Welcome!


Through this blog I have tried to explain cloud computing in a simplified manner, along with its practical applications.

Cloud computing

Cloud computing means all the computer hardware and software you need can be provided to you as a service by another company and accessed over the Internet in a completely seamless way. You need not worry about exactly where the hardware and software are located and how it all works.

Cloud architecture makes the processing power and storage capacity of hardware available over the internet. Cloud providers use servers distributed around the world to form a consolidated, powerful computing network that can be accessed from an internet connection.

We all have experienced cloud computing at some instant of time, some of the popular cloud services we have used, or we are still using are mail services like gmail, hotmail or yahoo etc. While accessing e-mail service our data is stored on cloud server and not on our computer.

Examples where cloud computing is used : 

· Using Google search.

· Using a web-based service such as Google you can create a document, spreadsheet, presentation, or whatever you like using Web-based software.

Why cloud computing is so popular?

The service you use is provided by someone else and managed on your behalf. If you're using Google Documents, you don't have to worry about buying licensed word-processing software or keeping it up-to-date. You don’t have to worry about backing up the files you create. Google does all that for you.

Cloud services are available on-demand and often bought on a "pay-as-you go" or subscription basis. You buy cloud computing service the same way you'd buy electricity, telephone services, or Internet access from a utility company.

For the PCs on our desks, we're having complete control over our computer systems and complete responsibility for them. Cloud computing is different. It can be public and private. Web-based email and free services like the ones Google provides are examples of public clouds.

There are different types of cloud:
•Private cloud : The cloud infrastructure is operated solely for an organization. 

•Community cloud : The cloud infrastructure is shared by several organizations and supports a specific goal.

•Public cloud : The cloud infrastructure is made available to the general public.
Examples - Amazon, Microsoft, or Google.
e.g Google Doc, Spreadsheet

•Hybrid cloud : The cloud infrastructure is a composition of two or more clouds (private, community, or public)

With increase in computer and Mobile user’s, data storage has become a priority in all fields.
Large and small scale businesses today thrive on their data & they spend a huge amount of money to maintain this data. It requires a strong IT support and a storage hub. All businesses cannot afford high cost of in-house IT infrastructure and back up support services. For them Cloud Computing is a cheaper solution.

Different Types of Cloud Computing Services :

· Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS)
An IaaS provider manages the physical end of the infrastructure (servers, data storage space, etc) in a data center.

· Platform as a Service (PaaS)
PaaS provides the framework needed to build, test, deploy, manage, and update software products.

· Software as a Service (SaaS)

The SaaS provider manages the infrastructure, operating systems, middleware, and data necessary to deliver the program, ensuring that the software is available whenever and wherever customers need it.

Advantages :

Cloud computing allows you to buy only the services you want, when you want them. This will cut the upfront capital costs of computers and peripherals. You need not worry about equipment going out of date , or other problems like system security and reliability. You can acquire extra services (or take them away) at a moment's notice as per your business needs.

You do not take your documents with you. Instead, they stay in the cloud, and you can access them whenever you have a computer and an Internet connection.

The cloud always hosts the latest version of your documents as long as you are connected, you are not in danger of having an outdated version.

Another advantage to cloud computing is that you are no longer faced with choosing between obsolete software and high upgrade costs.

When the application is web-based, updates happen automatically available the next time you log into the cloud.

Drawbacks :

Cloud computing is impossible if you cannot connect to the Internet.

Data security is a concern in cloud computing.


Business benefits :

Businesses don't have to bother about expensive software licenses or security updates. Employees can simply and securely share documents across business locations (and also work on them from home).

It is possible to buy in as much (or little) computing resource as you need at any given moment, so there is no need to pay for expensive infrastructure upfront. For running an ecommerce website on cloud hosting, it is possible to scale it up or down for the holiday season or the sales.

Applications of cloud computing:

 Agriculture :

Cloud computing can be used to aggregate data from tools like soil sensors, satellite images, and weather stations to help farmers make better decisions about managing their crops. The cloud's analytic capabilities also aid farmers in understanding their production environment. Data is gathered on the soil within fields, the plants growing on fields, the weather occurring during growing season, and the machinery used in fields. This plethora of information can be uploaded to the cloud, which provides enough storage, speed, and computing power to analyze the collected data and package it in a form useful to farmers. Timely processing of data allows producers to take action within a growing season and correct problems before they become detrimental to yield.

Role of Cloud Computing in Agriculture Field :

  Agriculture information data bank (crop, weather, soil, growth progress, farmer data & expert consultation)

  Store all the agriculture related information in a centralized cloud, which will be available to all the users at anytime, anywhere.

  Improvement of the agricultural products marketing. 

  Efficient use of agricultural resources.

This prominent technique may deliver the agriculture-based knowledge along with management of natural resources and knowledge directly to the consumers not only in a small region like in nonstop marketing or shops but also in a wider region. This will change the whole supply chain, which is mainly in the hand of large companies, now, but can change to a more direct, shorter chain between producers and consumers.

Healthcare :

In healthcare organizations, there are enormous amounts of data collected and stored daily. These data are important and vital for decision making and for delivering the appropriate treatment. Healthcare organizations need to have Electronic Healthcare Records ( EHRs) to be able to exchange data using cloud computing systems where patients’ data are stored, retrieved and shared with other healthcare providers. Since the number of the healthcare data is continuously increasing, it will eventually affect the storage capacity of healthcare data servers and cause slowness in data retrieval. Cloud computing is the solution for the “big data” challenge. It provides unlimited storage resources and facilitates the process of sharing patients’ data between healthcare organizations.

