If you think I’m wrong, name at least 3 cloud services you actually use?

From where I’m standing I can see 4 major reasons that inhibit accelerated cloud computing further development:

1. Internet Speed Performance: how it would be to run remotely the Autodesk Autocad? This app could suffocate any tank computer with all plugins and modules installed and running remotely it is simply unimaginable.

2. Data Security: I do always have a damage resistant / water proof 512Gb tiny memory stick attached to my keychain with information self-destruct protocol on it. All that data on a remote server it freaks me out, even if that server has the most secure access protocols on it. I’m pretty sure I’m not the only one with this phobia…

3. Human Behavior: Most people are less adaptable to change. How do you convince a horde of employees to do things other way they used to? That would mean to learn and to adapt, and most of them just consider they have not signed for that stress.

4. The Fear of Hidden Costs: Who is going to guarantee the starting price includes all that wee need? Are you sure that nothing will change in the future even if our business will grow?

Of course there are many others on the list, but this lot here is the core of 80% cloud computing stoppage.

You have noticed terms ending with “as a service” more often lately. When you came across “something as a service”, well… that is cloud service.

Cloud service is about using other resources in order to get an output on your machine.

Let us say that you want to play a game. In classic view “as a product”: 1. Check for system requirements, 2. Buy the game, 3. Install the game, 4. Register your game, 5. Play the game.

In cloud view “as a service”: 1. Buy online subscription, 2. Play the game.

As you can see: you will use less disk space, there will be no need for premium gaming rigs and of course, “the product” (in our example – the game on DVD or BR disk) will no longer exist in physical form.

This example can be applied to almost all IT products. We have 4 progressive “as a service” structures:

1. Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS): we use other hardware resources. Example: a remote ftp server or a file sharing service.
2. Platform as a Service (PaaS): the provider delivers both hardware resources and administration facilities. Example: a webhosting service where you have HDD space, active web servers, cPanel admin software and other web development tools.
3. Software as a Service (SaaS): the SaaS provider offers you the ability to run applications that are hosted by the provider. Example: Microsoft Office 365 where you work on their servers and save your work there or on your local machine.
4. Business Process as a Service (BPaas/BaaS): it takes all the steps you have to do in order to complete a business process. There is a great diversity of examples here but one of the basic BaaS is the order-to-cash online selling process.

The main reason of cloud service blooming is the need for externalization, speed, insurance and cost cutting. You don’t have to buy a hardware/software product for its entire lifecycle; now you can buy subscription for using it only for a limited period of time.

a. It is free, open source and GPL – that means you could use it, modify it or even sell it without any restrictions.

b. Linux has a huge family – the number of versions (called distributions) is so diverse, you could even compare them with the Game of Thrones characters. Every distribution serves the scope of its development: publishing, multimedia, programming, offensive ethical hacking, business intelligence, etc).

c. It is continuously developing – and the user/developer community is expanding.

d. It is less vulnerable – to cyber attacks than other operating systems around.

e. It is modifiable – up to central core level, if you know what you are doing.

f. It has totally free support – from an infinity of sources.

g. It has a wide range of testing tools – for computer networks, ethical hacking, automation, scada, robotics and so on.

h. It is the fastest operating system humanity has ever created – you could even install it on your old grandma electric stove.

There are two reasons to stick with your Windows or Mac OS:

– you are a gamer

– you find hard to replace the software you already work with.

Of course, the dual boot alternative it is here to help you keep more than one operating system on the same machine. But I recommend to install Linux on an external hard drive and select from BIOS to boot first from USB (this is not dual boot, but it is more effective).

Note: I was kidding about the last part of h.

Ignorance is a disease curable only through data loss.

A little part of what I do is designing, developing and installing of data structures (App servers, DBS servers, Cloud servers, P2P management, IoT management, and so on).

On particular situations I have to physically move to business sites (if remote intervention is not possible). And I conscientiously check if we have any security flaws left behind user interaction. In more than 60% of the checks I find passwords saved in browsers, files, other instances without the need to capture the data flow on their gateways.

Therefore, dear internet users, please:

1. DO NOT SAVE YOUR PASSWORDS IN YOUR INTERNET BROWSER: even if you keep your computer in the safe-deposit box. Any malware that could get online will send your precious information to some… thing.

2. DO NOT STORE CONFIDENTIAL OR SENSITIVE INFORMATION ON YOUR PHONE OR TABLET: you connect to a bunch of WiFi’s and it is very probable to lose the device (or being stolen).

3. DO NOT LET OTHER PEOPLE AROUND YOUR COMPUTER: set a series of passwords to grant access to your apps and files.

4. SAVE YOUR PASSWORDS UNDER A PASSWORD: use a .txt file to store all your passwords with description to ease the search for them. And archive it under a .rar strong passworded archive. The more complex the password is, the more time will require for a brute force attack to break it.

But things don’t seem to work out. Because this minor element: microeconomics. The cost for 3D printing process is huge. And the time consumption is enormous. Some animals can live, mature, reproduce and die during this process because the most complex and large products can be produced in months of continuous 3D processing.

Do not read only tech magazines, switch for a day on Wall Street literature. You will notice that most 3D Printing Equipment manufacturers have closed their doors… for good.

Of course, 3D printing is ideal for sophisticated products like an artificial liver or a robotized circuit board, but this products come in few numbers. For mass production, the 3D Printing value is simply close to 0.

So do not forget that if you do not intend to produce in the most complex niches, use 3D Printing only as a hobby.