Clear Skies Ahead for Cloud Computing

2010-10-14

Definitions of cloud computing can vary depending on who’s describing this evolving technology.

One way to look at it is by imagining it as a bank of ATMs that hold financial and personal information about various peoples’ accounts.

In essence, the bank is the “cloud” where information is stored; ATMs act as the computers used by consumers, individuals or organizations. The data is stored for a large group of people in one database (the cloud) that can be accessed anytime, from any computer module with the proper user information.

Instead of purchasing and installing software on their own computers, consumers rent computer software, processing power and data storage from a service provider’s servers to access it over the internet. In Canada, cloud computing is still new and while the definitions may be somewhat cloudy, its potential has people talking.

“The hype-curve on cloud computing is very high,” says Paul Cotton, Partner Group Manager at Microsoft, and Chairman for the Canadian Advisory Committee of Distributed application platforms and services (ISO/IEC JTC1 SC38). “It’s what everybody describes they’re doing whether you’re a commercial software company or you’re a public servant trying to figure out where your IT systems are going to be in five years,” adds Cotton.

The international Sub-committee (SC38), which includes a study group on cloud computing, met for the first time in May 2010 and has already begun to gather standardization requirements for this technology. At a subsequent meeting held in Beijing, the group discussed additional issues such as data ownership and interoperability. The meeting represents a positive step towards addressing data privacy issues and how the cloud technology can remain safe and efficient for Canadian users.

“When it’s hyped like that, you get a lot of surface waves but you don’t know what the currents are underneath,” says Cotton. “Multiple standards with overlapping functionality are appropriate for cloud technology as it advances rapidly and has standards that are repurposed to support that innovation,” he adds.

Standardization for this fast-growing technology is becoming increasingly important each day. Ensuring transparency and accountability, standards make cloud computing more efficient for Canadian users and technology suppliers. The issue of storing data in a single cloud for access by multiple users raises issues of information security. Cotton acknowledges those concerns but contends that, as with any new technology being introduced into the marketplace, there will be skeptics.

“There are some good reasons for privacy and data protection,” says Cotton. “In many cases you could do a much better job from an efficiency point of view if you could share those computing resources,” he said.

Even with its growing popularity in Canada, many of the associated regulatory issues with this service relate to concerns of privacy rights and information ownership because of the border-less nature of this technology.

“When you look at cloud computing, one of the big issues, especially when you’re talking about standards, is the whole issue of how countries treat information,” says Chris Moore, the Chief Information Officer for the City of Edmonton.

The City of Edmonton has been using cloud computing for about four years and has seen positive results from implementing the technology.

“The benefit for us, is the ability to quickly put in place a technology-based service,” says Moore, adding how current cloud computing providers such as Microsoft, Google and Amazon, are making the services more user-friendly. “It’s more than just infrastructure as a service, it’s really an application as a service,” he says.

Cloud computing offers users the advantage of getting any amount of information posted on a website quickly, efficiently and ready for public use.

“We don’t have to maintain the infrastructure so it’s a combination of cost-savings, cost-avoidance and speed, but for us, it’s mostly speed,” adds Moore.

The future of cloud computing remains bright, as many different technology suppliers, corporations, organizations and IT professionals praise its evolution—an evolution which will pave the way for the next wave of internet growth.

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This article first appeared in Volume 37 of CONSENSUS Magazine, 2010. The information it contains was accurate at the time of publication but has not been updated or revised since, and may not reflect the latest updates on the topic. If you have specific questions or concerns about the content, please contact the Standards Council of Canada.

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