Grazed from Forbes. Author: Joe McKendrick.

Cloud computing may be highly virtualized and digitized, but its is still based on a relationship between two parties consisting of human beings. And since it is still the new kid on the block, both providers and users still trying to get their footing — and best advantage — in this new evolving type of relationship.

A few months back, researchers affiliated with the QMUL Cloud Legal Project at the University of London spoke to cloud providers and consumers, identifying the major points of discussion — or disagreement — that have been coming up in their negotiations for cloud engagements. The researchers, W. Kuan Hon, Christopher Millard and Ian Walden, documented their findings in a recent issue Stanford Technology Law Review. They found that some things are negotiable in a cloud computing engagement, other things are not. Here are the top nine points of contention that have been arising:…

Grazed from CIO. Author: Bernard Golden.

The Gartner Magic Quadrant is, perhaps, the most renowned artifact in the technology analyst industry. It is controversial, to be sure, with many criticizing it as superficial, too high-level and even reflective more of vendor business relationships with Gartner than true technical and market superiority.

I’m not necessarily convinced of those negative aspects of the Magic Quadrant. Issues notwithstanding, it’s obvious from everyone’s behavior that being in or out of the MQ is extremely important to vendors. They track who’s in (and out), trumpet inclusion when it occurs and assess their strategy and technology plans in light of potential MQ inclusion. Certainly, vendors who achieve the coveted Magic Quadrant inclusion—even if privately they denigrate its importance—shout about it from the rooftops…

Grazed from The Orlando Advocate. Author: Editorial Staff.

The sky is the limit for cloud computing as it continues to drive job growth – garnering interest from Main Street, Wall Street, corporations and governments. A 2012 Microsoft-commissioned report by the International Data Corporation (IDC) indicated that spending on cloud services will generate nearly 14 million jobs worldwide by 2015. In the past decade, cloud computing pioneers such as Amazon, Salesforce, Google and Apple-have developed comprehensive cloud services, platforms and applications. Now, traditional businesses of all kinds – even those that don’t operate in the technology space – are incorporating cloud services more frequently, laying the groundwork for cloud-related career paths that are rich with opportunity and growth.

In fact, a related study from the Sand Hill Group suggests that cloud computing – driven by the 21st century surge in mobile computing, social networking and big data – may generate more job growth in the coming years than the Internet itself did during the 1990s…

Grazed from TheBull.   Author: Bob Kohut.

Cloud computing was declared the ‘next big thing’ almost a decade ago – and the following revenue chart from IT market research firm the Yankee Group suggests the pundits were on the money.

A “cloud” relies on an outside source to undertake computing tasks.  A good example is Google Maps and Google Earth; these software applications located on Google servers and accessed via the internet, replace the need to buy individual mapping software for personal computers. Dropbox – a file sharing application that lets you store and update files from multiple devices – is Cloud computing at its simplest…

Grazed from Business Insurance.  Author: Bill Kenealy.

Technology trends such as cloud computing and “appification” are changing the frequency and speed of developing software and, in turn, the way technology providers deliver those features to insurers and risk managers.  Kathy Burns, Chicago-based CEO of Aon eSolutions, which provides cloud-based and on-premises software to risk managers, said her firm’s embrace of the cloud has accelerated the process of innovation. Instead of needing to push updates to separate clients that may be running separate versions of the on-premises software, cloud-based applications allow automatic changes, Ms. Burns said.

“We provide cloud-based solutions to risk managers and it enables us to do more for them more quickly,” she said. “If we create a great report or piece of analytics or a new module for a client, I can then make it accessible to our broader client base.”…

Grazed from Melodika.net.  Author: Duaine Charles.

Are you running a small business unit and looking for a change in productivity? Have an idea of trying out the new method of Cloud Computing in your organisation? Then, it will be right to have a discussion about the benefits of this way of computing your IT needs. Any company should implement various technologies to improvise their returns and take a development way in the processing. The good investments on effective methods can always bring in marvellous changes in the revenue graph of a company.

This system of using computer software and hardware in the growth of the small business units is becoming quite a popular way towards the growth and success. The key benefits of implementing the Cloud Computing services in small scale business units are discussed below.  Cloud computing is a service where the software is developed to take the company towards the streamline of success. This service includes software and hardware with low charges to bring in huge profits. The way it is used is very important as it reduces the cost on software applications and infrastructure expenses in the system…

Grazed from Engadget.  Author: Nicole Lee.

Nearly a year after HP announced its cloud computing plans, it has finally gotten serious about the internet by creating a specialized business unit around it, according to AllThingsD.

Dubbed the Converged Cloud unit, it’ll be headed by Saar Gillai who has been promoted to senior VP. The unit will manage all things cloud, from hardware and services to its marketing and networking partners. Judging from its recent financial woes, perhaps this renewed gamble on internet services will push it further into the black.

Grazed from InfoWorld.  Author: Ted Samson.

OpenStack cloud vendor Mirantis has received a hefty $10 million capital injection from the investment arms of Dell, Intel, and WestSummit. The bonanza sets up the company to take on OpenStack rivals such as Rackspace and Piston Computing. What’s more, it could garner greater interest in and support for the OpenStack open source cloud platform, which rivals offerings from former OpenStack supporter Citrix with CloudStack, Microsoft, Eucalyptus, and reigning cloud king Amazon Web Services.

A backer of OpenStack since its birth in 2010, Mirantis claims to have the largest pool of engineering expertise in OpenStack and boasts working on more than 30 deployments over the past 18 months for big-name customers such as NASA, WebEx, Gap, PayPal, and AT&T. The company also has dedicated developers contributing to OpenStack Quantum LBaaS, and it helps run the Bay Area OpenStack user group in Silicon Valley…

Grazed from BusinessSolutions.  Author: Editorial Staff.

Cloud computing is a hot topic. In the retail and restaurant space, the term is often misused and misunderstood. Some resellers are resistant to cloud-based POS due to a lack of knowledge and experience. In an attempt to educate retail and restaurant POS dealers on what cloud really means to them, Business Solutions magazine recently spoke with Mike Burris, CEO of Aeris POS Systems/Essential Elements, a cloud-based POS software provider.

Why should POS dealers consider this "new" way of business?

Mike Burris, CEO, Aeris POS Systems/Essential Elements: Change is nothing new for POS dealers.  If you chronicle just the past 15 years of technological, financial, and social changes that have affected the POS industry, it illustrates that POS resellers have always been challenged to innovate in order to compete.  Truthfully, that has been the case for decades.  It’s why organizations like the RSPA (circa 1950) were formed, and why publications like Business Solutions are important information resources for POS resellers…