Grazed from Business2Community.  Author: James Duval.

Cloud computing has for many years been like the Wild West of business IT – a vast, untapped wilderness full of possibilities for profit and adventure but still largely unpopulated. For the IT contractors who possessed the particular set of skills needed to traverse the cloud landscape, things have been pretty great for some time now. But the market for cloud services is changing rapidly and those original contractors are going to increasingly find themselves in the middle of a modern day gold rush where their skill set is no longer as unique as it was.

The dynamics of the cloud computing market are interesting in that together they form a classic example of a business technology where widespread understanding has lagged far behind technological innovation. As more and more businesses begin to come to terms with the fact that cloud computing is really just a set of tools that utilise a certain kind of computer network and third party hosting rather than a huge and unintelligible leap forward, the market rewards for contractors are going to start to diminish. Why is this? Well, to answer that we first need to look at why the market is currently so good for contractors…

Grazed from PRWeb.  Author: PR Announcement.

Compare the Cloud, an independent cloud computing comparison, information, and advice website, today announces the launch of CloudPitch.me.  CloudPitch.me is a free online resource where Cloud Service Providers (CSPs) have the opportunity to pitch for your business’s cloud computing requirements. In 150 words or less, each service provider has to explain why their cloud solution or technology will solve a particular business problem better than their competitors. Visitors to the site then have the opportunity to ‘vote up’ pitches that resonate with them; and overall voting directly impacts the order of appearance of that provider.

The concept of the “150 word Cloud Pitch” was spawned from a Compare the Cloud blog written in March 2013 by Paul Bevan – a Bloor Research Analyst, who identified the need for service providers to “make the connection to their customer’s needs and aspirations” and to “articulate the benefits,” or face the prospect of disappearing into obscurity – even if their offering is technically superior…

Grazed from Business Solutions.  Author: Editorial Staff.

dinCloud, a cloud services provider that offers business provisioning in the cloud, recently announced that dinServer, its hosted virtual server offering, is now available to Ingram Micro Inc.’s North American channel partners via the Ingram Micro Cloud Marketplace. The expanded distribution agreement allows Ingram Micro to market, sell, and support dinServer to its growing base of cloud-focused channel partners, which includes VARs (Value Added Resellers), MSPs (Managed Service Providers), and SIs (Systems Integrators).

“dinCloud is helping channel partners transform the way companies use the cloud,” said Renee Bergeron, vice president of managed services and cloud computing, Ingram Micro North America. “dinCloud’s server is very complementary to the hosted desktop service from dinCloud that we currently offer to our growing base of channel partners.”…

Grazed from MidSize Insider.  Author: Shawn Drew.

It wasn’t all that long ago that the cloud was an obscure new technology that only a handful of companies were successfully leveraging, but things have truly come full circle. Cloud computing is now almost ubiquitous, and cloud adoption rates by both IT and the public continue to soar. But a small group of businesses are rethinking their cloud strategy and finding that sometimes the cloud just isn’t the right fit.

The Realities of the Cloud

The benefits of cloud computing are undeniable. But as more and more businesses adopt individual cloud solutions, some cracks are starting to appear in this new technology’s armor.  For scalability or elasticity, the cloud reigns supreme, but for businesses that have outgrown the need for constantly shifting IT power, it may not always be the most economical option. As Wired points out, once a company can accurately predict their computing needs, buying hardware at a discount often contrasts advantageously with a public cloud solution for reasons of economy…

Grazed from ITBusinessEdge. Author: Arthor Cole.

The enterprise is fast approaching a critical juncture in the development of virtual and cloud architectures – the point at which public, private and hybrid infrastructure starts to meld into a unified data architecture. But while the idea of a fully seamless environment in which applications and data can burst across internal and external infrastructure at will is still a little fuzzy, the fact remains that cloud computing will soon become the norm for the enterprise, rather than the exception. And that means the pressure is on to convert existing silo-based infrastructure into a private cloud.

