According to Jobs, iCloud ‘marks the completion of a long quest to liberate the computer from local files and all the desktop mishigas involved’. A transition often referred to as the ‘Post PC’ paradigm.

Early analysis of the move calls it the beginning of ‘new era’ for Apple, positioning the company as the clear leader in the race for making cloud computing mainstream.

“iCloud will shape the next 10 years the way the iTunes-on-your-Mac/PC digital hub shaped the last 10″, veteran Apple commentator John Gruber wrote.

Google vs. Apple

He also pointed out the significant difference between Apple’s and Google’s cloud approaches.

“In both cases, your data is in the cloud, and you can access it from anywhere with a network connection. But Google’s vision is about software you run in a web browser.”

“Apple’s is about native apps you run on devices. Apple is as committed to native apps – on the desktop, tablet, and handheld – as it has ever been.”

Microsoft lagging behind

Microsoft’s lack of clear vision for a personal cloud is being seen as leaving the PC giant significantly behind its rivals.

According to Wired technology writer Steven Levy, the ‘Post PC’ concept is still a taboo at Microsoft.

“But whether Microsoft admits it or not, we’ve been Post PC for years now. Our problem has been that these new devices haven’t yet morphed into tools that are every bit as capable as the one they’re replacing.”

“At WWDC, Steve Jobs took moved us closer to filling that gap. Considering Apple’s unbelievable momentum, you have to believe that that his users will follow.”

Definition

Cloud portability – In cloud computing terminology, the phrase “cloud portability” means the ability to move applications and its associated data between one cloud provider and another – or between public and private cloud environments.

Posted via Webopedia.com

“[Cloud computing] is especially significant today, at a time when we are seeing an explosion in the number of portable devices with limited storage capacity,” Vaizey said at the China internet forum in London this week.

“Access to clouds enables them to transcend that limitation and provide a level of functionality which would normally be associated with much larger machines.”

In his speech, Vaizey also pointed out that with the introduction of cloud computing comes the need to rethink some of the issues regarding privacy and data security.

Vaizey has recently been at the centre of the tech media thanks to his controversial comments about net neutrality.

Last weekend, Vaizey has been busy taking back comments about agreeing to a ‘two-tiered’ web, where ISPs could sell faster access to certain sites.

For many business leaders, the phrase cloud computing sounds nice but will mean very little. For IT experts, cloud computing is the biggest thing to happen in technology since the invention of the web.

Some companies are already employing cloud technology but it is still being ignored by many. This new insider breakfast will arrange a panel of industry experts alongside representatives of corporate organisations already using cloud technology to answer the following key questions;

Cloud computing

* What is it?
* What are the benefits?
* Is it secure?
* Is it reliable?
* What are the legal issues?

The event will explain what the main types of cloud computing are along with their respective benefits. We will look at how to select the best type of cloud by using practical case studies from businesses that have already implemented cloud solutions. In addition we will outline how to develop bespoke applications for cloud.

Other key areas to be considered will include how reliable cloud computing is and what key SLA’s you can expect; what the main security issues are and how to ensure compliance with the necessary legislation such as PCI.

Speakers and panelists to include;

* David Morris, Head of IT, Nisa Today’s
* James Simpson, Head of new business, Attenda
* Jim Ansdell, IT Director, Gigantic
* Jeremy Gidlow, Managing Director, Intechnica
* John Barker, Partner, Chadwick Lawrence

Insider events are regularly over-subscribed therefore please register your interest as soon as possible. If you have been successful you will receive a confirmation email two weeks prior to the event. Please click here to register your interest

If you need any more information please contact Lianne Sunderland on 0161 907 9741.

via Vision+Media Events calendar.

Cloud computing has become a subject of increasing interest over the last few years but what exactly is ‘Cloud’ and what does it mean for business both now and in the longer term?

This event gives you the opportunity to hear experts describe exactly what is meant by ‘Cloud Computing’, to hear from businesses already using cloud services and gaining benefits, to quiz an expert panel and to workshop with other business people. This will help you to find out what the advantages and drawbacks are of commitment to the use of Cloud Computing.

