What Cloud Computing Really Means:
Cloud computing is a general buzz-term that actually does have some real value when you look at the specifics. It is encompassed by the idea that operations we traditionally think of having to run locally on a PC or Laptop (software, data storage, etc.) can now be carried out remotely over the web and Internet. Whether it be the myriad of services that Google offers such as googleDocs or Gmail, or decentralized computer processing, the benefits of running a personal or corporate network online rather than remotely are numerous. Customers are left with less spending on licensing and infrastructure, and providers are left being able to more directly manage support.
Explaining Cloud Computing:
-Saas or Software as a Service,
Includes customer service applications such as Salesforce.com, Document editing software such as GoogleDocs.
-Haas, Hardware as a Service
Includes Amazon Elastic Compute Cloud (EC2), which includes processing data, storing data, and transferring data
Haas has the advantage of allowing customers to add or remove their storage or processing needs as the needs change. So if you suddenly find you need a few more gigs of space, you can add it, without having to purchase an entire new hard drive
-Electricity Comparison
Much like when individuals stopped generating their own power and hooking into the electrical grid provided by power companies, Cloud computer operates under the same assumption. Why is it necessary for
individuals (single users or whole companies) need to generate their own storage or computer infastructure.
The Future of Libraries:
The driving principle behind the library, as a collection house for information that is made available free to the people, is changing. This information is becoming freely available elsewhere, there is more of it, and users can access it more conveniently outside the purview of the library. The author identifies a number of key trends in showing why this is true, why the underlying mission that ties all libraries together must change. They mostly fall along the lines of changing technology, the obsolescence of existing technology, and the emergence of new technology not yet created. This includes not only books, but also keyboards. This includes how we search for information, and soon text will not be the only thing we will be able to use to search.
The author envisions the library shift as away from protecting information for the people, to protecting culture for the people. As a collection of resources to allow users to interact in this new online, global world, as not only content consumers but more focused as content creators.
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Many thanks, I liked your summary -- I have been wondering about the argument in the Future of Libraries article that libraries should shift from protecting information to protecting culture -- it is of very broad (I guess that is what futurists do, their job is kind of broad by definition), but I wonder if the shift is really from protecting information to protecting culture -- maybe it is more from facilitating a print and analog based information infrastructure, to facilitating and helping to critically navigate a digital infrastructure...
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