TO: Prof. Jason Ellis
FROM: MD Jahirul Hasan
DATE: 03/26/2021
SUBJECT: Expanded Definition of Cloud Computing
Table of Contents
Introduction
The purpose of this document is to discuss the history of a term for those who are studying computer system technology. The term that I am defining is “Cloud Computing”. While the majority of the people are running after the short-term technological advancement and networking policy, I want to take a different approach to redefine the concept of cloud computing where the user’s privacy and security concerns play a vital role in the development of a sustainable cloud computing. In this document, I am going to discuss the definitions of the term and discuss the contextual use of the term. At the end of this document, I am going to provide a working definition of the term that is relevant to the people who are studying computer system technology.
Definition
The Oxford English Dictionary defines cloud computing as “the use of networked facilities for the storage and processing of data rather than a user’s local computer, access to data or services typically being via the internet.” Cloud computing is the distribution of on-demand computing resources over the internet and on a pay as you go basis, ranging from software to storage and processing power. Cloud computing is the on-demand availability of computer system resources, especially data storage (cloud storage) and computing power, without direct active control by the user. In other words, cloud computing is the use of network facilities for the storage and processing of data rather than a user’s local computer, access to data or services. Cloud computing is on-demand access, via the internet, to computing resources applications, servers, data storage, development tools, networking capabilities, and more hosted at a remote data center managed by a cloud services provider (or CSP). The CSP makes these resources available for a monthly subscription fee or bills them according to usage. The term “cloud computing” also refers to the infrastructure that enables cloud computing to function. This includes virtualized IT infrastructure, which consists of servers, operating system software, networking, and other infrastructure that has been abstracted using special software and can be pooled and divided across physical hardware boundaries.
Context
According to this journal article “Secure Integration of IOT and Cloud Computing”, “Cloud infrastructure involves the hardware and software components required for proper implementation of a cloud computing model. Cloud computing can also be thought of as utility computing, or on-demand computing” (Stergiou et al., 2018, p. 964). The authors tries to make it clear to the people that Companies can rent access to anything from applications to storage from a cloud service provider rather than owning their own computer resources or data centers. One advantage of cloud computing is that companies can escape the upfront costs and complexities of owning and managing their own IT infrastructure by paying only for what they need, when they use it. Mobile Cloud Computing is a relatively modern technology that refers to an infrastructure that stores and processes data outside of the mobile device. The Internet of Things is a relatively new technology. Another article “cloud computing acceptance among public sector employees” stated that “However, in today’s rapidly changing technology, with the transition to the industrial revolution 4.0 (IR 4.0) environment, it has opened a new dimension to the world computing. The emergence of cloud computing technology as a new platform for computing has opened the eyes of technology industry players to further benefit from this innovation. Many studies have proven that this technology provides many benefits to the industry and users such as its ability to reduce operating costs, improve collaboration, more secure security levels and more mobile accessibility” (Amron et al., 2021, p.124). The idea of business agility is often stated by cloud proponents as a major advantage. Companies that use cloud platforms can move faster on projects and try out ideas without having to go through lengthy procurement processes or incur large upfront costs because they only pay for the tools they use. Turning the eyes into the mobile clouding the authors states that, “Mobile Cloud Computing is a new technology which refers to an infrastructure where both data storage and data processing operate outside of the mobile device” (Stergiou et al., 2018, p. 964). The ability to spin up new services without the time and effort associated with traditional IT procurement should mean that is easier to get going with new applications faster. The Internet of Things (IoT) is a relatively new telecommunications technology that is quickly gaining popularity. The authors also stated that, “Cloud computing also cuts costs related to downtime. Since downtime rarely happens in cloud computing, companies don’t have to spend time and money to fix any issues that may be related to downtime” (Stergiou et al., 2018, p. 964).
Working Definition
Based on the definition and quotes that I discussed about the term cloud computing it is related to the major computer system technology. From my understanding, cloud computing is the delivery of various services, such as data storage, servers, database, networking and software. It also allows us to save or work on files remotely to databases and also let us recover the files whenever we need. Cloud computing is very convenient because we don’t need to worry about computer crashes anymore. It stores and can be accessed the files over the internet.
References
Oxford University Press. (n.d.). Cloud Computing. In Oxford English Dictionary. Retrieved March 1, 2021, from https://www-oed-com.citytech.ezproxy.cuny.edu/view/Entry/34689?redirectedFrom=cloud+computing#eid189443962
Amron, M. T., Ibrahim, R., &Bakar, N. A. (2021). Cloud Computing Acceptance Among Public Sector Employees. Telkomnika, 19(1), 124-133. https://doi.org10.12928/TELKOMNIKA.v19i1.17883
Stergiou, C., Psannis, K., Kim, B., & Gupta, B. (2018). Secure integration of IoT and Cloud Computing. Future Generation Computer Systems, 78, 964–975. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.future.2016.11.031
