5 Ways You're Already Using the Cloud

If you run a Google search for "cloud computing," 173 million results with appear with various definitions, references and blogs.  Judging by the number of explanations and the variety of definitions online, cloud computing can be a difficult concept to understand. Perhaps the best way, though, is realizing that most of us are using cloud computing concepts every day and have been for some time.

1. Webmail

Using webmail applications like Yahoo and Gmail is a good demonstration of cloud computing. Webmail is  accessible from any machine, anywhere. This is made possible by the software which runs the application; these programs are held online. The files holding the individual messages are not on a computer but in the 'cloud'.


There are pros and cons.  Being online is the primary key to accessibility. If there is no internet, there is no way to work in the email application instead of a program like outlook.  As the digital age continues to expand, however, this is becoming less of a concern with internet accessibility practically anywhere from WiFi hotspots to mobile phones.

2. Google Docs

Google Docs and other collaboration tools allow files to be stored in a central location and the ability to share them with other users. Again, remote access is a major benefit to Google Docs; there is access to software such as a word processor and spreadsheet which doesn't need to be on a desktop . This is how cloud computing works.

3. Backup and File Storage Social Media

Utilizing online providers for backing up systems and storing copies of files is also using cloud computing. Instead having to remember to backup files or going through the expense of an automatic system, users can connect to a central provider of backup and storage services. As with the others, there are also pros and cons. However, one massive pro is that backing up data in the cloud is independent of your hardware. If the hardware fails (one of the main reasons to backup) the data is still safe in the cloud.

4. Social Media

The explosive popularity of social media sites like Twitter, LinkedIn, and Facebook provide another demonstration of daily use of cloud computing. Public and private messaging, photo sharing, playing games, polling and access to a whole range of plug-in applications allow companies to develop their page. It's worth noticing one more benefit of cloud computing with social media.


Much of the usage of sites like Facebook and Twitter does not take place on a computer. Mobile phones, games machines and even televisions have Internet browsers and can access processing power, software and storage in the cloud.

5. Online Photo and Video Sharing

Websites such as Flickr, Vimeo and YouTube allow users to upload and share photos and videos. YouTube alone gets more than 2 billion views per day. That's about double the prime-time audience of all three major US television networks combined.


While Cloud Computing can be difficult to define, these examples can provide simple demonstrations to show that the cloud is being utilized in everyday online activity.  While remote access, scalability and other benefits can improve our daily lives, more and more businesses are migrating to the cloud to take even more advantages of the cloud to improve and expand.


If your company is interested in a free network assessment to see how you can directly benefit from IS Support's cloud services, we would love to hear from you! Give us a call at 866-370-7142, send us an e-mail or visit our website!

Is the Cloud Secure?

The booming popularity of cloud computing continues to increase and change the way the world can interact with and manage data, but as this new technology emerges, so do questions about security and reliability.



Many providers utilize the cloud to manage their large networks.  While the benefits of relatively inexpensive purchasing space in terms of cloud storage and distribution has attracted many users, recent outages along the with uncertainty of having information shared across multiple servers can cause concern for many companies.

With the growing number of businesses and organizations switching to cloud computing for their daily Internet needs, it becomes increasingly important for providers to answer the lingering question for many users considering migration: is the technology secure enough to handle sensitive information?

The simple answer is yes: cloud computing is just as secure, if not more secure, as standard computing and hosting. Unfortunately, despite billions of daily cloud transactions, coverage often focuses on the minuscule examples where something goes wrong.  Like Amazon and Google outage, this negative coverage can send users into a panic about their data.

However, it is important to note that while outages do occur, they are usually not any more significant than a traditional outage. The data has not been "hacked," and the outage does not mean that  information was lost.

Many cloud providers will also take additional measures to enhance cloud security. Their policies and even physical security on site are much tighter than traditional hosting platforms, with workers actively monitoring how the network is performing and taking immediate action when a potential intrusion is detected.

Another major difference between cloud computing and traditional computing is that most traditional hosts offer nightly backups. If problems occur, the latest backup is from the night before. Cloud computing is designed to back up after each transaction, instantly. Should something fail within the service, the last backup was only moments before the last transaction. For problems that exist inside the cloud, a single fix can instantly alleviate any problems experienced by consumers.

The future of data storage online is most certainly cloud computing, as it provides instant access to data under a heavy load and redundant backups for when a potential fail should happen. The security measures that go into protecting this future will only become more stringent as time goes on, so if you are considering migrating to the cloud, hopefully this post gives you a peace of mind.

If you're still unsure or would like to speak with one of IS Support's cloud consultants, in-depth, please contact us at anytime at 866-370-7142 or visit our website.

We'd love to give your company all the benefits of cloud computing while simultaneously providing peace of mind that your networks are secure.