Cloud News: May 8, 2012
 | Interop: Networking Vendors Race To Open Cloud Bottlenecks At the recent Interop 2012 conference in Las Vegas, major network vendors discussed their aggressive initiatives to remove obstacles that hinder cloud growth. Cisco, Dell, Zynga and Google were among the companies that talked about the challenges faced while creating cloud networking solutions, and ways to counter those challenges. To find out what was discussed at the conference about removing bottlenecks in cloud development, read this CRN.com article. | |
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| | Appfog takes Amazon to task for cloud lock-in Amazon Web Services has been heavily criticized by Appfog CEO Lucas Carlson for creating a situation of cloud vendor lock-in for developers. Amazon is known for making it clear to developers that they must place applications on the AWS platform, whereas it is more beneficial for them if they can exercise application portability in that respect, depending on suitability. To know more about these cloud lock-in charges leveled at Amazon read this post at the Gigaom blog.. | |
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| | Cloud Computing Guidelines from the Information Systems Audit and Control Association Information Systems Audit and Control Association (ISACA) recently published a set of reliable cloud computing guidelines. The whitepaper is called "Guiding Principles for Cloud Computing Adoption and Use". It defines cloud computing, and outlines the various methods to go about with cloud adoption and the challenges involved. To know more about the ISACA guidelines for enterprises planning a shift to the cloud, read this CloudTweaks article. | |
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 | Demand For Standards—Interoperability To Fuel Converged Cloud Growth According to cloud computing experts at IEEE, cloud adoption is hindered the most by doubts about service interoperability, and not security or privacy concerns. Potential cloud adopters look to ensure that their cloud services can communicate and integrate with one another, and users are able to migrate from one service to the other smoothly. To know how enterprises are demanding standards in cloud interoperability, in order to optimize business growth and economy, read this article. | |
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 | Exclusive: Cloud Foundry's founder debuts Apcera with $2.2M in funding The man responsible for creating VMware's Cloud Foundry, Derek Collison, is launching Apcera, his brainchild for a next generation PaaS solution. His vision is to enhance PaaS from the perspective of not just developers, but also the enterprise. To know more about Apcera, and Collision's efforts to bring in more visibility and compliance in cloud platforms, read this article. | |
Cloud News: May 7, 2012
 | The Government And The Cloud: Defining The Relationship Cloud computing is slowly but surely finding its way into governments at all levels. In spite of the pervasive growth of cloud technology, federal agencies still hesitate to truly embrace the new technology. Given the rapid growth of the cloud, and how it brings the public and private sectors together, governments need to catch up with cloud, or face negative consequences of being left behind. To know more about the necessity for the government to be in sync with the cloud, and the challenges involved in this process, read this CloudTweaks article. | |
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| | Most Oracle users prefer Fusion in the cloud A majority of the users of Oracle's Fusion Applications, prefer a hosted cloud deployment model, as they run Fusion simultaneously with old Oracle business software. The Fusion Applications suite includes Oracle's JD Edwards, PeopleSoft and Siebel software, and E-Business Suite, and is the first Oracle offering tailormade for cloud delivery. To know more about the Oracle Fusion Application Suite and its implementation, read this Computer world article. | |
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| | Structure 2012: What's next in cloud computing? The fifth annual Structure conference organized by GigaOM will feature discussions on how cloud computing affects and transforms enterprises. Experts and pioneers in the field of cloud technology, from the world over, will share ideas on innovation, structuring and policies in the cloud market. To know more about the cloud based issues and questions that will be the focus of the conference, read this post at the Gigaom blog. | |
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 | Cloud Storage Provider Intronis Gets New Funding Round To Expand Business Intronis, the cloud storage provider recently received internal funding worth almost 3 million dollars, from existing investors and CEO Kent Plunkett, who recently joined the firm. The company aims to utilize this investment to drive rapid growth through solution providers and MSPs. To find out how the company plans to invest in growth and innovation while it provides cloud recovery and backup, read this CRN.com article. | |
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 | ShoreTel Sheds Light On New Cloud Division Strategy ShoreTel recently completed its purchase of M5 Networks for 146 million dollars, and is now running M5 as ShoreTel's Cloud Division. On the agenda now is the formulation of an integrated strategy for offering cloud solutions through the ShoreTel channel. To know more about ShoreTel's new cloud strategy, read this article at CRN.com. | |
Cloud News: May 3, 2012
 | SaaS Business Apps Drive SMB Cloud Computing Adoption The extensive use of cloud technology in SaaS solutions has leveraged cloud adoption among SMBs, who depend on SaaS offerings. Recent studies from the likes of Gartner, and Forrester Research, predict an explosive growth in the SaaS market in a few years, especially in the SMB sector. To know why SMBs are embracing cloud computing aggressively, read this CloudTweaks article. | |
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| | Sage moves ERP apps to Microsoft's Azure cloud The Sage Group recently revealed plans to shift its ERP (enterprise resource planning) offerings to Microsoft's Azure cloud platform. The Sage 200 and Sage Murano are applications slated to be implemented on Azure, and integrated with Microsoft Office 365. Sage believes this move will allow the firm to manage relations and interactions with customer better, while users reap the pricing and cost related advantages that SaaS offers. To know more about how Sage plans to use a cloud platform for its ERP products, read this Computer world article. | |
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| | Cloud Events In The USA Not To Miss In 2012 To remain well connected and up to date in the U.S. cloud computing industry, there are a number of cloud based events that one must keep a watch out for. These include, the New York Cloud Computing Expo where cloud and big data trends and strategies are discussed, the Cloud Connect Event in Chicago, and the Cloud Camp where early cloud adopters share ideas and experiences. To know more about the top cloud events in the U.S, read this CloudTweaks article. | |
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 | VMware Cloud Foundry on OpenStack puts kibosh on vendor lock-in Developers can build and launch cloud applications without fearing vendor lock-in, thanks to an open source platform by Piston Cloud Computing and VMware. Piston and VMware are collaborating on an open source project that provides OpenStack cloud OS support for Cloud Foundry's PaaS applications, so that they run on multiple OpenStack clouds. To know more about how this tie up between VMware and Piston computing could help developers, read this article. | |
