It seems that information and file storage is moving in the way of cloud computing but it seems some people are still a bit skeptical about it.

Perhaps people don’t feel safe entrusting their cherished information and files to an online entity for fear the company may shutdown disappearing with their data. Another fear I believe people have is a lack of proper backup. After all, look what happened with T-Mobiles Sidekick which never offered users a way to make their own backup… thousands of people lost all their contacts, calender entries and all other information when Microsoft/Danger failed to ensure information was backed up when upgrading servers. What a disaster! Can you imagine losing all your contacts with no backup? UGH!!

Aside from the fear of losing data and files, cloud computing brings up other concerns such as privacy issues. If all your data is online, even if password protected, someone besides you (i.e. the service provider) will have access to your information. This may not be such an issue on a personal level but think of the privacy concerns on a corporate level. Imagine the devastation that would be suffered by a corporation whose customer list, or worse entire database, somehow fell into the hands of a competitor.

That said, it seems that cloud computing is definitely the wave of the future, at least on a personal computing level, especially with modern day cell phones and the emergence of devices like the Google Netbook.

Personally I am a advocate of cloud computing particularly in the way of Google’s services. I have come to trust and love all the wonderful services offer by Google and try to take full advantage of all they have to offer. I use Picasa, their free online photo albums, as a backup for my favorite pictures. All of my contact infomation is kept online and shared, very conveniently, between my Gmail, Google Voice and Google Wave accounts. I have found Google Docs useful for sharing spreadsheets, I always having a copy of my resume accessible and a virtual copy of all my college essays etc. are available online should my printed copy get ruined on my way to class. In the way of time management I have made more efficient use of the Google Calendar and Task List now that I have a mobile phone powered by Google Android. Furthermore, it appears that Google is preparing for their advances in the way of cloud computing having opened up the Google Docs to allow the upload and storage of ANY type of file.

This may sound like I am trying to plug Google and well… I am, but not because they are paying me. I just feel that Google offers some amazing free services and look forward to the release of their Netbook and other future advances that Google brings forth!

So… how do YOU feel about cloud computing? Leave a comment below and share your thoughts! I’d love to hear your opinion!!