Grazed from CloudTweaks. Author: Editorial Staff.

1) Al Gore Invented the Cloud.

The collective sigh heard around the world when they read this section may signal that this joke has run its course, but you must have forgotten already, this article is about what your parent’s think. In addition, the day your dad stops telling the same bad joke over and over again is the day he is no longer a father. So let me explain an inconvenient truth (see what I did there?) about this misconception. Sure the joke, “Al Gore invented the internet,” is a little old but your parents had seven years to work on this environmental Cloud twist to the joke to shock it back to life. Now our parents will confuse their joke with reality and we have to hear them complain about Al Gore for a few more years. Just let the man be!

2) “Auntie Em, Auntie Em It’s a Twister!”

One day I hope you are graced with, “So if everyone uses this Cloud, how does it keep everyone’s stuff separate?” You may laugh at the absurdity of this, but sadly I was not fortunate enough of coming up with such a wonderful question. It seems that with some parents the Cloud produces thoughts of the mighty tornado, nature’s fiercest re-arranger of stuff. So it only makes sense that when the Cloud’s network processor becomes too hot and then mixes with the cooling system it produces a twister of biblical proportions from your Cloud and out pops apps, pictures, music, and movies that aren’t even yours. Because nothing can stop the mighty tornado Cloud as it throws all your information to other random Cloud users and you will lose everything!…

Grazed from Forbes. Author: Louis Columbus.

Hiring great people and creating a culture of achievement that is fun, focused and able to get challenging tasks done is not an easy task. Keeping that culture strong and focused on the customer takes a unique leader that consistently earns trust and respect. Those are the qualities I think of whenever I’m asked to recommend the best cloud computing companies to work for.

Using the scores from Glassdoor.com I’ve put together the table below comparing cloud computing companies and when available, the percentage of employees who approve of their CEO. Cloud computing companies are sorted based on the percentage of employees would recommend their company to a friend…

Grazed from Mashable. Author: Chris Taylor.

The tech pundit jury has apparently reached a solemn, sober verdict on the Chromebook Pixel laptop Google launched Thursday. And the verdict is … "Oh my God, look at the sticker price!" (Tech pundits faint with shock.) This rush to judgment, most of it without so much as seeing the device, is a great pity. I’ve been using the Pixel all day, and it’s one of the most gorgeous pieces of hardware I’ve picked up in a while.

The Pixel is a pleasure to use, with a screen that’s just as eye-poppingly beautiful as a Macbook Retina — except you can navigate it by touch like a retina-display iPad. (And if you don’t want to touch the screen, the giant glass trackpad on the keyboard is just as awesome.) The i5 chipset is incredibly fast. A great deal of thought went into every aspect of its construction, from the click of the keyboard to the solid car-door clunk of the magnetic latch…

Grazed from InfoWorld. Author: Lucas Mearian.

Calling it the biggest news since its creation, VCE today added two low-end models to its line of Vblock pre-configured, cloud-computing systems. VCE also announced it is teaming with SAP AG to add the SAP HANA database to its Vblock system. Models prequalified to work with the in-memory database software are called Vblock specialized System SAP HANA.

The new Vblock System 100 and System 200 models join the System 300 and System systems. Additionally, VCE unveiled a new software management application said to give users a single view of their entire Vblock environment. The new software, called VCE Vision Intelligent Operations, allows the preconfigured systems to be managed in a "much simpler converged way," said Nina Hargus, VCE’s chief marketing officer…

Grazed from InfoWorld. Author: Juan Carlos Perez.

Google has launched fee-based support services for customers of its cloud platform and infrastructure products, like App Engine, Compute Engine, Cloud Storage, and Big Query. Google, often criticized over the years for having weak technical support both for consumers and enterprise customers, rolled out a four-tier support program specifically for customers of its Cloud Platform services.

"Support is as important as product features when choosing a platform for your applications. And let’s face it, sometimes we all need a bit of help," wrote Brett McCully, from the Google Cloud Platform Team, in a blog post on Thursday. The Bronze tier, which is free, includes access to online documentation, community forums and billing help. Building on those services, the Silver tier, which costs $150 per month per account, adds the ability for customers to ask the Cloud Platform support team questions via email related to product functionality, best practices and service errors…

Grazed from HispanicBusiness.  Author: Editorial Staff.

Business advisory company PwC US on Wednesday announced the publication of a new book titled Business Models for the Social Mobile Cloud: Transform Your Business Using Social Media, Mobile Internet, and Cloud Computing by Ted Shelton, a managing director in its US Advisory practice. 


The effects of social media, the mobile Internet and cloud computing technologies on business are all examined in the book, which offers advice on how to use those technologies in support of business objectives for innovation and growth.

Shelton’s title is published by John Wiley & Sons Inc and is available in both print and all e-book formats.

Grazed from InfoSecurity. Author: Steve Durbin.

The benefits of cloud computing services are now well established; however, uncertainty still surrounds several of the inherent risks. The ISF’s Steve Durbin examines what organizations can do to realize the benefits of the cloud, while avoiding the information security bear-traps that exist

According to a recent report from the Cloud Security Alliance and ISACA, which examined enterprises’ attitudes toward cloud computing, the market has reached a new level of maturity at which enterprises can benefit greatly from adopting cloud infrastructure, platform or software service offerings. Nevertheless, issues around regulations, international data privacy and exit strategies top the list of concerns that undermine confidence in cloud computing…

Grazed from FierceGovernnment IT. Author: Greg Slabodkin.

The intersection of cloud computing and big data gives government agencies opportunities in areas such as DNA sequencing and national security, said speakers at a National Institute of Standards and Technology workshop.

Federal Chief Information Officer Steven VanRoekel said that the federal government in only at the "tip of the iceberg" in its use of cloud and big data. The government is sitting on a "treasure trove" of data that could open up opportunities for scientific discovery and entrepreneurship, he said…

Grazed from SCMP. Author: Bien Perez.

Microsoft has teamed up with Hong Kong Broadband Network (HKBN) to bring the "cloud computing" version of its Office productivity software to millions of households across the city. The two companies yesterday jointly introduced Office 365 Home Premium software as a service, which allows consumers to subscribe for as low as HK$2 a day, less than the cost of a tram ride. Horace Chow Chok-kee, the general manager at Microsoft Hong Kong, said the partnership with HKBN will soon be expanded to include support for small and medium-sized companies in the city.

Cloud computing enables consumers and companies to buy, lease, sell and distribute a range of software, business systems, data and other digital resources, including storage, as an on-demand service, just like buying electricity from a power grid. "Cloud" refers to the internet. Office 365 Home Premium, which had its global launch last month, is available in 162 markets in 21 languages. It includes the latest set of Office applications: Word, Excel, PowerPoint, OneNote, Outlook, Publisher and Access…

Grazed from TalkinCloud. Author: Chris Talbot.

Riverbed Technology (NASDAQ: RVBD) is rolling out the next incremental version of its virtual Whitewater appliance. Whitewater Operating System (WWOS) 2.1 introduces larger virtual appliances than were previously available, but the biggest news is that Whitewater now supports Amazon Glacier archival storage.

Jerome Noll, director of products and marketing for the Whitewater product family at Riverbed Technology, told Talkin’ Cloud that the company has been gaining a lot of interest from customers, who now number in "the triple digits." And what’s happening, he said, is customers are going to Riverbed and its VARs to buy one appliance, and then later beefing up their systems with additional appliances…