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 | Four Reasons Why Google Drive Will Not Kill Dropbox As soon as Google made its foray into the cloud storage market with Google Drive, speculations were rife about how it could be spell disaster for the likes of Dropbox and other cloud storage services. While some believe that Google's loyal customer base and their attractive pricing policies will help them squash the competition, it might not necessarily be that easy. For companies like Dropbox, their area of core competence as well their sustenance is the cloud, and they will do everything to keep their business. To know why it is too early to write off other cloud storage services merely because of Google Drive, read this article. | |
Cloud News: May 1, 2012
 | IBM unveils software with capabilities on social media, cloud computing International Business Machine (IBM) recently launched business integration software offerings called WebSphere Application Server, at the Impact 2012 conference in Las Vegas. The WebSphere Application Server is designed to allow companies to equip their applications with collaboration and other benefits of social media, mobile and cloud computing. IBM says that the WebSphere Application Server offers better flexibility and cloud-readiness to clients, and is gaining popularity with users. To know more about WebSphere Application Server and its features, read this article. | |
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| | Newvem nets $4M to scan Amazon's cloud Newvem, a firm reputed for providing users with analyses of Amazon Web Services usage, recently secured 4 million dollars in funding. Greylock Partners was the main investor in the funding round, backed by Index Ventures and Eric Schmidt's Innovation Endeavors. Newvem provides users with crucial information derived from examining the data exposed by Amazon's API. Newvem plans to use the funding to close the gaps where information is not available, and to broaden horizons and monitor other public clouds soon. To know more about Newvem's cloud scan services, read this post at the Gigaom blog. | |
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| | Cloud Will Force Partners To Transform Themselves, Analyst Says As cloud computing grows in leaps and bounds solution providers are being forced to reconsider business strategies and adapt to changes in the market. Solution providers need to choose how to operate, and whom to partner with in the cloud, and telecommunications and cable companies seem like possible choices. Rauline Ochs, senior Vice President of a research and consulting firm IPED, MarketBridge Alliance, spoke at the Intelisys IT Solution Provider Business Transformation Executive Symposium in California about this topic. To know more about what Ochs had to say about the growth of cloud services in IT, and the emergence of telecom and cable companies as service providers, read this CRN.com article. | |
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 | Intelisys: Cloud Services Coalition Buy 'Jump Starts' Cloud Strategy For Channel Partners Intelisys Communications recently acquired Cloud Services Coalition (CSC) to launch a new business unit, called Intelisys Cloud Services and Complex Bids. This deal will enable Intelisys to extend complete support to partners for everything from sale of cloud services, project management, design, to installation and training.To know how the firm is planning to use this acquisition as leverage for its cloud strategy, read this CRN.com article. | |
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 | BofA Tech Guru preaches 6 cloud truths Large finacial organisations are know to be very apprehensive about the security of their data in the cloud, and hence prefer private cloud setups. Bank of America Merrill Lynch is one such financial firm. Brad Spiers, the senior vice president at BoFA, discussed key aspects of the firm's use of cloud technology, that work to its advantage. These factors include adapting the private cloud while maintaining its security, the use of GPU (graphics processing unit) computing techniques, and upgrading applications in keeping with technology, among other things. To know about the six major tips for optimizing the use of cloud in financial firms, read this PCWorld article. | |
Cloud News: April 30, 2012
 | Study: Cloud Computing Cuts $5.5 Billion Annually From Federal Budget While the shift to cloud computing has saved the federal government close to 5.5 billion dollars a year, savings could have been further optimized had the migration efforts been more aggressive. These opinions emerged from a study conducted by MeriTalk Cloud Computing Exchange, among federal IT managers and CIOs. The results of the study throw light on the amount of spending on cloud computing in IT, and also why many feel that the main obstacle to cloud implementation is organizational culture. To know more about what the study revealed about cloud implementation in IT, read this CRN.com article. | |
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| | Intuit Makes Move to the Cloud With Acquisition of DemandForce On April 27, 2012 Intuit announced that it is purchasing DemandForce, in a deal worth 423.5 million dollars. DemandForce offers mobile devices, and email and social-networking tools, which are designed to automate marketing and comsumer communications in SMBs. Intuit is hoping that the collaboration with DemandForce will allow the firm to go beyond desktop software and branch out into providing high-value SaaS products for SMBs. To know more about Intuit's acquisition of DemandForce, read this eWeek article. | |
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| | Evernote to launch tool for business Evernote which is a cloud-based multiplatform tool designed to organize documents and photographs, had so far been mainly targeted at individual users. But the firm has recently announced that it is launching a program for enterprise users. This business program will offer administrator controls for better security and monitoring of data. To know more about Evernote's new tool for businesses, read this ComputerWorld article . | |
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 | Thanks to Piston, OpenStack gets an unlikely ally in VMware Piston Computing is looking to integrate VMware's Cloud Foundry into its own OpenStack cloud system, as an Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS) offering. Piston has consistently backed OpenStack as a strong competitor to Amazon Web Services (AWS) in the public cloud infrastructure market. With this integration, the firm hopes to optimize the use of the Cloud Foundry BOSH, as Piston Cloud developers work in collaboration with the VMware Cloud Foundry engineering team. To find out how Piston is integrating OpenStack infrastructure with Cloud Foundry, read this post at the Gigaom blog. | |
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 | Who Can Access Your data, And Where Does Your Data Live? Legal Aspects Of Cloud Computing As the number of users adopting cloud services increases, there needs to be greater awareness about the legal side of the cloud. The gap between technology and legislation has to be closed, as users pay more attention to the location and accessibility of their data. Two major factors that constitute the legal aspects of the cloud include access to data and the jurisdiction over it. To know more about the legalities involved in the cloud, read this CloudTweaks article. | |
Cloud News: April 28, 2012
