Cloud computing allows users system resources via remote cloud-based services without the user’s active involvement via local servers. Cloud computing has provided users with almost unlimited services like storage, networking, backup, machine learning, and more.
The popularity of cloud services prior to the COVID outbreak was steadily growing, but the pandemic accelerated the implementation. Today, more and more companies are opting for cloud services. And most cloud service providers are privately held.
A Spot on the Cloud – History of Cloud Computing
Cloud services might be the hot topic of the day, but they are not exactly new. Big tech giants like Google and Microsoft started experimenting with cloud computing a while ago. To understand how cloud computing evolved over the years, we should go back to the beginning of the cloud story – 1963.
In 1963, the Defence Advanced Research Projects Agency contacted MIT and presented with a project which would create a network of computers working together simultaneously. The project would reach a convergence point that links two computers and lets them collaborate on the same thing. This project later evolved into the internet, but it also served as the foundation for cloud computing.
The next important step in the evolution of cloud technologies is the invention of virtual computers. Virtual computers do not exist physically, but they work like real computers and have operating systems. During the 1990s, virtual computer networks were rented as products and services to companies. However, in 2002, Amazon started implementing some of the essential services typically offered via Cloud.
The 2006 Amazon Web Services offered the users a myriad of web-based services, including storage and computation. The Elastic Compute Cloud offered virtual computers available for rent.
In 2006, Google launched Google Docs, and the following year, joined forces with IBM to create a network of servers which host massive data sets. The project, along with Netflix’s video streaming service, marked the beginning of the Cloud. From that point on, the game was on – Apple, IBM, Microsoft, Oracle, and even NASA introduced their cloud platforms and products.
The Private Industry of Cloud Services
Since the beginning of cloud computing, only a fraction of the new-fangled market did not belong to private companies. As the cloud technology advanced, the situation followed suit – a big chunk of cloud providers are private companies with billions in revenue just from cloud computing services.
But there is a reason why so many companies across different industries are switching to clouds. The cloud platform allows you to store and manage your data located on a remote computer, far from you. Moreover, you can use it to perform computations, process and conduct research without burdening your personal computer. Plus, you can access the data whenever you want to with a couple of clicks only – but you require an internet connection.
But, the business is booming, and more and more companies are joining the fray. AWS (Amazon Web Services) remains the biggest cloud service provider, closely followed by Rackspace and Alibaba. But Microsoft Azure and Google’s Cloud platform are not far behind.
Post-COVID Cloud Service Application
It is no secret that the deadly pandemic tilted the world and shook it to its core. Nearly every human life on the planet was radically changed – from isolation to digitalisation. And in these uncertain times, we still do not know when the world would go back to normal, and if at all.
However, the isolating situation pushed the world straight into the hands of digitalisation. Today, a vast majority of activities are performed online – from lunch dates to classes on Zoom – even the things we never imagined could be translatable into digital terms.
Cloud service companies became the first stop for millions of users who wanted to move their data online. The leading service used by most clients is storage – but clouds give you many, many other possibilities.
However, one thing is clear – the privately held cloud computing services are no longer targeting individuals, but rather big organisations and communities like companies and governments.
Governments worldwide are paying millions for cloud services per year; primarily storage with trillions of datasets and sensitive information for which the government has no physical space.
The pandemic is not yet over, but it is already clear that the upward trend is continuing in favour of cloud computing services.
Gaming and Other Entertaining Ways to Use the Cloud
From freelance video editors to governments, more and more people and organisations are turning to cloud computing. And indeed, cloud computing is an umbrella term which covers a wide array of services and features the users can enjoy – storage being the first.
Even gaming has transferred to clouds. Something previously unthinkable, cloud gaming is becoming a popular search topic for millions of gamers online. Google launched Stadia, its cloud gaming service, enabling players to access video game streams in 4K resolution and 60 fps. The instant, remote-server video gaming echoed throughout the gaming industry and even reached digital gambling.
Online cloud gambling is not a concept anymore. Yggdrasil Gaming, a top software provider, switched to cloud tech to increase scalability and improve performance in 2020. Online casinos are switching to cloud technologies to boost the gaming experience of its players. But more importantly, more and more players will opt to play their casino games via clouds. If you implement such technology into online gambling, you can transform virtually any gaming device into a super potent system capable of supporting highly demanding games and interactive content.
But cloud gambling is still in its infancy, and the best thing we could do is track its progress on sites such as Casino Directory. This website is the best place for casino players who want to stay up-to-date with gambling-related questions, including news and updates in the growing gambling industry.
Final Thoughts
It is time to face the fact that the entire world is switching to the digital realm. Virtual networks, remote servers, and cloud technology are no longer terms ordinary people do not understand – but relatively standard terms mentioned everywhere.
From finding a place to store your precious photos to platforms offering the hottest video games, cloud computing is the future. And we are yet to see how far cloud computing services can go. One thing is certain – they can go far if the current blossom of privately held computer service companies is any indication.
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