WHY OBINNA DOESN'T UNDERSTAND CLOUD COMPUTING

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Recent survey shows that most Nigerians don't understand cloud computing -- and it's our fault

In a recent survey carried out by Nimos Technologies, 85 percent of respondents claimed they have never used the cloud. Worse yet, 25 percent thought the cloud is a “fluffy white thing in the sky”.

As we know, people who took this survey most likely do some online banking; purchase from online retailers, post status updates on social networks, and manage photos on photo-sharing sites -- all in the cloud. I'm sure many have signed up for iCloud, Box.net, Dropbox, or other retail cloud providers, though perhaps not understanding exactly what they are using.

The problem with cloud computing is the term itself. It's way too overused, covering way too many technology patterns. As a result, cloud computing has no specific meaning, which makes it both difficult to define and to understand, whether you're a cloud computing industry staff or an average Nigerian.

Mr. David Linthicum of InfoWorld once state: "I believe we've officially lost the war to define the core attributes of cloud computing so that businesses and IT can make proper use of it. It's now in the hands of marketing organizations and PR firms who, I'm sure, will take the concept on a rather wild ride over the next few years." He further adds: “That was true a year ago, and it's still true today”.

With the introduction of iCloud by Apple, the term Cloud Computing has become very common. So the question still remains: “What is this Cloud computing?” as a colleague of mind once put it.

Now think of the entire internet as a big cloud sitting out there above the world. Wherever you go – you just need to look up to the sky – and there it is.

Now think about having all your stuff floating on that cloud.

Wherever you are, whenever you want it, all you need to do is reach up to that cloud and grab what you need.

Suppose you want to share some of that stuff with your friend halfway across the world. All your friend needs to do is look up to that cloud and grab what they need, use it – maybe even change it, and put it back on the cloud.

The next time you need that same thing, it will be there waiting for you – with all the changes that your friend made to it.

In the digital world – this cloud can hold lots of things. It can hold files. It can hold applications.

For example, if you use Google Apps for calendar, email, documents etc. – you are using Cloud Computing.

For instance a friend of mine wanted some help setting up her iCloud. She really didn’t know much about it, but she knew that she wanted to be able to share some stuff, like calendars with her family. She wanted this to happen on a personal level – not for business.

If you use Dropbox or Apple iCloud – you are using the cloud.

This explanation is very basic – and behind the scenes as proven earlier, things are more complex.

But from the perspective of the average end user – this is how we see it.

And Cloud Computing is truly changing our daily routines, how we work, and how we live.

Thus having the information that we want and need right at our fingertips has become the new norm and believe me it’s here to stay.