 | AMD consolidating data centers with cloud, hardware upgrades Advanced Micro Devices announced upgrades to their cloud and hardware, as they look to reduce expenses and the number of global data centers. AMD aims to cut down its datacenters, from twelve to three, with two in North America and one in Asia. The firm's main objectives are to make its data more accessible and secure, and to improve cost-efficiency. AMD seeks to achieve this by migrating operations to the cloud, and having data centers in locations where power expenses and taxes are low. To know more about how AMD's cloud and data-center related efforts, read this Computer World article . | |
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| | Adobe And Sears Aim For Cloud Prominence Close on the heels of the launch of Google Drive, Adobe and Sears are also making forays into cloud computing. Adobe has been driven by the emergence of cloud products from the likes of Apple and Microsoft, to introduce its own cloud-based offering. The Adobe Creative Suite 6 package for designers and developers is now available as a subscription-based component of its Creative Cloud offering, which users can download, install, and access from any device. Meanwhile Sears is also embracing the cloud as it attempts to restore its former status. To know more of how the cloud trend is affecting diverse companies, read this CloudTweaks article. | |
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| | Cloud and the evolution of the enterprise architect Complex computing environments in IT departments have in the past made it necessary to have enterprise architects. But as cloud computing takes over, the needs of IT departments are changing, as is the role of the enterprise architect. The traditional role of the architect who evaluates materials, client needs, and engineers solutions accordingly is becoming obsolete. This is because design parameters in cloud infrastructures are controlled simultaneously by cloud providers, service operators, and the creators and users of applications. To know about how the role of the enterprise architect is changing in the context of the cloud, read this post at the Gigaom blog. | |
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 | Cloud provider Internap adds hosted offerings for itty-bitty companies Internap had purchased Voxel earlier this year, aiming to enhance its hosting and public cloud portfolios and offer services to small enterprises. The firm recently launched Agile Hosting services from Voxel.net that will allow very small businesses to configure and deploy IT infrastructure using an online configuration tool. Cloud providers and hosting firms that ease deployment and use of IT services for small businesses can find a potentially promising market there. To know more about how cloud providers are investing in services for small firms, read this post at the Gigaom blog. | |
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 | 5 Tips for Surviving a Cloud Outage Past outages from major cloud providers like Amazon Web Services and Microsoft Azure, have made users wary of the possibilities of such outages occurring again, and the losses they would suffer. Experts suggest that IT enterprises should take certain precautionary measures to make sure cloud outages do not leave them reeling. These steps include using multiple availability zones and multiple regions with AWS, using multiple cloud providers, outlining availability in SLAs, and correctly evaluating whether critical data is suitable for the public cloud. To read about surviving cloud outages, check out this PCWorld article . | |
Cloud News: April 26, 2012
 | Intel researchers plot a smarter, personalized cloud Intel is working on a new project to develop a cloud-based model that provides accurate information about air quality and weather conditions in a user's location. Intel is looking to equip neighborhoods with sensors that gather information about the pollution and weather. The user's exact position is then identified, and accurate information delivered for that location, through a personalized cloud service. Intel's pioneering effort could help provide better weather information, and enhance the quality of life for users. To know more about Intel's personalized weather cloud project and its possible benefits, read this Computerworld article . | |
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| | Cloud Anti-spam as an Alternative Anti-spam Technology Cloud-based anti-spam solutions can be a boon for organizations using cloud technology, which are not required to keep email servers onsite. Cloud anti-spam can help keep a firm's servers, networks and users free from spam, phishing and malware that eat away at resources. To know more about how cloud anti-spam filters can save money, disk space and bandwidth, while maintaining clean servers, read this CloudTweaks article. | |
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| | Xerox Exclaims Its Cloud Pride Following the launch of Google's cloud offering, the Google Drive, Xerox now claims to be ready with some major cloud initiatives of its own. Xerox Cloud Services' Vice President Rob Schilperoort recently hinted at the major cloud related transition Xerox has made. The company has gone from dealing with only document upkeep and outsourcing toproviding Infrastructure-as-a-Service and even Software-as-a-Service. To know more about the various offerings and advantages Xerox Cloud Services is bringing to customers, read this CloudTweaks article. | |
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 | Canonical gears Linux upgrade to the cloud Canonical announced an upgrade to its Ubuntu Linux distribution, as it gears up to drive cloud deployments. The Ubuntu Server 12.04 Long Term Solution is designed for easy usage in the cloud and while deploying workloads. Canonical uses an OpenStack cloud layer to make its offerings more suited to the cloud. To know more about the cloud-based upgrades to Canonical's Linux distribution, read this article at Computerworld. | |
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 | Can Dropbox, other cloud providers survive Google Drive? With the launch of Google Drive, other providers are likely to face stiff competition in the cloud storage arena. Google has the advantage of existing relationships with billions of users, and the fact that it can offer storage at a lower price. A combination of Google's customer base and pricing policy could be a threat to smaller cloud storage providers like DropBox, Box, SugarSync and YouSendIt. To know more about the implications of Google's presence in the cloud storage market, and how smaller providers look to counter the threat, read this article. | |
Cloud News: April 25, 2012
 | Salesforce.com Seeks 1,000 Integrators To Tackle Government Cloud Salesforce.com is launching a cloud-based marketplace designed for government agencies, and is looking to train a thousand integrators and partners for this initiative. Vivek Kundra, the executive vice president of Emerging Markets at Salesforce.com and former U.S. CIO, will be officially announcing the Government Partner Accelerator Program at the Cloudforce conference in Washington, D.C. To know more about Salesforce.com's initiatives related to Government Cloud, read this CRN.com article. | |
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| | Google Drive Launched With Free Cloud Storage Google recently launched its much awaited cloud storage service, called Google Drive, after months of speculation and discussion about the offering. Google Drive is being leveraged as an alternative to other cloud storage services like DropBox, Microsoft's SkyDrive and Box. Google's offering provides enhanced storage capacity at cheaper rates and integration across cloud platforms, which allow users to access and optimize usage of Google's other services. To know more about Google Drive and its features, read this CRN.com article. | |
