Money Really Moving to the Cloud | GovIT Conference Expo 2009

Money Really Moving to the Cloud

Did you expect the level of technology we have today, 10 years ago?

Aug. 25, 2010 09:15 AM

Ever wish you saved a blog title for that ‘perfect’ eye-catcher? Well, I do. Last week I wrote about some cloud surveys talking about how financial institutions are using cloud services titled: CloudFucius’ Money: Trickles to the Cloud. I get to this week’s weekly entry and Ka-Chow (with apologies to Lightning McQueen) that would have been the perfect title to this entry. Oh well, as to not be included in the Department of Redundancy Department Hall of Fame, I had to be a little creative with something slightly different. And for all of you looking at the title and wondering, ‘Did this guy just copy his last blog entry?’ I can assure you, this is all new material so let’s get to it.

Have you seen the news? Cloud Computing Ranks High on Fujitsu’s M&A Shopping List; HP, Dell in Bidding War for Cloud Computing Provider; 6fusion is hiring after raising $3 million; and Nimbula raises $15M to expand cloud service. I guess we’ve moved slightly past the ‘early adopter’ stage and right into the ‘gimmie more’ stage. Throughout the CloudFucius series, we’ve tried to investigate the various surveys showing cloud computing movement and hindrances along with learning about areas we were not so knowledgeable. It’s almost following the same pattern as 26 Short Topics About Security where I filled the entries with stats, surveys, stories, suggestions and as Don MacVittie commented, ‘a link fest’ of articles. I tried to present multiple sides of the story, especially with surveys virtually contradicting themselves when it comes to cloud computing. They want it, they are hesitant; looking into it, waiting until it’s mature; cost saver, virtual sprawl; we’ve deployed, what the heck is it?

What is intriguing to me, errr CloudFucius, is that I had always thought – both my impression and what analysts have said – that cloud computing will never take over the world but is simply another option for IT with various benefits. Right now, that’s exactly what it is. With the announcements above, it sure seems like a lot of providers and investors feel that it’ll be a much larger force within the technology industry. Almost every technology company, including F5, are providing some sort of services that ‘play’ in the cloud. Many of us have also been to trade shows where the vendor booth is touting some ‘cloud’ connection and you look at them and go, ‘huh?’ How does that ‘enable’ cloud computing? ‘Ummm, we use the cloud to do this, that or the other thing.’

How will it all turn out? Who knows at this point. Did you expect the level of technology we have today, 10 years ago? Did you expect RF chips in the underwear you are purchasing? Did you expect common thieves going to a cloud to steal your info? Did you think you’d be able to surf the net on an airplane? Maybe we thought it *might* happen at some point, but we are living it now. ♫ Meet George Jetson……♫

And one from Confucius: Fine words and an insinuating appearance are seldom associated with true virtue.

The CloudFucius Series: Intro, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18

Technorati Tags: F5, infrastructure 2.0, integration, cloud connect, Pete Silva, security, business, education, technology, application delivery, intercloud, cloud, context-aware, infrastructure 2.0, automation, web, internet, blog

twitter: @psilvas

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About Peter Silva
Peter Silva covers security for F5’s Technical Marketing Team. After working in Professional Theatre for 10 years, Peter decided to change careers. Starting out with a small VAR selling Netopia routers and the Instant Internet box, he soon became one of the first six Internet Specialists for AT&T managing customers on the original ATT WorldNet network.

Now having his Telco background he moved to Verio to focus on access, IP security along with web hosting. After losing a deal to Exodus Communications (now Savvis) for technical reasons, the customer still wanted Peter as their local SE contact so Exodus made him an offer he couldn’t refuse. As only the third person hired in the Midwest, he helped Exodus grow from an executive suite to two enormous datacenters in the Chicago land area working with such customers as Ticketmaster, Rolling Stone, uBid, Orbitz, Best Buy and others.

Bringing the slightly theatrical and fairly technical together, he covers training, writing, speaking, along with overall product direction and evangelism for F5’s security line. Prior to joining F5, he was the Business Development Manager with Pacific Wireless Communications. He’s also been in such plays as The Glass Menagerie, All’s Well That Ends Well, Cinderella and others. He earned his B.S. from Marquette University, and is a certified instructor in the Wisconsin System of Vocational, Technical & Adult Education.