a single expense at time of purchase.

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Another thing which has been in the news lately is Microsoft’s Software Plus Service (S + S) which is also built around the whole cloud concept. Google and Microsoft have a slightly different approach to cloud computing. According to Pam Baker;

“On the one hand, Google’s approach to cloud computing is to put all software and services in the cloud, which is then merely retrieved by a dumb client via browser (think Google Docs, Google Apps). Microsoft, on the other hand, has a hybrid approach to the all-or-nothing scenario in that it retains computing power and software on the device itself, with data rumbling around in the cloud. The Microsoft approach is to seamlessly balance the roles of both to fit any given job at hand. Hence, the Software Plus Service (S+S) name as opposed to Software as a Service (SaaS), where software resides in the cloud.”

Microsoft’s approach seems to make more sense because if “everything” were to reside in the cloud, one would be forced to work with a limited version of the software. Just as Lewis Shepherd, CTO of Microsoft Institute for Advanced Technology in Governments puts it-

“The problem is that if everything is solely on the device it’s hard to share in real-time on the Web, but if everything is in the cloud, you are forced to work with lightweight versions of the software.”

For this reason no doubt, Microsoft plans to provide two seperate software versions- a high-powered loadable software coupled with lighter browser versions to provide maximum computing power whilst still maintaining flexibility.

So basically, while MS surface uses tremendous computing power, it is drawing data from the web. Sort of like a physical front-end and web back-end kind of thing. It is believed that this would provide richer options for the user.

Windows 7, a.k.a “Windows Cloud” should be unvieled in a couple of weeks.

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