Answers to the most complicated computing tasks are found in the clouds. Not the clouds in the sky that shower rain but clouds that deliver a super computing power on the internet.

Cloud computing is the development and use of computer technology using the internet. The word “cloud” has been used as a metaphor for the internet. This enables users to completely rely on the internet for satisfying all their computing needs. They will be able to access services that are technology-enabled on the internet or you could say “in the clouds.” Users do not need any sort of expertise or control over the technology or the support structure for that technology. With cloud computing, information can be stored permanently on the internet in huge servers and cached on desktops, table computers, notebooks, monitors, handhelds etc. on a temporary basis.

The frenzy around cloud computing is at its peak, with high-speed internet connections, powerful but cheaper disk drives, chips and huge data centers with hundreds of computers to serve millions of users. Customers will be able to rent this infrastructure and pay for the usage only. Cloud computing power is being tapped into by almost every major company as it delivers sophisticated data analysis in the quickest way possible.

Cloud computing is being looked at as extremely powerful because of its ability to perform tens of trillions of computations every second and this is huge when you compare it to the most powerful desktop PC, which can process about 3 billion computations in a second. This power can now be accessed through the web for analyzing financial portfolio risks, for playing computer games, for delivering personalized medical information etc. With cloud computing, large groups of servers that use low-cost consumer PC technology are networked through special connections that spread data processing chores across them. (more…)