Having cloud computing systems integrated with emergency care services systems facilitate a quicker method of data retrieval from patient’s Personal Healthcare Record (PHR) or EHR. This information will provide guidance to the paramedics to make the right decision and manage patients’ condition based on their medical history.

Picture Archiving and Communication system (PACS) is a tool used in the clinical settings for handling medical images. It is used to store, retrieve and distribute medical images that are critical to support medical decisions and complex treatment procedures. 
Digital Imaging Communication in Medicine (DICOM) is the standard that supports storage format and distribution of medical images. Using systems where cloud computing service integrates with DICOM facilitates access to medical images online directly from the EHR or PHR with the use of mobile device. When patients want to access their own health records that are stored in cloud they connect to it through their mobile phones.

Video Streaming Websites :

Cloud computing is taking the tech world by storm. One of the major applications of cloud services are the video streaming websites, giving you a home delivery of the entire digital world right from web series, latest movies, daily soaps, live sports matches and much more on your devices.

What is Video Streaming? Video streaming is a type of media streaming in which the data from a video file is continuously delivered via the Internet to a remote user. It allows a video to be viewed online without being downloaded on a host computer or device.

What is Video on Demand (VoD)? Video on demand (VoD) is a system that allows users to select and watch video content of their choice on their TVs or computers. Video on demand is one of the dynamic features offered by Internet Protocol TV. VoD provides users with a menu of available videos from which to choose.

Amazon Web Services (AWS) is the Fastest Growing Public Cloud in the World. Millions of customers are using AWS to lower cost, become more agile and innovate faster. The number of AWS accounts are a 12 digit number, so there is an upper limit of 1012 accounts. Other Top Companies using AWS are ESPN, BBC, NASA, Instagram, Reddit, LinkedIn, Pinterest, Airbnb, Unilever etc.
Netflix is a streaming service that allows our members to watch a wide variety of award-winning TV shows, movies, documentaries, and more on thousands of internet-connected devices. It streams approximately 1 billion hours of content per day. Netflix is the biggest customer of AWS, paying an approximate amount of $25 million for using AWS on a monthly basis. The service is becoming so popular that an estimated 37 percent of the world’s internet users use Netflix. 
How does Netflix streaming work? AWS enables Netflix to quickly deploy thousands of servers and terabytes of storage within minutes. Users can stream Netflix shows and movies from anywhere in the world, including on the web, on tablets, or on mobile devices such as iPhones.

YouTube itself is a Public Cloud (SaaS) - YouTube provides a Public, Software-as-a-Service Cloud.Every video uploaded to YouTube is stored in at least one of Google’s 14 data centres spread across the world. When you upload your video, it will be stored at the data centre nearest you, but when someone wants to play it, the video will be sent to their nearest data centre for quick access. This also means that in the event of a fire or other disaster, the data is sent to another data centre so that it’s always accessible.

Manufacturing sector :

No. 1 - Breakdown of silos and centralizing data
Traditionally, there’s functional specialization within a manufacturing business; you’ll have people working in areas such as engineering, production, marketing, sales and finance. However, this means that information is not easily or naturally shared between different departments. This can cause problems along the supply chain if information isn’t passed on to everyone who needs it.
Cloud-based softwares like Enterprise Resource Planning and Customer Relationship Management systems help to break down these barriers. They allow for a single view of all data across the organization, rather than having it stored in different departments. Employees can independently dig down into the specific data points they need easily and quickly.

No. 2 - Increased communication and collaboration
Collaboration within these systems work much in the same way through a process called unified communications. Not only is data centralized for people to access, but employees can communicate efficiently across departments about that data; sharing files and information at the click of a button, wherever they are in the company—or the world.
A notification pings and the right people are instantly kept in the loop. This could be via a smartphone app, tablet or laptop, which allows for flexibility and means employees can pick up any urgent tasks at the last minute.

No. 3 - Better decision-making through Big Data and AI
As information in the cloud is automatically logged and stored, businesses can quickly accumulate Big Data which can be leveraged and analyzed to improve decision-making. Rather than going on gut-instincts, businesses can see trends and patterns emerging and, over time, artificial intelligence can help with predictive maintenance.

No. 4 - Security, compliance and threat detection
IT security is a fundamental part of compliance with regulations, and businesses should actively work to detect threats and prevent data breaches. Cloud-based solutions can keep track of activity, which removes the burden of employees having to manually catalog and report records. Many cloud platforms are pre-configured with standardized best-practice to help businesses stay secure, allowing administrators to easily set up identity and access management.
Another thing that the cloud can offer businesses is automated threat detection and the use of artificial intelligence to monitor and maintain systems. For example, it can detect unusual log-in activity or unauthorized document changes, yet at the same time learn patterns of ‘normal’ user behaviour to enable employees to access the information they need quickly and easily.

This blog is a compilation of information available on the internet. The practical applications have been documented by the students studying in the third year of the BBA(CA) course at BMCC, Pune. This was given to them as an assignment since they had cloud computing as a subject in their curriculum.