Even at this day and age of technology-powered information re-distribution, books remain a solid tool to help you get started especially with a vast concept such as cloud computing. After that, the real education begins.

What's worse than being labelled as 'hype' is the proliferation of so-called experts.  And the good thing, with a bit of perseverance, you'll be able to tune in to the right signal/s.

It was just in 2005.  Others may have thought about it earlier than this.  Yet, this article which appeared at the MIT Sloan Management Review certainly opened the horizon for that 'big switch'.

A dominant cloud service provider isn't exactly a win for cloud computing.  Is it?

Like high-stakes races, cloud computing is at a stage where there's competitors galloping towards dominance and prized-fighter status.   As much as every technology is a move towards efficiency, to emerge as dominant market leader means an anointment for increase in users that naturally results in better ROI.

What will Cloud Culture be like? Who will own the cloud? How can we keep it open? And how can it empower the world’s poorest people?  - Charles Leadbeater

There isn't much to distinguish between the Internet and the computing cloud these days unless you're still too caught up with the definitions.  Much of the question about the pros and cons of the web have sparked new debate relative to the coming rule of the clouds.  Truly, cloud computing has transitioned from being a  question of why, to a question of 'whose cloud?'.

Scale, cost effectiveness and pay for use are terms we're used to hear about cloud computing but like Google, 'search and access' are bound to be its keywords.

We can't entirely fault Marissa Mayer for saying that it's not what you know but what you can find out. First of all, she's from Google and and we all know what Google is really good at. So what better way than to remind us about their product's value again, as if web supremacy isn't enough. She writes,

In the ongoing case regarding the recent hacks against Google and possibly a couple more of technology companies, one thing becomes clear, harm now comes cloaked in tech disguise.

This could not be possibly more earth-shaking than the recent tragedy in Haiti but Gartner's timing of releasing it's predictions and timetables deserve it's own Richter-scale measure.

Venture capitalists aside, Mark Zuckerberg knows who his real friends are and gives Apache Software Foundation $40,000 as a Gold sponsor. 

He may not be concious of it while inside his dorm room back then but definitely, the spirit of open source was hovering and fully present as David Recordon writes:

Poised for growth in 2010?  Keep three horizons within your sights.

It is already a psychological victory for companies to be able to leave 2009 pretty much functioning and slightly unscathed.  Considering the doomsday predictions back early of last year, 2010 is a whiff of fresh air and optimism that the worst has passed and that new opportunities beckon.