Cloud computing has been an IT buzz word for several years. It is now mainstream. Calibration management software is no exception in the trend to move business application software to the cloud.
Many people have probably heard of cloud computing. In fact, most people use cloud computing whether they realize it or not. If you are using Internet search engines; Web-based e-mail such as Yahoo, Hotmail and Gmail; social networking systems such as Facebook and Twitter; or even online banking, then you are already using cloud computing.
Let’s take a closer look at cloud computing, how it applies to calibration management software and why it is relevant, as well as examine some of the major benefits and risks of this emerging technology.
What is Cloud Computing? The term cloud is just a metaphor for the Internet, which is typically drawn as a cloud shape on network diagrams. Cloud computing providers deliver various business software applications, which are most often accessed from a Web browser. The main distinction of cloud computing vs. traditional computing is that the software, data and computer processing reside on a service provider’s servers.
This is really just Internet-based use of computer technology. The technical details are masked from the users who no longer need to have expertise in the technology that supports them.
In traditional software applications, the user needs to care about what operating system the application will require and hardware requirements such as hard drive space, CPU speed and RAM. He also needs to care about the database system it requires to store his records, such as SQL Server, Oracle and DB2.
Cloud computing is a newer delivery model for IT services and software that usually involves scalable and virtualized resources as a service over the Internet.
Much like the electric service, it can be scaled to accommodate whatever the user needs, and the provider uses whatever resources-such as coal, solar, nuclear or wind-to generate the electricity. The consumer does not need to know the technical details-he just wants his lights to go when he flicks the switch.