Making an AAS of Yourself

AAS or As A Service is the core cloud mantra. Everything in the cloud is offered as a service. Platforms, applications, operating systems - the building blocks of a computer - are offered as services today by an enterprising bunch of vendors who are competing fiercely for what's going to be the biggest business the world has seen. So what does this mean to you and your business? Does it make sense for you to join the cloud bandwagon?


Three Flavors

The AAS model comes in three flavors SAAS, PAAS, and IAAS.
SAAS - Software as a service enables you to access and use applications without installing them on your PC. So, what's new? We do that with e-mail (Gmail, Yahoo Mail, etc.) already. That's right. The cloud vendors have teamed up with software biggies like Microsoft and Citrix to make almost ALL applications available in the cloud. What this means is that in the not-so-distant future, you will be able to access MS Office from the cloud - on ANY device! Banks and large business enterprises have been doing this for years using Citrix tools. Watch this demo.



PAAS - Platform as a service enables you to use a newer or a completely different operating system. Let's say you need a brand new server to host a CPU-hungry Web application. Get it from a cloud vendor. Watch this demo.



What's more, if your cloud vendor can virtualize the operating system, you can access it on ANY device. Let's say you have an old PC that cannot be upgraded to the latest operating system. No worries. Sign up for a cloud account and use a newer or different  operating system. Watch this demo.



IAAS - Infrastructure as a service enables you to use custom-built infrastructure - hardware, operating system, and software - in the cloud. You can virtually build an entire lab in the cloud! Your choices are limited by what a cloud service provider can provide. Given the competition, they practically provide everything. It's an extension of PAAS.


...on ANY device

Cloud computing has virtually eliminated the boundaries between devices. Today, you can view websites, access spreadsheets, and even work on CPU-intensive applications on tablets and smartphones. As a result, you can extend the life of legacy hardware AND put your mobile devices to better use.

This has largely been made possible due to advances in application and platform virtualization by companies like Citrix and VMware. Cloud providers use virtualization technologies to build virtual instances of applications and operating systems. So, when you access an application in the cloud, you are actually "seeing" snapshots of it on your device - a little like Remote Desktop or VNC. Virtualization is a lot more complex than that, but you get the point right? :) This implies that the real processing is happening in the cloud - not on your device.


Do you need it?

This is always a tricky question. Many businesses, especially SOHO and non-profit, have small IT budgets. This is largely because the ROI on IT, for them, is spread over a longer time period compared to large enterprises. So, upgrades are more expensive for them. Cloud computing makes it cheaper to upgrade and operate IT assets. For example, Rackspace leases a 1GM RAM Windows machine at $.08/hr. Google has one of the cheapest and best SAAS offerings in the market. Google Apps for Business is a great way to use your existing hardware to access applications and store all your data in the cloud at just $5/user/month. The list of cloud providers is growing by the day and even the software biggies are jumping in. Apple announced their cloud offerings, iCloud, last week.

So, if you don't make an AAS of yourself today you are NOT making an ass of yourself. The cloud computing industry is evolving at a rapid pace and things will only improve - so you can wait and watch.  That said, cloud computing technologies are solid, safe, AND cheap. So try it out - you might just fall in love!