Evaluating Software as a Service (SaaS)

"Cloud computing is Internet-based computing, whereby shared resources, software and information, are provided to computers and other devices on-demand. Cloud computing allows consumers and businesses to use applications without installation and access their personal files at any computer with internet access. This technology allows for much more efficient computing by centralizing storage, memory, processing and bandwidth. ... The definition between cloud computing and SaaS is almost the same but not quite." Read the rest here.

The Planet Launches Storage Cloud

"Merging on-premise storage performance with cloud storage capabilities, dedicated and managed hosting provider The Planet (www.theplanet.com) is now offering a new, highly scalable and on-demand cloud storage service." Read the WHIR article here.

SaaS Industry Is Collapsing!

People - me included - make predictions all the time. Some are saying that the SAAS market has maxed out. What do you think? Read one opinion here.

Gartner: are we hitting the limits on enterprise cloud proliferation?

"Gartner reports: SaaS will have a role in the future of IT, but not the dominant future that was first thought. Organizations should carefully assess their software needs in light of the current promises delivered on by SaaS." Read the rest at Zdnet.

GE offers e-health records as SaaS offering

Even GE is embracing SAAS! "GE's Healthcare division today announced its first electronic medical record (EMR) product in a software-as-a-service (SaaS) platform aimed at small or remote physician practices with a lower-cost, monthly fee model." Read the rest here.

5 challenges for moving backup to the cloud

ZDnet blog TechRepublic has 5 things to consider when moving backup to the Cloud. Read it here.

HP targets hybrid IT environments

From IT World, "As enterprises adopt hybrid IT models, spanning physical and virtual environments, they need tools that can help manage the performance and availability of all their applications, irrespective of where they're running, says Paul Muller, vice president of strategic marketing for software products in HP's Software & Solutions group." It's about a solution that simplifies IT and delivers the applications. Period. No one solution fits all.

Pharma and Cloud Computing: Are We There Yet?

From the PharmaExec blog, an interview with Microsoft’s National Director, US Life Sciences Michael Naimoli on if pharma is ready to move its software from the back room to the cloud.

Is 'cloud computing' the future of video games?

"Playing high-profile video games quickly from portable devices such as your iPad might get easier after this week's Electronic Entertainment Expo.... If fully realized, they say, cloud gaming could be a console killer." It's about being able to play games from any device - and move from a shrink-wrapped one-time sale to monthly revenue model. Read the article at CNN.com.

What Does an SLA Mean?

One blogger's experience with managed hosting salespeople and asking what the SLA means.

What We’re Watching in Cloud Computing

The Harvard Business Review has an article that calls "Cloud computing is either a revolutionary IT management tool or a nebulous puff of marketing hype, depending on whom you ask." Read it here.

Verizon partners to deliver cloud storage service

"Corporate data continues to grow exponentially, and companies are looking for a better way to store and retrieve it. Verizon Business is addressing this pressing IT issue by introducing a new cloud-based offering, Verizon Cloud Storage, and a complementary suite of data-retention IT consulting services." Initially the service will use Nirvanix storage infrastructure." Read the rest here.

Microsoft offers its vision of public vs. private cloud

"Microsoft revealed its take on the cloud at TechEd 2010 this week in New Orleans, including a chart that provides a great visual of where Microsoft’s specific products fit into the mix. Cloud computing is an elusive term, but it has essentially become a catch-all for technology services delivered on-demand over the Internet." Read the rest of the blog post here.

Why SaaS may be right for your business

"One of the biggest advantages of using Software as a Service platforms, especially for smaller businesses, is the generally lower up front costs." Read the article at the Prairie Biz mag.

Cloud Model Brings 'Power of Productivity Tools' to Businesses

Telesphere's CEO talks about the power of having a hosted PBX provider in the cloud and why that is advantageous. More at TMC.

Everything moving to the cloud

In an Elon University - Pew Internet survey, respondents say that by 2020 most people won't do their work with software on a general purpose PC. Smartphones, iPads and cloud-based apps. Read it here. Download the Pew Study here as well.

Pew: Cloud Services Will Dominate By 2020

According to a new Pew Internet & American Life Project survey of 895 technology stakeholders and critics, Pew gives us the obvious: Cloud Services will dominate by 2020.

Cloud Services as Strategy for Data Center Companies and Outsourcing

"BroadGroup, the IT and telecommunications specialist, has recently released a new data center report revealing that hybrid cloud is seen as the next major opportunity where efficiencies can be gained by using public cloud for non-critical applications. The report also highlights how Private Cloud enterprise adoption will accelerate over the next five years, and how it will boost the opportunity for third party data center outsourcing."

"The report, Competing in the clouds: emerging strategies for enterprise data centres, written by Marion Howard Healy, demonstrates that Private Cloud will be the fastest growing segment in the enterprise market. However, migrating to cloud services represents a new way of operating, and will require a change in mindset by enterprise IT leaders because 'IT as a Service' introduces very different business and operational models."

Read the rest of the article at EarthTimes.

The Why And How Of Private Clouds

"The private cloud is a new and powerful data center strategy. What IT leaders are sorting out today is just how much of the concept they want to embrace." Read the rest at InfoWeek.

10 Things To Consider Before Moving To The Cloud

ChannelWeb has a slide show of the 10 things to consider before moving to the cloud for those getting started in the cloud? See it here.

Cloud Adoption to Increase Data Center Outsourcing

"IT consulting firm BroadGroup announced on Thursday it has released a new report that shows that enterprise adoption of private cloud will accelerate over the next five years, and will boost the opportunity for third party data center outsourcing." [thewhir]

Ingram Micro Cloud Summit Highlights by MSPmentor

"Cloud Hosting Is Like A Hotel: Pay by the night and everything is taken care of for you, asserted Lew Moorman, president and chief cloud strategy officer at Rackspace Hosted." The other 9 at MSPmentor.

The Competitive Threat of Public Clouds

The CFO will be comparing internal data center and IT costs structures against such public cloud providers as Microsoft, Amazon and Google. Read the article here.

How to Evaluate Cloud Computing Providers

This is becoming a trending article topic since evaluating Cloud Service Providers is more challenging than choosing a data center or a hosting provider. See the article by Jason from ReliaCloud. Price, Performance, Assurance, SLA and Support. How about Private versus Public?