CLOUD COMPUTING — 4th Quarter 2013

The Power of Iceland: RMS and Verne Global Take to the Cloud

Cloud computing, undoubtedly the latest great trend in technology, is quickly becoming a mainstream alternative to traditional on-premises computing options. One of the key factors is its value in allowing businesses to focus on their core competencies, while allowing true IT experts to manage the infrastructure that drives those businesses. Read More >>>



Feature Articles

Learning - and Profiting - From 'Superstorm Sandy'
It was just a year ago that a huge portion of the Eastern U.S. got slammed by what has since been dubbed "Superstorm Sandy," a hurricane of such epic proportions that weathercasters and businesses alike will be talking about it for generations to come.

One-time Skeptic Oracle Now 100 Percent Serious About Cloud
Oracle has come a long way in five years. It was at a shareholder meeting in 2008 when Oracle CEO Larry Ellison let loose as he often does, this time not attacking a rival, but lambasting the whole notion of the cloud.

GFI MAX Backup: Speed is the Essence
Hosted backup has not only relieved IT personnel from dealing with backup tapes, cleaning tapes, managing offsite tapes, checking backup logs, but it has also opened up a huge revenue opportunity for MSPs looking to resell online backup solutions. Many small and some medium-size companies with limited or no internal IT resources don't want to deal with the hassle of popping tapes in and out, running cleaning jobs, assigning Mary to take over tape duties when John is on vacation, remembering to return offsite tape backup tapes, etc. Thus, companies are more than glad to use the power of the Internet to have a simple, easy-to-use backup solution that eliminates many of these problems and gives peace of mind should disaster strike.

COLUMNS

THE FUTURE OF CLOUD

How Cloud “Solutions” Put You on TOP of the Customer Experience Game
It's not your father's IT shop anymore. IT organizations have become a critical extension of the business, tasked by the board room to deliver new tech-driven products and services to further differentiate the business - and do it faster than everyone else.

COMM ON THE CLOUD

Cash is King, but it's Not Everything
I think we will see more cloud services providers go broke. There are too many of them; not enough good marketing; not enough cash flow; and too many big players like Amazon eating at their lunch.

Cloud Adoption

The Current State of Cloud Adoption
While cloud computing continues to gain steam -- with relatively all major IT vendors on board -- now is a good time to examine the current state of cloud adoption. This may help us all validate assumptions or change course and plan ahead.

Private Clouds

Simplifying Private Cloud Delivery
One aspect of successful technologies is they are easy for customers to understand. There may be supporting complexity, but it is hidden from the end user. Today, public cloud services are popular not only because they are inexpensive and efficient, but because they are easy to buy and use. Private cloud services (those reached directly by carrier Ethernet E-Line services) need to adopt the dynamic and easy nature of public cloud services. However, this means that delivery of private cloud services needs to be standardized, simplified and automated.

Cloud Security

What You Should Know About IaaS security
According to Gartner and other researchers, Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS) is the fastest growing segment of the public cloud market. There are many reasons: reduced cost, faster scalability, and easier elasticity, to name a few. But before you entrust your data to a cloud service provider (CSP), there are some key security factors you must consider to ensure your data stays safe in the cloud.

IN EVERY ISSUE

View From the Cloud
By Doug Barney

Publisher's Outlook
By Rich Tehrani

Silver Lining
By Erik Linask