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| | Are You Overwhelmed By The Number Of Cloud Services To Manage? As enterprises adopt cloud technology at an increasingly feverish pace, they face challenges related to integration of diverse cloud services. Companies employ public cloud for business advantages, but compliance concerns and performance needs make it necessary to use private cloud for core operations, and maintain legacy applications in traditional infrastructure. A converged cloud solution can help companies handle their public, private and hybrid cloud services efficiently and smoothly, without disrupting flow in operations. To know more about the advantages offered by converged cloud solutions, read this CloudTweaks article. | |
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 | 8x8: Cloud Services Partner Recruitment Spiking 8x8, the hosted networking services provider has overhauled its channel program and portfolio of cloud services offerings. The company's efforts in cloud-based hosted and networking solutions has influenced the interest of its partners, and led the firm to revamp and enhance its partner programs. To know how 8x8's cloud initiatives affect its partner recruitment efforts, read this CRN.com article. | |
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 | On the verge: 100% Cloud-fueled ventures While most enterprises use cloud technology as a means of gaining flexibility and reducing costs, a number of new companies are coming up, who have built their entire business on the cloud, to be run on the cloud. These startups are created almost completely on the foundation of cloud technology. Cloud computing provides all-round benefits and leverage to these ‘built on-cloud for-cloud' ventures, and molds their functional dynamic. To know more about these upcoming 100% cloud-fueled ventures, their vision, and the challenges they face, read this article at CloudTweaks.com. | |
Cloud News: April 23, 2012
 | Amazon: Era Of Data Centers Ending Companies are no longer relying on data centers, as the cloud becomes the storage medium of choice. Amazon's Vice President of product marketing, sales, and product management, Adam Selipsky, talked about his vision of a cloud-dominated future at the Amazon's Web Service Summit 2012 in New York. He believes that a complete shift to the cloud is likely to happen over a decade, but the process of transition has already started.To know more about how Amazon is looking to position itself in the face of the rise of cloud, read this article at Information Week. | |
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| | AT&T brings the network closer to the cloud AT&T is looking to make smart cloud solutions available to users over the network, as it aims to revolutionize the use of cloud services on mobile devices. The firm's chief technology officer, Krish Prabhu, talked about the firm's cloud vision and about their cloud-based speech and natural language processing technology, Watson. Watson allows users to use voice commands in the cloud, for search, control, transcription, and translation purposes. To know more about AT&T's clod initiatives and the features of Watson, read this Computer World article. | |
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| | Understanding The Different Roles In A Cloud Computing Setup While shifting to a cloud computing setup it is necessary to gain an understanding of the different roles associated with a cloud environment. These include the various kinds of cloud service providers, cloud customers, cloud service brokerage, cloud architects, auditors and carriers. The author outlines six major roles in involved in cloud architecture, in this article at CloudTweaks.com . | |
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 | Appcelerator Delivers Titanium 2.0 With New Cloud Services Mobile development platform provider Appcelerator, launched the Titanium 2.0, equipped with Appcelerator Cloud Services (ACS) and support for HTML5 mobile Web applications. Appcelerator is designed to ease the integration of cloud solutions with mobile devices. It allows Titanium developers and other mobile Web developers to rapidly build, configure and deploy cloud-connected mobile apps usable on diverse platforms. To know more about Titanium 2.0 and the benefits it offers to developers, read this article at eWeek.com. | |
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 | Amazon Cloud Set Stage for Rapid Pinterest Growth Executives at the social networking service Pinterest admit that they owe a large part of their success to Amazon cloud services. Amazon's cloud services have equipped Pinterest with the scalability and efficiency of the cloud. This has allowed them to experiment and continue operating with a small team, even as the site grew by leaps and bounds. To know more about Pinterest's successful use of the Amazon cloud infrastructure, read this PCWorld article. | |
Cloud News: April 20, 2012
 | Survey Results: Whooping One-Third Of IT Budget Dedicated To Cloud Computing Results of a survey by IDG Enterprises indicate the growing IT investment in cloud computing. A majority of IT budgets now comprise expenditure on private cloud deployment. Moreover the cloud spending graph looks set to be a steadily rising one. Cloud computing is gaining ground as the focus of budgeting, as well as business strategy. To know more about the increasing financial stronghold of the cloud in IT, read this article. | |
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| | Amazon Web Services Launches AWS Marketplace Amazon Web Services recently launched the AWS Marketplace, an online platform where AWS customers and developers can buy and sell software and tech services. The AWS Marketplace is an online store that enables consumers to easily search, compare and deploy software and services necessary for using AWS cloud in their operations. To know more about the AWS marketplace and its value for customers and developers of the cloud, read this eWeek article. | |
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| | SAP aims for 'agile' cloud application development SAP is adopting agile software development practices as they aim to gain superiority in the cloud software market. SAP believes that the flexibility, collaboration and scalability provided by Agile methodology would be ideal for its cloud development teams. To know more about Agile development and why SAP chose it for ambitious cloud projects, read this Computer World article. | |
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 | Greenpeace Fails Apple, Amazon, Microsoft for Not-So-Green Cloud Efforts As the IT industry increasingly embraces cloud computing, Greenpeace is asking companies to clean up their cloud, and go for green energy sources. Greenpeace released a report titled "How Clean Is Your Cloud?" which looks into the sustainability of cloud services, and offers guidelines on environment friendly cloud efforts. The report also lists companies and the green quotient of their cloud. Apple, Microsoft and Amazon appear as the least environment friendly, while Yahoo and Google are applauded for use of clean energy. To know more about Greenpeace's take on green cloud efforts, read this eWeek article. | |
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 | Cloud: Start Thinking IT Service Deliver Operating a cloud infrastructure is essentially different from running traditional datacenters. The lack of personnel experience and operational knowhow about fully functional cloud infrastructures leads to doubts and difficulties while handling cloud systems. It requires restructuring and enhancing knowledge and strategy regarding datacenter operations. The author outlines ways of keeping up with the change, and successfully delivering IT services in the cloud, in this Cloud Tweaks article. | |
