History of Cloud Technology

If you have ever seen the commercials that talk about experiencing the cloud, you might wonder what it is. Cloud computing allows computers to share and store information and data in a place other than on the computer itself. It is a great way for people to keep all of their information in a place where it can be accessed by other computers. Cloud technology is a definite leap forward in the way that you are able to use your computer devices.

While the commercials may try and create a picture that cloud technology is the newest and greatest thing that has happened in computers in the last few years, it may not be as new as you may think. Cloud computing has a history that would surprise many people.

• 50’s – Yes the basis of cloud computing can be traced back to the 1950’s. The use of shared mainframe computers allowed businesses and schools to share a computer an access it from remote locations. The main frame was the first cloud in the sky.
• 60’s, 70’s, 80’s – During this period more computers found their way into businesses, schools and homes. People began to share their computers with others and it allowed them to access the information from different locations. The number of clouds were growing.
• 90’s – The internet and virtual private networks exploded on the scene. Now there was a different place for computers to put information on. If you had access to an internet connection, you could find the information that was stored by other people on the internet. The VPN’s allowed people to create their own network of computers that could work together.
• The present – Mobile computing is taking over the world. Not only do people want to be able to use their computer device they have anywhere they want, they also want to be able to have access to all of the things that they store on their device. The biggest problems that the devices have are the limitations created by memory space. Thanks to the use of cloud computing, the amount of space that people have is almost limitless. If they put something in the cloud they can retrieve it later from their portable computer.

The history of the cloud technology provides some insight of what is going to come in the future. Cloud computing will continue to expand and people will be able to do more with their computer devices than they ever imagined. The one thing that most people will never realize is how long it has taken computers to get to this point in the first place.