Cloud computing is an online-based service that enables an individual or a company to access, store, and
manage computing resources from anywhere at any time, delivered on demand. Forget about the different time
zones or the expensive and complicated networking systems needed to handle your company's increasing amounts of data; cloud computing provides a platform
where hardware is vitalized and accessed through user-friendly applications.
The dynamism of IT is not only related to the technologies used but also the users
as they demand divergent services; the providers of cloud services were
able to identify this and categorized the services into three: Platform as a
service (PaaS) - basically to provide user access to build and deploy applications, e.g., Google AppEngine, Infrastructure as a service (IaaS)- provision of virtual hardware e.g., CPU's, memory, secondary storage, and OS, and Software as a service
(SaaS) - which enables a person or company to utilize application software's that suit there needs by performing functions like accounting, document management, customer relationship management, e.t.c.
The company or individual can access cloud resources publicly
through a shared channel, privately where the resources are only accessed by
one company, and a hybrid of the two- where some actions are accessed through public channels. Still, more secure resources and information are accessed through
a private channel.
With the current increase in data
and on-demand services – not forgetting streaming services, cloud computing is
a platform that has given rise to other computing advancements, including big
data.