Agenda:

12:30-12:45 Registration

12:45-13:15 Lunch and Networking

13:15-13:25 Introduction, Opening remarks from Chair

13:25-14:00 Keynote Address ‘Towards the Cloud!’ An overview of a Cloud – delivery and deployment, market dynamics, opportunities and challenges (Ian Osborne, Director of the Digital Systems Knowledge Transfer Network)

14:00-14:30 Who’s Who in ‘Cloud’? A review of existing and near-future Cloud service providers and the products that they offer (Phil Worms, Marketing Director, iomart Group).

14:30-14:55 Getting Ready for the Cloud. A quick look at the technical and non-technical stepping stones for cloud computing (Mahesha Pandit, Programme Manager-Scalable Computing, Digital Systems Knowledge Transfer Network

14:55-15:15 Refreshments

15:15-16:00 What can ‘Cloud’ do for me? Case studies of the use of ‘Cloud’ in real business scenarios

* Speaker – Dr James Huntington

IT Farm provide a fully managed IT system for finance, law, recruitment or life science businesses. Using the latest cloud technology, their system consists of servers, software and support which can be tailored to the needs of your business.

* Speaker – Andrew Smithson

Commercial lawyers with experience in technology transfer and exploitation. They have a number of lawyers working remotely and we use cloud technology to provide a unified service.

16:00-16:35 Q&A panel session with the speakers (Moderator: Ian Osborne)

16:35-16:45 Closing remarks from the Chair.

ABOUT THE SPEAKERS

Philip Hargrave, DC KTN

Philip is the CEO and Network Director of the Digital Comm- unications Knowledge Transfer Network (KTN), established by the Technology Strategy Board to bring a competitive advantage to the UK by helping to drive innovation.

Philip previously worked as Chief Scientist, Europe Middle East and Africa for Nortel, and is a Fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering.

Ian Osborne, DS KTN

Ian Osborne is Director of the Digital Systems KTN, a Technology Strategy Board funded programme operated by Intellect, QinetiQ and National Physical Laboratory. He also chairs the BCS Distributed and Scalable Computing Specialist Group, and is VP of Enterprise for the Open Grid Forum and a Principal in the European FP7 Project, OGF-Europe.

Ian has worked in ICT since 1972, latterly with HP’s Corporate Research Laboratories in Bristol and Telecom Systems Business in Edinburgh.

Phil Worms, iomart Group

Phil Worms is the director of marketing for iomart Group plc, one of Europe’s largest providers of managed hosting, cloud computing and business continuity services. Having spent 25 years working in the IT industry he is recognised as one of its brightest thinkers. He regularly contributes internet and “new media” related features for trade publications and national newspapers and is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts. He is an advocate of social media using it for both business and charitable causes.

Phil has sat on several national advisory committees ranging from the provision of broadband access to online safety initiatives. He is now heavily involved in the debate surrounding the greening of IT with energy efficiency and carbon emission reduction a particular topic of interest.

Mahesha Pandit, DSKTN

As a programme manager, Mahesha Pandit is driving the scalable computing programme of Digital Systems KTN. He has around 14 years of IT industry experience in automotive and aerospace domains. His interests include software architectures and software engineering.

Please contact Carolyn Hayes c.hayes2@lancaster.ac.uk or 01524 510465 if you have any problems with registering.

via Cloud Computing – Eventbrite.

Description:

The 2nd annual Cloud Computing World Forum is the perfect event to learn and discuss the development, integration, adoption and future of cloud and SaaS.

Building on the success of the 2009 show, this two day conference and free-to-attend exhibition will provide a focused platform for the global cloud computing and SaaS industry.

Organiser:
Keynote

via 2nd Cloud Computing World Forum | Chinwag – the UK’s leading community media company for the new media industry.

Description

About CloudCamp:

CloudCamp is an unconference where attendees can exchange ideas, knowledge and information in a creative and supporting environment, advancing the current state of cloud computing and related technologies.

As an informal, member-supported gathering, we rely entirely on volunteers to help with meeting content, speakers, meeting locations, equipment and membership recruitment. We also have corporate sponsors that provide financial assistance with venues, food, drink, software, services and other valuable donations

Location:

The event will take place at the Gateshead Heritage @ St Marys building in Gateshead…this is located between the Sage Gateshead and the Tyne Bridge. You can find a map here: http://tinyurl.com/ydcsexj

Interested in more CloudCamps?