Cloud News: April 18, 2012
 | How Cloud Service Brokerages Can Help Manage Your Cloud Setup? Cloud computing clients often use multiple cloud service providers for various applications, which then become complicated to manage. Cloud service brokers (CSBs) can help cloud users manage multiple service providers better, and simplify the cloud migration process. CSBs act as intermediaries and enhance the value of cloud services. To know more about how CSBs can help cloud clients manage their cloud setup, read this CloudTweaks article. | |
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| | Doyenz Unveils Cloud-Based Backup, Recovery for vSphere As enterprise IT processing and storage workloads increase, in size as well as number, it creates a demand for specialized backup and recovery software. Storing and replicating virtual machine datasets leads to problems in transport and security, and vendors must provide adequate solutions. In the light of this requirement, Doyenz has launched a cloud-based recovery service, called rCloud Agent, designed for VMware vSphere. To know more about Doyenz's rCloud, and how it helps small and midsize companies with data restoration and recovery, read this eWeek article. | |
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| | Puppet CM tool can deploy, manage OpenStack clouds Puppet Labs has plans to enable the open-source configuration management software, Puppet CM Tool, with features that control OpenStack cloud deployments. Puppet is offering the new capability as modules that could provide a customer friendly UI for OpenStack software. The modules are designed to help create, manage and deploy OpenStack. To know how Puppet Labs' offering can make OpenStack implementation easier and more effective, read this article at Computer World . | |
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 | Government G-Cloud leads the way The UK government's G-Cloud has the potential to initiate cloud acceptance, and the adoption of a progressive IT strategy among the U.K government as well as enterprises. Many concerns still remain regarding the security of data in the cloud. But if the G-cloud manages to overcome those hiccups and is implemented properly, it could create a paradigm shift in the IT landscape in U.K. To know more about the G-cloud and its potential to drive cloud adoption, read this article at the ZDNet blog. | |
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 | Cloud Computing At NAB: The Media And Cloud Businesses Are Evolving To The Same Economic Model Many IT firms hesitate to employ cloud services, due to reservations about security and reliabilty in the cloud. However, the media & entertainment industry seems to have taken the bull by the horns and embraced the cloud. At the conference for the National Association of Broadcasters(NAB), in Las Vegas, technology vendors leveraged cloud-based solutions that radically change delivery and sharing of video content. Big studios like Columbia Pictures and Warner Bros. are looking for a change in IT models, and the cloud provides an effective, flexible solution. To know what Forrester Research found out about the demand for cloud services in the media industry, read this article. | |
Cloud News: April 17, 2012
 | Rackspace gets its OpenStack cloud in order Rackspace is going to put their OpenStack open-source cloud project into production, to be made generally available on May 1, 2012. Rackspace's OpenStack cloud platform was announced in 2010 by Rackspace and NASA, with major firms like Hewlett-Packard, Dell, Cisco, IBM and Red Hat becoming part of the project. The companies are mostly united in their goal of challenging Amazon and VMware's dominance in the cloud. To know more about the Rackspace OpenStack cloud, read this post at the Gigaom blog. | |
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| | SpiderOak launches secure storage cloud for businesses SpiderOak, the cloud storage provider, is offering a secure data backup and collaboration cloud that competes with major services like Dropbox and Box. The cloud storage offering called SpiderOak Blue, operates at three service levels catering to small, medium and enterprise-class companies. To know more about SpiderOak's cloud storage offerings and the capabilities offered by them to businesses, read this Computer World article. | |
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| | ELPaaS platform helps port COBOL apps to Amazon, Rackspace, other clouds Cloud startup Heirloom Computing recently launched a development platform to help enterprises shift legacy applications whih are written in COBOL and run on mainframes, to the cloud. The platform called ELPaaS, integrates COBOL applications and the ones meant for IBM's CICS, into Java source code. It also creates environments that enables the applications to run without effecting changes on multiple cloud platforms. To know more about Heirloom's offering and how it makes deploying cloud applications easier, read this article at Computer World. | |
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 | Microsoft Ventures Big Into The Indian Cloud Market Microsoft announced a major cloud collaboration, on April 12, 2012, when it revealed plans to work with India's AICTE (All India Council for Technical Education). Microsoft in association wiht aicte, will be providing its Live@Edu cloud solution in around 10,000 colleges in India. Though the IT giant sees this effort as a part of its corporate social responsibility, it could translate into a successful business move, by bringing in users to its cloud and boosting its position in the cloud market. To know more about this massive cloud venture in India by Microsoft, read this CloudTweaks article. | |
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 | 'High Performance' Emerges in Cloud Offerings Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS) provider, SoftLayer recently launched cloud-based high performance compute (HPC) offerings. These offerings use advanced graphics processors units (GPUs) and cater to the demand for enhanced functionality and better performance. SoftLayer's offerings can be used for a range of diverse applications. To know more about the HPC options from SoftLayer, read this PCWorld article. | |
Cloud News: April 16, 2012
 | GoGrid Big Data Solution Offers Hybrid Cloud Infrastructure Cloud infrastructure provider GoGrid launched its Big Data Solution, as a limited period promotional offering for customers who sign up for a one-year implementation. Big Data Solution is built on a hybrid architecture merging cloud technology with single-tenant infrastructure. GoGrid's preconfigured hardware can support big data analytics and be deployed for applications that leverage solutions like Hadoop. To know more about the features of GoGrid's new cloud based solution, read this article at eWeek.com. | |
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| | SOASTA Delivers CloudTest on VMware Cloud Foundry PaaS SOASTA, the cloud performance testing services provider, recently made its CloudTest platform available as a service on VMware's Cloud Foundry. CloudTest is a functional and performance-test platform, and is also the sole test automation service catering to Cloud Foundry. This is the first time customers have access to a free CloudTest as a cloud hosted service. To know more about the benefits CloudTest brings to the Cloud Foundry PaaS, read this article. | |
