Cloud computing has become heaven in the digital era, no pun intended. Immediately, businesses saw the advantages of the cloud but has anyone ever explored the many personal uses.
Businesses use the cloud differently than an individual would. Take Netflix for example, the services they provide are built on the backend cloud services of Amazon. The business of cloud computing was already generating $100 billion in revenue in 2012. Over the past few years cloud computing has been used to make a consumer's everyday life easier.
Yes, your Google Drive or Dropbox are great for saving photos. It's also great for your everyday life. Here's all the ways you can personally use the cloud:
Convenience
Cloud computing has earned the nickname "convenience". Society is moving at a much faster pace and sometimes technology can help ease the transition rather than empower it. The cloud proves convenient when you switch computers but still want access to certain files. Cloud computing is also the closest recipe to surviving unreliable hardware. Using Evernote or Google Drive eases the troubles of transitioning from my personal to work computer or when my laptop is faulty and I need a safety net.
Backup
Are you still avoiding computer backup when your laptop continues to ask? Backing up your data has always been a strenuous process. Before this meant managing a box of discs or hard drives and manually loaded your computer's files. This method left a lot of room for human error and definitely not the most efficient way to backup such vital data. Having an adequate amount of space to hold these files was also a reoccurring issue. Cloud based backup has revolutionized the process.
Backup through the cloud allows automatic dispatch of data to any destination without security or capacity worries. Streamline the process of backing up your files and do it with ease with any premiere Mac backup solution. Windows doesn't require these solutions because they can transition easier to a cloud environment.
File storage
Cloud storage keeps files in virtual pools hosted by third party services. Depending on your needs, there are different cloud services that vary in their advantages. Nonetheless, cloud computing can act as your own digital file cabinet; with a higher priced plan, the more storage capacity in that file cabinet.
Instead of predominantly using local storage, many people are using cloud storage as their main deposit because of how accessible and reliable it can be. Not to mention the space the cloud will save on your personal computer and/or external hard drive.
Disaster recovery also falls into the realm of file storage. If ever in the situation where you need to recover large quantities, the cloud provides a much faster and cost effective recovery.
Team collaboration
Even though you're looking for individual uses of cloud computing, here's an aspect that businesses use as well. There are numerous times that you're collaborating with others, either friends or family.
School work and shared projects are easiest to collaborate through cloud services. Share files, edit existing documents in real-time, and even maintain ongoing folders over extended periods of time. In the future, we will keep our diaries or important photo albums on cloud platforms. In terms of team collaboration it creates a virtual way to work together.
The misconception that cloud computing is only useful for businesses is far from true. There are a ton of personal needs that the cloud addresses on a daily basis. Here I've only noted the biggest four, are there any others I'm missing?