Among the big Internet players (notably, Google and Microsoft), "cloud computing" appears to be in the running as the next killer app for business. Cloud computing is the name given to utilizing the Internet to store data, access it from anywhere and at any time, collaborate on projects from
remote locations in real time, while avoiding the high cost of purchasing a multi-seat license for a suite of business applications such as Microsoft Office.

Google offers it’s cloud platform to educational organizations free for up to 500 users, and to enterprise users for $50.00 per seat, as opposed to the much higher cost of a multi-seat license for MS Office. ICON is an example of a free, educational user, and the Springfield-Greene County Library is an example of an enterprise customer. Another advantage of cloud applications over buying and installing software, is that updates and upgrades cost no additional fees.

MS Office gave us the ability to collaborate on projects, but revisions must still be sent back-and-forth from one user to another. Microsoft says it will launch a new operating system (called "Azure") specifically intended for cloud computing, and aimed at making it easier to toggle between applications stored on the user’s local hard drive and those stored on the web. If they come through with their promise of web based versions of "Word" and "Excel", the software giant could have a decided advantage over rival Google’s completely web based "Google Apps".

While Google’s income from their cloud computing venture is a drop in the bucket compared to their advertizing revenue, the potential for cloud computing to become the next killer app has not gone unnoticed by other companies. Significant players in the field include IBM, Oracle, SAP AG, Salesforce.com, and NetSuite.

While ICON’s members (including myself) may not have a dire need for cloud computing, I believe we can, as an organization, take advantage of our deployment of Google Apps by using it as a teaching platform, not only for office applications, but for Internet applications as well.

Just so you’ll know,
Terry