The Cloud: What it is, and what it isn't

First, let’s clarify what it is not. It is not the Internet. The ‘Cloud’ refers to servers that house software and databases that we use every day, accessed using the Internet. 

In its simplest form, think of the Cloud as a computer that’s not in your home that stores data such as documents, photos, videos and music, etc. You access your files via the Internet. If your computers dies, the data (docs, photos, videos and music) are still safe and can be put onto a new computer.

Almost everyone uses the Cloud. If you have an email account, you are using the cloud. Your email “lives” in the Cloud.

For other things like Word documents, photos, Excel documents, music and videos, companies that provide cloud storage include Google Drive, DropBox, Apple and Amazon Cloud. You pay a monthly or yearly fee and can store your documents, photos, videos and music in the Cloud.

Your documents may be saved on a server (a big computer) in New York, California or Japan (just to name a few). But, because we connect via the Internet, it “feels” as if your documents are on your computer.

The Cloud has also made it easier for companies — since they no longer need to update and maintain their own servers and workers can access the same information and applications no matter where they are.

There are different types of cloud computing. If you are interested in learning more about the other models, here is a good explainer.