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| | Research Findings: US Far Behind The World In Cloud Endorsement Analytics released by Tata Consultancy Services reveal surprising results about global cloud adoption and investment patterns. Europe and the United States are lagging behind the rest of the world in embracing cloud computing, in spite of being the home of cloud technology pioneers like Google, IBM, Microsoft, Apple and Oracle. Moreover, even while most mid-sized enterprises in the US are looking to move to the cloud, it seems that it is Latin America which leads the charge in cloud endorsement. To know why companies in the U.S are still wary of the cloud, read this CloudTweaks article. | |
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 | Regional Cloud Hubs – How Government Clouds May Function in the Future A report was recently published by International Data Corporation's (IDC) Government Insights group called "Best Practices: Regional Community Cloud Hubs – The New ‘Trickle Down' Effect That's Boosting State and Local Computing". The report predicts that state and local government's use of computing services will be influenced by the emergence of a new type of federal cloud services or "regional cloud hubs". These hubs are government agencies offering computing services to each other, ensuring that cloud implementation remains within official control. To know about regional cloud hubs and how they can alleviate cloud security concerns for government agencies, read this CloudTweaks article. | |
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 | CloudCode: A Code of Conduct For Cloud Computing Providers In New Zealand Cloud computing being still in its nascent stages, is still somewhat unregulated. However as more and more companies begin to invest in cloud services, there is a pressing need to have adequate security measures and standards in place. Cloud computing groups in New Zealand are collaborating to try and come up with a set of guidelines, or a code of conduct, for cloud service providers. The New Zealand Computer Society calls this code of conduct CloudCode. The code is voluntary and therefore more of a push in the right direction. To know more about the principles, objectives and implications of the CloudCode in New Zealand, read this article. | |
Cloud News: April 12, 2012
 | Cloud Computing Skills Shortage Forces CIOs to Grow Their Own Real estate firm Majestic Realty Co. adopted Microsoft's Business Productivity Online Suite (BPOS) for cloud-based email last year. During the move they discovered that there was a real dearth of technical support for BPOS in the market. Lack of knowledge makes migration difficult, and leaves it to the staff to work out the configuration and integration. As it happened in Majestic's case, such unsupported migration often leads to numerous errors. To know more about the shortage of information and support about cloud services, and how companies are dealing with it, read this article. | |
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| | IBM offering companies their own cloud On April 4 2012, IBM launched its PureSystems line, which aims to provide the advantages of cloud technology to SMBs, while protecting them from some of the risks involved in the cloud. IBM invested around 2 billion dollars on creating these systems, which will be priced between 250,000 to 500,000 dollars. IBM's new computers are designed to avoid the security issues in Internet-based cloud computing by using local data centers instead of remote ones. To know how IBM's PureSystems line aims to provide public cloud capabilities in a private cloud setup, read this article. | |
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| | Amazon Web Services Launches Amazon CloudSearch Amazon Web Services launched Amazon CloudSearch, a fully managed and scalable service that helps customers integrate smoothly into websites and applications, with enhanced search functionality. Amazon CloudSearch automates the provision of resources and deploys search indexes. Developers merely need to build a search domain, and upload searchable data. To find out how the scalable, effective and easy to use Amazon CloudSearch improves search capabilities for organizations, read this article. | |
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 | Vana Workforce Introduces Latest Release Of HR Software For Small And Medium Enterprises Vana Workforce has made the Vana HCM Release Update 5 generally available. It is being offered on Salesforce.com's enterprise cloud computing platform for employee-oriented social applications, called Force.com. Vana HCM Release Update 5 brings enhanced functionality and provides cloud based, integrated human resource and talent management services for SMBs. To know more about the new features and benefits in Vana HCM Update 5, read this article. | |
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 | Does Cloud Computing Hurt Apple? The cloud-computing movement is said to be responsible for hardware losing its importance. In such a scenario, hardware manufacturers like Dell, and Apple could be negatively affected. However, a rise in the trend of commoditizing computer hardware, could actually draw attention to small service and design enhancements. The questions arise regarding the importance of customized features in hardware, and the value of a personal touch. For now it seems that the cloud computing revolution could swing either way for hardware makers. To read more on this topic, check out this article. | |
Cloud News: April 11, 2012
 | Terremark Launches Private Cloud Offering Terremark launched a new private cloud service for enterprises on April 10, 2012. The service offers companies the option of rapidly adding public cloud capacity. Terremark's private cloud service is hosted on-site but provides users dedicated computing and storage, and self-service. Terremark's service is helpful to firms that want to employ cloud services but want to avoid the shared approach. To know more about Terremark's cloud architecture and how it helps users, read this article. | |
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| | Top Industries To Benefit From Cloud Applications' Adoption The USA Cloud Adoption & Trend 2012 predicts that an increasing number of firms worldwide are adopting cloud services. Cloud computing is gaining the most traction in IT, Manufacturing, education, business and professional services, and government agencies. The various advantages that cloud technology provides to these five industries are outlined in this PCWorld article. | |
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| | In the cloud era, let's start calling IT what it is: 'Innovation Team' Cloud computing brings with it a plethora of opportunities for innovation in IT. Dr. Irving Wladawsky-Berger, the driving force behind IBM becoming a dominant force in Internet systems, wrote an insightful article on the new roles that the cloud is creating for IT managers and teams. He highlights the pervasive and disruptive nature of the cloud, pointing out that IT managers and professionals need to adapt to the cloud, to optimize its potential. To know why IT organizations should adopt a standardized and effective management approach to capitalize on the cloud, read this article at the ZDNet blog. | |
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 | How to Avoid the Perils of Virtualization and Cloud Stall While both cloud technology and virtualization provide enhanced efficiency and flexibility to businesses, they must be implemented properly to ensure a smooth transition. Lack of organizational planning can lead to hiccups in the transition process, resulting in losses and indefinite results. After having made a successful migration, Westcon Group equips resellers and service providers who assist customers with transitioning to virtualized environments and the cloud. To know more about the guidelines Westcon provides for an effective move to cloud or virtualized environments, read this article at Computer World. | |