Too bad we don’t have a magic pill to make it happen. Instead, enterprise executives are forced into a soup-to-nuts evaluation of existing infrastructure, followed by a detailed plan as to how they intend to convert it into something that is still largely undefined. Industry-wide, however, the knowledge base is steadily increasing, and a quick scan of what some early adopters have learned can make the cloud transition a lot easier for all…

Grazed from NetworkComputing. Author: Gary Hilson.

Aryaka officially launched its Cloud Network as-a-Service, which is aimed at simplifying access to public and private cloud services such as Amazon Web Services, Google Apps and Office 365. The Cloud Network is connected globally through a network of 25 data centers with multi-segment TCP optimization and integrated QoS. Like Aryaka’s WAN Optimization as-a-Service, the Network as-a-Service connects users to the geographically closest point-of-presence (POP), rather than the data center closest to the organization’s headquarters, in order to streamline user-to-application requests.

The new service makes use of the same underlying infrastructure as Aryaka’s WAN optimization, including TCP optimization, but does not include all of the application acceleration features. Aryaka said the Cloud Network is designed to help enterprises with distributed offices, which would normally have to traverse the public Internet to access services such as Office 365 or AWS at a single data center, and that more than 95% of the world’s enterprise business users are within 20 milliseconds from any of its POPs…

Grazed from PRWeb. Author: PR Announcement.

Convergent Communications now offers cloud computing services to improve the storage capacity and efficiency of businesses. The innovative Cloud Workspace reduces technology costs while allowing employees to access files and documents from anywhere. In addition, the Cloud Workspace improves data security and eliminates complex security challenges that business owners typically encounter.

“We are happy to offer this new technology that significantly improves the way businesses store information,” said Ian Breckenridge, General Manager at Convergent Communications. “Our approach is to provide innovative solutions to improve efficiency within businesses. The Cloud Workspace gives businesses new capabilities that increase productivity and security while decreasing expenses.”…

Grazed from Midsize Insider. Author: Doug Bonderud.

The US Federal government continues to ramp up cloud spending, with both public and private clouds on the radar for increased adoption over the next five years. Although security and reliability have in large measure driven the adoption of private solutions, public alternatives should see federal investment of up to $7.7 billion by 2017. Just like private sector enterprises, the government is aiming for a best-of-both-worlds model. So what does this mean for midsize IT?

Slow, Then Fast

According to a July 2013 report by IDC, the 2014 fiscal year will be "flat" for federal cloud computing investments; even so, the federal government will still spend $118.3 million on public clouds and $1.7 billion on private clouds. Shawn McCarthy of IDC says that beyond 2014, "[G]rowth potential looks bright. Investments should reach a critical mass around 2015 and beyond." The research firm predicts a renewed focus on cloud computing within the next 18 months…

Grazed from ComputerWeekly. Author: Warwick Ashford.

The time has come for service providers and consumers to move to a security model better suited to the cloud computing era, says cloud-based content management and collaboration firm Box.com. The firm has pursued transparency or openness as a key policy to establish trust with customers concerned about security in the cloud environment.

Customers are able to access all activity and transactions related to their content and even download that data to their security information and event management (Siem) systems. They also have access to SOC1, SSAE16, SOC2, ISO27001 and internal audit reports and quarterly penetration test reports. Box.com even allows customers to perform their own penetration tests…

Grazed from Yahoo. Author: Editorial Staff.

Microsoft CEO Steve Balmer has announced that he is to retire from his position with the company within the next year – but not before a successor has been identified and hired. The unexpected news follows on the heels of former Xbox supremo Don Mattrick’s defection to Zynga earlier this year, and points at the possibility of futher managerial changes happening as the company restructures for the future.

Speaking about the announcement, Ballmer said "There is never a perfect time for this type of transition, but now is the right time. We have embarked on a new strategy with a new organization and we have an amazing senior leadership team. My original thoughts on timing would have had my retirement happen in the middle of our company’s transformation to a devices and services company. We need a CEO who will be here longer term for this new direction." There have been no rumours as to who may succeed Balmer, but Microsoft confirms it will be casting a wide net, looking both internally and externally for his replacement.