As technology improved, computer components became smaller, lighter, faster and cheaper, the PC became affordable and transportable, with a recorded 150 million Personal Computers world-wide by 1993. Before long there was one in every home and they quickly became recreational for learning and gaming. The consequence of this however is that they left ‘connectivity’ behind, the PCs could run their own software with pretty interfaces at top performance, better than what the mainframe could pump through to the ‘dumb terminals’. Mainframes were costly and bulky, there was no chance of having one of these at home or even in a small business so PCs were the new answer to business computing. As well as personal computers, the software industry rocketed, every computer needed the latest software and consequently the demand for IT support went through the roof. These were exciting times, by the end of 80s businesses and consumers could buy PCs running window, portable Laptops and Apple Macs and by the late 90s the internet boomed, giving us dial-up access to email and yahoo. There was new technology for business and new business in technology, everybody had more choice, was more mobile and more productive, exciting times indeed, but they were also very expensive times and had we lost something along the way?…

As a business owner I liked the centralised server, knowing that all the processing was taking place on these powerful mainframes, that all the business information was safe and secure on those servers and not sitting on laptops and home computers all over the world. These centralised servers were expensive but the maintenance costs were predictable, the ‘dumb terminals’ were reliable, didn’t need any setup or maintenance and they lasted forever because all the processing happened on the server. As a business owner my IT was a utility that serviced my business, I could have experts looking after the server and the rest was simple administration…

Over the last decade we have seen immense advancements in internet technology, broadband is more prevalent, faster and more flexible than ever before. With cable, ADSL, Public Wireless and 3G we’re always connected, at speeds that are more than capable of delivering high performance connectivity to centralised servers half way across the world. So has this development had an impact on all these problems we’ve seen with the emergence of personal (de-centralised) computing?…

The answer is yes, in at least two ways. The emergence of broadband has had technology innovators clambering over themselves to take the onus away from software and information running on the PC. Probably the most obvious development is web based software, sometimes described as Software as a Service or Cloud Computing. The aim here is to drive the software from centralised web servers, delivering it securely over the internet to users via a simple web browser. This fantastic way of delivering applications is not without its drawbacks, not least because it is an entirely different way of working than what most people are used to. However I’m not going in to that here, I’m more interested in the other development which is the ‘Hosted Desktop’. Now this technology is not new as I mentioned in the opening paragraph, but where previously it was a nice to have alternative to VPN when you were out the office and a handy administrative tool for an IT professional, now it can be the basis of your entire IT Infrastructure – If you want a picture painted based on a real life scenario check out my other post: The business case for Hosted Desktop.

There are many reasons to opt for a hosted Desktop architecture which I’ll cover in more detail in my next post but for a taster here’s a preview:

1.) Save money because there is no need for
     a. Onsite servers
     b. IT Support contracts
     c. Redundant hardware
     d. Backup systems
     e. Anti-virus
2.) Monthly licensing for all your IT
3.) Scalable per/user pricing
4.) Predictable budgeting for your business IT and support
5.) Increased security on your data
6.) In-build Business Continuity and Disaster Recovery

For more information on the Hosted Desktop services SpiderGroup provide take a look at our website on:

Hosted Desktop – Access your Office Anywhere

Cloud computing is a recently coined but popular term for the delivery of information and services to one’s computer, over the internet (or ‘cloud’). Why ‘cloud’? Well, if you’ve ever had the pleasure of reviewing network diagrams you’d know that the internet is generally depicted by a cloud. My guess is that the Internet has become such a vast, unfathomable network of information and services that no one can really explain it – so we just call it ‘the cloud’ and take for granted all the really clever, interesting and weird stuff that happens in there.

Personally I’m not sure that l like the term, I run a business and the image of my information floating around in some vast cloud makes me a little uneasy, fortunately I know better and if it’s the term that’s going to stick then I need to join the party. Whether it will stick is another matter, the most recent fad was calling it web 2.0 and the slightly less catchy software as a service (or SaaS), not to mention on demand services and application service provision (ASP). But all these terms essentially refer to same thing; the delivery of services and information over the internet to billions of consumers and millions of businesses all over the world.

Give me an example…

To take a practical example of cloud computing, we’ll look at small business accounting software as this should apply to the broadest audience.

Standard Computing: Sage Line 50 is by far the most popular accounting solution for small businesses in the UK and those of you who have used this software will know that, like all standard software, it needs to be installed and maintained on a computer in your office. This can cause a number of headaches for business owners and financial controllers such as; accessing accounts information when you’re not in the office, working across multiple locations or from home, upgrading software and hardware and backing up your data.

Cloud Computing: QuickBooks Online is an American accountancy package that has been re-developed in a web-technology that allows it to be delivered as an online service. This means that it can be accessed via any web browser, all you have to do is go to the home page, enter your security information and start using it. You can print, export and report on information just as you would with standard software but you have the added convenience of paying for the service on a monthly subscription, with no up-front capital expenditure. I believe that QuickBooks Online is currently only available in the US but other online accounting packages such as KashFlow are available to the UK market, I should state that I am only highlighting the Cloud Computing concept and not the quality of the accountancy packages themselves!

And the benefits are?…

So with the example of your financial systems, lets look at some of the benefits Cloud Computing can deliver to your business:

Work from the office, home of on the road: With cloud computing you’re not limited to working from any one computer, you can access the software from any laptop or PC, anywhere you can get an internet connection, which is great for productivity when you’re on the road or for flexible working for your workforce.

Share real-time information with colleagues and clients: Almost all web-based applications provide role-based access to information and reports which means you can collaborate with colleagues in different locations and provide better service to your customers.

No hassle with software and hardware: You don’t have any hardware in-house, so you don’t have the hassle or worry about servers failing or hardware upgrades, you don’t even technically have any software so no more painstaking installations or desktop troubleshooting.  

Lower cost of ownership and no up-front capital expenditure: I’ve been through the process many times, ask for a quote for a software package, get a quote for the software, software support, additional licensing, a server, backup equipment, hardware support, delivery and 3 or 4 day’s labour to put it all together. Before you know it you’ve spent over £10k up front and 1k per month for the rest of your business life for something you’re probably going to have to upgrade in 3 years time.

Securely backed up data: Most data on the web is backed up at least daily and i know for our database applications you’re looking at an hourly backup cycle so your business information is safe in separate geographical locations at all times. Software providers that host in the cloud can afford much more advanced firewall and security systems than most small or medium sized businesses and only the best technical teams to manage them, your systems are probably in better hands with them than in your own offices.

So is Cloud Computing the way to go?…

I would be so bold as to say that every business could benefit from a little bit of cloud computing but at the moment I see it suiting small businesses (1-50 staff) who are flexible and forward thinking multi-locational large businesses (100+ staff) who can afford to think outside the box. The in-between Medium size businesses tend to have invested heavily in skilled personnel and equipment and only have 1 or 2 locations – besides, what would all their expensive staff be doing if not managing VPN connections, monitoring hardware and applying software updates?…