- visit http://www.cloudcamp.org/

Organiser:

CloudCamp

Website:
http://www.cloudcamp.org/

via CloudCamp Gateshead | Chinwag – the UK’s leading community media company for the new media industry.

Google's Parisian Love campaign told a virtual love story to the Superbowl audience.

The search engine giant, that previously has relied strongly on word-of-mouth hype in its marketing, has turned to creative agencies for a new advertising campaign, The Marketing Week reports.

Agencies across the UK have been invited to pitch for a campaign that will focus on promoting Google’s search facilities.

It is not yet officially decided where the future campaign will be aired. Google has said it’s not looking into following last month’s campaign at the Superbowl with advertising in the next massive sports event, the World Cup.

The news follow Microsoft’s announcement of a multimillion ad campaign to promote its search engine Bing in the UK. The company is trying to gain market share by portraying Bing as a “decision engine” with Google’s search associated with information overload.

Earlier this week, Google added to the rivalry of the two companies by opening an online shop for business software. Google Apps Marketplace involves more than 50 companies offering a wide-variety of cloud-based business software.

Chris Vander Mey, Google’s product manager, said: “The Google Apps Marketplace eliminates the worry about software updates, keeping track of different passwords and manual syncing and sharing of data, thereby increasing business productivity and lessening frustrations for users and IT administrators alike.”

Sources: Marketing Week, The Guardian, The Independent

Cloud Computing has far-reaching implications for businesses. Don’t get left behind – find out how to take advantage at ‘Cloud Seminar’, an event featuring Microsoft and Sage.

In recent reports both The Economist and Business Week have commented how cloud computing – where software, data and services are hosted on the internet – will transform the business world. Make no mistake ‘the cloud’ is going to be disruptive to IT. It offers significant threats to market incumbents but huge opportunities to new entrants and established companies that respond quickly.

Head to Cloud Seminar on 28th January 2010 to discover how you can benefit. The event, sponsored by Sunderland Software City is just £20 to attend and will take place at Middlesbrough Football Club on 28th January 2010 between 10am and 1pm – Places are limited so book now. To book your place contact Jill Newey on 0191 305 5095 or by email, jill@riseconsultants.co.uk.

What will you learn?

Delegates will leave the seminar with a clear view of the compelling reasons for using cloud computing – and how to do it.

Session one | The Public Cloud

Microsoft one of the world’s leading cloud providers, talk about the benefits of cloud computing. Discover who is using it and for what – and find out how you too can get started. Speakers: Steve Caughey (Arjuna) and Simon Davies (architect at Microsoft).

Session two | The Private Cloud

A number of leading North East businesses, including Sage and Arjuna Technologies, will talk about their practical experiences of using cloud technology.

How to book?

Call Jill Newey on 0191 305 5095 or by email at jill@riseconsultants.co.uk.

via Cloud Seminar | Arjuna Technologies Limited.

Description

2 Day Web 2.0 conference covering web 2.0 interface and innovations.

Interface tackles how users and their clients connect to the web 2.0 phenomenon and “how best to” engage them. Innovation addresses web entrepeneurial challenges and new technologies.

Finally 6 web entrepreneurs will be invited to the event to pitch for venture capital. There will be one lucky start-up receiving this. There will also be a people’s award as voted by the conference attendees.

The conference covers the following: social networking, blogging, cloud computing, security, mobile web, ecommerce, and showing ‘HOW TO’ make your business successful with Web 2.0 innovations!

Web 2.0 enthusiasts will enjoy the following topics:

> WEB 2.0 & Cloud computing
> Monetization of the web,
> Browser wars & web operating systems,
> The mobile web,
> Social networks.

More info: web 2.0 ii Interface & Innovation Conference

Book Tickets for Web 2.0 ii Interface & Innovation

Organiser
Aries Forth
Contact:
Email / +34 93 272 3726
Website:
http://www.web2event.com

Apply now for Digital Mission to SXSWi 2010 – click for info & form

via Web 2.0 ii Interface & Innovation Conference, London, 2009 | Chinwag – the UK’s leading community media company for the new media industry.