Hans_ wrote:
bloodline wrote:
Hans_ wrote:
I'm not a big fan of cloud computing. Right now, some of these schemes lock you in to their services but using proprietary formats. As a result, you may not be able to extract your own data from the service-provider and use it elsewhere.
Only if you were fool enough to not maintain backups... I can't speak for other services but the Apple system is a way of keeping all my devices synchronised... My actual data is store on my MBP... the cloud simply maintains a copy of it that I can access and modify (which will then sync across all my devices) anywhere...
The backup is of no use if you can't use it in other systems. Google got into a bit of an argument over this exact point at a cloud-computing gathering because their apps do lock you in to their system. Cloud-computing is much more than a distributed storage system.
Not really... That's like saying the iPod is much more than a Harddrive that plays MP3s... It's not... It's just a hard drive in a pretty box.
I honestly can't think of anything that you would do in the cloud that isn't basically just copying data between devices... sure a bit of manipulation between devices is available... but the results need to be accessible or it's useless.
Oh and, I do have backups of my Data on Google... it was very easy to do!
The other concern that I have is, how reliable will my computing be when, not only does my machine have to work, but every server that I use, and every network switch, fibre-optical link, satellite, etc., that lies between my machine and these servers. A broken computer I can replace; a broken satellite is beyond my control.
Don't be such a control freak! :-P Your devices still work just as they did before they were massively connected... it just that then you would have to manually keep track of your modifications and updates.
If you are relying on other servers for computing, then those servers have to be functioning, and the connections to those servers as well. Your devices may still work as before, but disconnected, you won't be able to do much with them.
:-? Did you never use a PDA before Blackberry and iPhone came along? You are being really weird about this... like that other chap in another thread who wouldn't watch a TV show he wanted to watch online... because he didn't trust JavaScript...
Having dealt with internet outages, the prospect of not being able to do my work, because I can't connect to the application server, does not appeal.
Well prepare for the outages because they are going to happen... they happen all the time... If you have a local copy of the data work on that with a local application. If not then you can't, simple.
Let's say you are running a business and some nutter decides to start a DDOS attack on your management system service provider. You, and every other company relying on that service will be back to using pen and paper until the service is restored. Any data that you did not have paper backups (or PDF files of) won't be accessible, and any changes will have to be manually sync'ed once the service provider is back up and running.
Damn, I'm glad you don't run my IT systems!!! I guess you've never worked for any large organisations, with complex and advanced computing requirements?
Then there's the question of what if the service provider doesn't like my content (or me)...
Wow!!! don't you normally need to take medication for that degree of paranoia? ;-)
Grow up. I'm sorry, but suggesting that I need medication is uncalled for, and insulting.
Ok... I was just messing around... but now I'm concerned! Listen to me carefully and slowly... They are not after you! repeat that to yourself softly and when no one is looking...
I've had to deal with petty behaviour from "professionals" who don't like people that I work with. The effects are nasty. Given the amount of censorship in other parts of the world, this is something worth at least considering, even if it's not going to be an issue for most people.
What the hell does this have to do with my PDA syncing to my MBP?
All that complexity; whatever happened to Keep It Simple Stupid (KISS).
Take your pick... use technology as you will, but if you don't want to take advantage of what it offers... then feel free to fire up that C64 and pretend the last 30 years never happened :-D
What advantage does running a word-processor on a distributed system have exactly?
So I can edit and manipulate a document on any device with a network connection? No worrying about which version of the program I'm using, or if I need a licence to use it on that device... Or even having to take a long install time for a a single app, if I even have the processing/memory requirements... the advantages are endless... If there were no advantages over the existing systems... no one would bother.
My comment wasn't about not taking advantage of new technologies, rather, it was about making things more complex than they need to be.
You don't think about the long term implications of your comment. You are not seeing the system as a useful system... so therefore it's overly complex for you... but for the task in hand it's very well designed... which is much more than some systems I can mention... like E-Mail...
None of the examples that I have given would be that hard to overcome technically, but service providers will be reluctant to add the ability to transfer data to rival company's systems, or allow local servers*.
You don't have to... you are thinking as if we are talking about Sun's concept of thin clients for everything... that concept died a death a long time ago... We are not... you really need to see what modern technology offers.
So, please tell me, what advantage does cloud computing offer over installing software locally?
There is no reason not to have everything local as well, I would be reluctant to store all my data on a server, unbackedup on my personal machine... but now you have the option.
* One of the advantages for cloud computing service providers is that the users don't have access to the object-code, thus making pirating/reverse-engineering harder.
Um... Not really that useful is it?