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 | Cisco, NetApp tout entry-level FlexPod cloud architecture Cisco and NetApp are planning to offer a new FlexPod cloud architecture. FlexPod is tailored for small workloads and is being sold as an entry-level model. The original FlexPod which was a pre-configured, pre-certified storage network was designed for user groups of 1,000 to 2,000 people, while the changed, entry-level FlexPod can cater to business application workloads with 500 to 1000 users. To know how the new FlexPod could be the perfect cloud architecture for smaller workloads, read this Computer World article. | |
Cloud News: April 10, 2012
 | HP's Converged Cloud Covers Public, Private, Hybrid Services Hewlett-Packard launched its Converged Cloud Services program which combines various cloud programs. HP's Converged Cloud Services is designed to enable enterprises to use public, private and hybrid cloud services to their advantage. HP's public cloud is leveraged as competition for established public cloud platforms like Amazon and Google. To know more about HP Converged Cloud Services and the options it offers to businesses, read this article at CRN.com. | |
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| | roles for cloud services brokers. The author discusses seven upcoming trends in the cloud in this article at CloudTweaks.com. | |
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| | The Art of Professional (and Personal) Branding with the Cloud The cloud has developed into a resource that brings better innovation, efficiency and revenue to businesses. The cloud can also complement and enhance personal and professional branding strategy. As proper branding becomes a need for individuals and businesses, the cloud can be effectively configured to match branding or boost re-branding. To know how the cloud can work with branding campaigns, read this article. | |
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 | BAT signs £132m deal for cloud-based SAP British American Tobacco (BAT) has entered into contract with Deutsche Telekom's subsidiary T-Systems, in a cloud SAP software deal. The cloud deal is worth millions of dollars and is valid for seven years. With this move BAT is looking to provide support for its extensive brand portfolio. To know how BAT uses cloud based SAP systems for its worldwide operations, read this Computer World article. | |
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 | The top cloud VCs: 7 stars + 5 up and comers Venture capitalists are taking a keen interest in cloud infrastructure, and the rise in their cloud investments reflects that trend. As VCs and infrastructure professionals flock to the cloud, cloud startups need to capitalize on the trend. Cloud startups must evaluate which VCs have the drive and the connections to leverage their businesses and take them to new heights. Stacy Higginbotham from Gigaom.com draws up a list of the best cloud VCs, their work, strengths and specialties. To know which VCs cloud infrastructure startups would want in their ranks, read this post at the Gigaom blog. | |
Cloud News: April 9, 2012
 | Data Security Issues Accounting Firms Must Address Before Moving Their Accounting To The Cloud Given the various advantages that cloud storage offers, accounting firms are putting increasing amounts of data in the cloud. However while migrating to the cloud, accountants must also look into cloud related security concerns. It is necessary to secure sensitive accounting data against fraud, and unauthorized private or government interference. To know what measures accounting firms need to take to protect the safety and confidentiality of their data, read this CloudTweaks article. | |
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| | Cloudability gives Rackspace users free cost monitoring Businesses having Rackspace cloud accounts can now use free Cloudability services to monitor their cloud spending. The recently launched Cloudability provides periodic reports and graphical dashboards of a firm's cloud spending. Cloudability is designed to trim cloud IT spending and optimize its results. Cloudability is free for enterprises that spend less than 2,500 dollars every month in the cloud, with further pricing based on overall spending. To know more about Cloudability and the budget related benefits it offers, read this post at the Gigaom blog. | |
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| | UAEU launches cloud computing system in effort to create ‘paperless' campus The United Arab Emirates University recently deployed its first ever cloud architecture. The cloud system is called Arrive Systems technology, by Visionaire, an ICT and Intelligent Building Management Company based in Dubai. This integrated educational system has been put into place to help UAEU keep up with global technological advancements. It provides a cloud network for standardized education and teaching experience, unified communications and sustainable technology. To know about the UAEU's new cloud based vision, read this article. | |
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 | Building your own cloud infrastructure IT enterprises these days are assuming the responsibilities of service providers within their organizations. This new business model creates a shift from hardware management to delivery of business specific workloads, and a need for the flexibility that the cloud provides. To know about enterprises building their own cloud infrastructures, and their suitable deployment and design options, read this article. | |
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 | Cloud, SaaS Adoption Grow Among Small Businesses: Microsoft More and more small and medium enterprises are opting for cloud services and SaaS, and this trend looks poised to continue. A report from Microsoft called the "SMB Cloud Adoption Study 2011" indicates that SMBs will be investing nearly double in cloud services in the near future. The report analyses the effect of the cloud on SMBs and outlines the opportunities for cloud service providers. To know about the report's findings on the growth and adoption of the cloud, read this eWeek article. | |
Cloud News: April 6, 2012
 | Automated Versus Manual Tools For Cloud Migration Cloud migration is becoming increasingly complex due to the rising number of platforms, providers and technologies. Not all tools and applications are compatible with cloud providers' offerings, and companies need to choose the most suitable tools for migration. With manual tools no longer viable in terms of expense or speed, cloud usage can be optimized through successful management and choice of automation. To know more about the role of automation capabilities in the cloud migration process, read this CloudTweaks article. | |
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| | HP's Cloud Strategy Takes Aim At Amazon At the Wells Fargo Tech Transformation Summit, Biri Singh, head of HP Cloud Services, outlined the firm's cloud computing strategy, indicating that HP's public cloud service will soon be in public beta. All of HP's cloud initiatives seem aimed to compete with the likes of Amazon Web Services and Microsoft Azure. To know in more detail how HP is designing its cloud vision to users offer alternatives to Amazon and Microsoft, read this Information Week article. | |
