Microsoft in talks about “Humanitarian Cloud” project
A number of tech companies including F5 Networks, Hewlett-Packard and VMWare are participating in a pilot project launching today called the "Humanitarian Cloud."
The project, being presented today at the Social Innovation Summit at the United Nations Plaza in New York City, is designed to give nonprofit organizations the ability to share applications, services and IT support using cloud computing technologies. The idea is that nonprofits who participate may be able to save money on capital, hardware, software and IT support costs and allow them to access cloud apps from a variety of devices, according to the initiative’s website…
ISC Cloud’12 Focuses on Use of Clouds for HPC and Big Data
On September 24 to 25, 2012, cloud computing experts from around the world will gather in Mannheim, Germany, bringing a range of experience and perspectives on how to reduce the complexity of high-performance computing and the barrier for research and development by switching to cloud computing. This year’s conference also will address the topic of Big Data.
“HPC utilization is becoming increasingly complex and a new trend emerges almost every year. There’s multicore and manycore, scaling up and out, big data, digital manufacturing and the missing middle, green computing, and HPC in the Cloud,” said ISC Cloud General Chair Prof. Dr. Wolfgang Gentzsch, an international expert in HPC and Grids who now brings his expertise to the clouds. “What the end-user is really looking for is research flexibility, easy access to HPC, reduced management overhead, and possibilities to extend the existing and limited HPC infrastructure.”…
Are Cloud Reliability, Security Still ‘Open Issues’?
In a new report, The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) notes 23 “open issues” regarding the cloud computing, including computing performance, cloud reliability, economic goals, compliance and information security.
FierceGovernmentIT reports that issues highlighted in NIST Special Publication 800-146 (PDF) “are traditional distributed computing topics that have remained open for decades” but have become more relevant since the emergence of cloud computing. “Other issues appear to be unique to cloud computing,” says the document…
Cloud Computing: Facebook flub means digital economy is dead? Hold that thought
In a recent column, New York Times columnist Ross Douthat argues that the dashed hopes of the Facebook stock offering represent a broader issue with the Internet economy itself. That technology is not delivering a new economy, but rather, a “hobbyist’s paradise,” quoting Slate’s Matthew Yglesias — “subsidized by surpluses from the old economy it was supposed to gradually replace.”
Douthat also cites statistics that show the technology sector is still but a small portion of the economy, and is suffering higher rates of unemployment than more traditional areas. Douthat says the digital economy simply isn’t a growth engine for the mainstream economy:…
Do’s and Don’ts in Cloud Computing for Today’s Small Business
In today’s saturated market of ‘information in the air’ software, it’s surprising that when you look up in the sky, you don’t see branded clouds drifting along, offering great deals if you decide to send up your six filing cabinets of company accounts, staff records and customer files.Here is a guide for what, and what not to look for, when selecting a cloud based storage solution for a new or small to medium business:
SECURITY
Security is undoubtedly an important question, however many people do not know their triple DES (data encryption standard) from their AES (advanced encryption standard). To keep it short, most banks operate at 128-bit AES; this is considered to be acceptably secure for financial institutions. However, a few cloud companies offer 256-bit AES data encryption to demonstrate their pledge of security to you, as computing power and therefore miscreants’ abilities to attack important data is increased every 18 months to 2 years. (Thank you, Moore’s law)…
Cloud & Big Data: The rise of the Data Centre
Reportlinker.com announces that a new market research report is available in its catalogue:
Cloud & big data: The rise of the data centre
http://www.reportlinker.com/p0874140/Cloud–big-data-The-rise-of-the-dat…
This report explores the various technical and economic issues bound up with cloud computing and Big Data – giving readers a deeper understanding of these concepts that are the subject of so much talk today. Among the key points examined is the critical role that data centres play when implementing technical solutions. Readers will also get a detailed profile of the players, both public and private sector, who are shaping the market…
Consider Cloud Computing Services Before Your Users Do
The longer you put off providing features and services offered in the cloud, the worse off you’ll be, according to an article in Network Computing.
The post by Define the Cloud’s Joe Onisick offers a stark take on falling behind cloud adoption:
"Every day that goes by that IT isn’t meeting the features and services offered in the cloud, users are moving there on their own. No office collaboration environment? They’re on Google Docs. No file-sharing option? They’re using Dropbox. No solid backup or recovery options for their laptops? Carbonite is handling it. Now your data is outside your corporate walls, outside your control and outside of compliance."…
New Data Shows Job Growth in Cloud Computing
Research from Wanted Analytics shows significant job growth in the cloud computing sector. The figures show that more than 12,000 jobs were advertised online, which represent a 49% increase over the previous year. And the increase is even more striking compared to the job ads in this sector two years ago: A striking 275% increase over April 2010. The Wanted Analytics statistics reinforce the growing importance of the cloud to midsize and other businesses.
Digging deeper into the stats, it seems that many companies are looking for the right people to design and manage their cloud business interface. Businesses are seeking new hires for positions such as webspace cloud computing engineer, systems engineer, software engineer, network engineer, and Java developer…
Shaderlight Cloud Rendering Powered by Limitless Computing Shines in Architosh AIA National Awards
Limitless Computing Inc., a leading provider of 3D mobile Augmented Reality, and ArtVPS Ltd, developers of Shaderlight, the interactive rendering software for Google SketchUp, today announced that its Shaderlight Cloud Rendering powered by Limitless Computing is a runner-up in the 2012 Architosh Best of Show AIA National Awards in the desktop category.
Architosh, a leading online publication devoted to Mac and iOS CAD and 3D software applications, announced its first AIA National Convention and Exposition Best of Show Awards.
"Shaderlight deserves recognition as the first cloud-based rendering solution for Google’s popular SketchUp rendering program," wrote Anthony Frausto-Robledo, publisher and editor-in-chief of Architosh. "With this unique solution, SketchUp users can produce photo-realistic renders of their models at up to 5x speeds faster than on the desktop and up to 128x faster at animations."…
Avnet Technology Solutions Debuts Dedicated Cloud Solutions Team
Avnet Technology Solutions, the global IT solutions distribution leader and an operating group of Avnet, Inc., today introduced Avnet Cloud Solutions, a dedicated team focused on off-premise cloud solutions for value-added reseller (VAR), managed service provider (MSP) and integrated software vendor (ISV) partners in the U.S. and Canada. The Avnet Cloud Solutions team is developing a portfolio of integrated and packaged offerings designed to be delivered on an annuity basis by partners, minimizing their development costs and fostering repeatability.
The focus of this portfolio is on the areas of cloud computing that are in demand among end users and best served by off-premise cloud delivery models. Initially, Avnet will provide partners with offerings in workload categories, such as productivity and collaboration; backup and disaster recovery; test and development; security; application hosting and management; remote management and monitoring; and data center as a service…