The sweeping changes in technology are truly profound. Just when you think you know something, a new service/product/concept is right in front of our eyes. This can be challenging for us digital immigrants. But we must be committed to learning and even unlearning as we continue our digital journey.
One major shift that’s taking place will change the way we compute. Right now, one’s information is linked primarily to the computer that s/he is working on. In other words, most people feel tethered to their laptops or desktops to retrieve their information. Well, thanks to a trend called cloud computing, your desktop might soon become a thing of the past.
In fact, if you have a yahoo or hotmail account, or use applications like Flickr, you’re already using cloud computing. You can check these accounts from any computer connected to the Internet, not just your own. This trend will go beyond email to include all kinds of programs and applications that we normally store on our individual computers. Should cloud computing take hold, the information that we normally store on our individual computers will be accessed via the Internet on computers stored servers, thereby freeing us from being tethered to our personal desktops or laptops.
What you’ll soon discover is that if Google has its way later this year, the hard drive in your personal computer will be a thing of the past, replaced with the Google Drive, or the GDrive. This means that your operating system and personal files will reside on Google’s servers and will be accessed via the Internet, bringing to life another layer for cloud computing.
Of course, cloud computing isn’t without its critics, who have expressed concerns over Google’s control of one’s personal information. Some raise the possibility that all of your information could be viewed by someone else. Other concerns have expressed apprehension about Google possibly being subpoenaed and turning your information over to the government.
Time will tell about the pace of this trend. But for now, just note that it might not be long before you ditch that computer to start computing in the clouds.