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| | Questions Amazon Should Answer About Its Cloud Strategy After allowing external vendor Eucalyptus to offer a product that implements the Amazon Web Services cloud APIs, Amazon needs to clear doubts regarding its cloud strategy. By clarifying its cloud vision Amazon can affirm the faith of partners and clients, and encourage investment in its APIs. The company should answer the questions regarding restrictions on usage of Amazon's APIs and evolution of Amazon's APIs, and also assuage client's fears about vendor lock in. To know why Amazon should set out the choices they offer and the policies they adopt in the cloud, read this Forbes article. | |
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 | Red Hat, IBM sign on for OpenStack IBM and Red Hat are looking to join OpenStack's open source cloud project. The official announcement is expected after the upcoming OpenStack Spring Conference, and will benefit OpenStack, which faces stiff competition from Citrix's CloudStack offering. It is anticipated that the new OpenStack release, called Essex will bring new members on board. To know how Red Hat and IBM's presence could consolidate OpenStack's position in the open source cloud, read this post at the Giagom blog. | |
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 | CA Technologies Joining the Ingram Micro Cloud Marketplace Ingram Micro is promoting CA Technologies' CA ARCserve MSP Licensing Program 2.0 through the Ingram Micro Cloud Marketplace. The Managed Service Provider program aims to make CA ARCserve licensing compatible with MSP's and service provider's business models. Ingram Micro partners can now access CA ARCserve D2D On Demand, a SaaS offering hosted on Windows Azure, which provides cloud security and disaster recovery. To find out how this collaboration allows CA to leverage applications and acquired software in the cloud and MSP market, read this article. | |
Cloud News: April 5, 2012
 | U.S. Army to Deploy Clouds, Modular Data Centers The U.S. Army will be deploying private cloud services and modular data centers, as it looks to keep up with the times. The Army Private Cloud contract (APC2) will enable deployment of cloud services for consolidation of data centers through secure private cloud. The Army has selected service providers like HP, General Dynamics, and Northrop Grumman for the contract. To know about the U.S Army's cloud initiatve and the details of the contract, read this article. | |
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| | EU Releases Guide for Improving Security in Cloud Contracts A recently released guide from the European Network and Information Security Agency (ENISA), highlights why cloud users need to verify security in cloud contracts. ENISA advises users to be aware of availability and vulnerability management in contracts with cloud providers. To know more about ENISA's guidelines and the need for better understanding of security in cloud service delivery, read this article at PCWorld.com. | |
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| | OpenStack Essex Release Is Most Stable Yet, Supporters Say OpenStack has launched the latest version of its cloud operating system called Essex. Essex is due for release on April 5, 2012 and is expected to provide the kind of stability needed for large scale cloud deployments. Essex is now loaded with new features and enhancements that improve stability, provide better integration, and create a complete cloud OS for OpenStack users. To know more about the benefits of Essex, read this PCWorld article. | |
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 | Koding comes out of private beta, puts programming in the cloud Koding has brought its cloud development platform out of private beta. This program enables programmers to build and test code directly from their web browser. Programmers can log in from a free server and start coding, irrespective of development frameworks or domain management. To know more about the cloud-based benefits Koding offers to programmers and developers, read this post at the Gigaom blog. | |
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 | Cisco, EMC, VMware Team Up on Networking, Cloud Training Cisco, EMC, and VMware are coming together to offer IT staff training solutions in a number of areas including virtualization, networking, data center infrastructure, big data, and cloud computing. This educational initiative aims to equip tech professionals with the skills required to build and run modern data centers and reap the benefits of cloud computing. To know how this training and certification program could help IT professionals keep up with the changes and demands in technology, read this article at eWeek.com. | |
Cloud News: April 4, 2012
 | 9 Trends That Impact The Future Of Mobile Cloud Computing The latest buzz in cloud computing is surrounding the mobile cloud. Mobile cloud, a combination of cloud technology and mobile applications, looks poised to be the technology of the future. The mobile cloud has become popular because of various factors. These include the extensive use of smartphones and tablets, efforts in mobile cloud development by network providers, faster bandwidths, and developments in mobile commerce, among others. To know more about the reasons behind the rise of the mobile cloud, read this article at CloudTweaks.com. | |
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| | OwnCloud puts data in IT's cloud of choice OwnCloud is offering software that provides enterprises with storage capabilities similar to what Dropbox offers consumers. OwnCloud 2012 is not a storage cloud in itself, but software that users can run in their data centers for moving and managing data in preferred storage clouds. OwnCloud claims to be easy to use, and accessible from any device. To know more about OwnCloud 2012, and how it could be the equivalent of Dropbox for IT enterprises, read this post at the Gigaom blog. | |
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| | How to Improve Cloud Management for Fun and Profit Service providers and VARs can take advantage of the cloud trend by leveraging their cloud offerings as better alternatives to those from competitors. One way of appealing to users is to offer visibility and control over IT assets in the cloud. Cloud service providers can provide better monitoring, management, transparency and integration to bring in customers. To know how solution providers and resellers can stay ahead of competition in the cloud, read this CRN.com article. | |
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 | There's a new open source cloud in town. Meet Apache CloudStack Citrix Systems is offering its new CloudStack software to the Apache Software Foundation, as an alternative to OpenStack. With this release, Citrix aims to compete with VMware in cloud software, and also end the monopoly of OpenStack in open source cloud-computing. While Citrix is enthusiastic about the prospects for CloudStack, and the competition it can offer, OpenStack is not feeling too threatened. To know about the release of CloudStack, and its effect on the open source cloud arena, read this post at the Gigaom blog. | |
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 | Cloud Computing For Governments Forbes Insights recently conducted a study along with KPMG International, whose results indicate the public sector's growing interest and acceptance regarding cloud technology. Local and federal governments are looking at cloud adoption as a way to bring in cost effectiveness, agility and greater efficiency in operations. However, they still entertain anxieties about security risks in the cloud. To know more about how government agencies are warming up to the cloud, read this CloudTweaks article. | |
