CLOUDs and Computing

I don’t remember the first drawing I ever created. It was likely a series of squiggly lines that only I could decipher. I do, however, remember the first set of objects that I learned how to draw well.

House, tree, cloud, repeat.

Clouds, in particular, were my specialty. I was never at a loss for reference material (just look up), and unlike drawing a perfect circle, it’s nearly impossible to draw a cloud wrong. In 8th grade art class, I mass-produced dozens of variations of clouds in many mediums —watercolor, pastel and pencil. I enjoyed creating and getting lost in these fluffy landscapes. But I never imagined this experience would serve as a precursor to my professional life.

Like the drawings of my past, today clouds have become a way of life.

Before the Internet, the word cloud referred to either a visible mass in floating the sky or a foggy state of mind.  Today, the word is often used as a truncation to the term “cloud computing.” The National Institute of Standards and Technology, U.S. Department of Commerce defines cloud computing as “a model for enabling ubiquitous, convenient, on-demand network access to a shared pool of configurable computing resources (e.g., networks, servers, storage, applications, and services) that can be rapidly provisioned and released with minimal management effort or service provider interaction.” (The NIST Definition of Cloud Computing, Recommendations of the National Institute of Standards and Technology, September 2011)

In plain English, “computers used to work alone, inside a home or business. Now thanks to the Internet, we can use the power of computers at a completely different location, i.e. ‘in the cloud.’” (Click here for an introductory video explanation from Common Craft)

Clouds are so commonly used today that computing platforms Apple and Microsoft have included the word directly and indirectly in the name of its consumer products, iCloud and SkyDrive, respectively.

Three benefits to teaching and learning in the cloud: 

1. Synchronicity and Version Control. Cloud accounts are synchronized. This is especially important for people who work across multiple devices, platforms and locations. Rather than tracking (uploading/downloading, renaming and e-mailing) multiple versions of a given file, users can work from a single document that is invisibly synchronized across platforms and is always up-to-date.

2. Collaboration: An essential theme and key element of emerging technologies is collaboration. On both small and large scales, collaboration fosters creativity, enables convergent thinking and spurs innovation. Within the educational environment and across the global economy, cloud computing allows users to work together to develop objects across time and distance. For educational project ideas and tutorials, visit Google Apps for Education.

3. Automated Backups: March 31 is World Backup Day (unless you’re a techie, chances are good that never heard of it). Creating backups of your digital data is important, and fortunately cloud services automatically and regularly create backups.

And the potential pitfalls:

1. Automated Backups: Relying upon one mode of data backup is unsafe. Users should always have more than one location for file storage and perform regular backups.

2. Security and Privacy: Recent revelations of surveillance activity on the part of the National Security Agency have sparked outrage and debate, and brought to light the risks of storing data in the cloud. This risk is always present when hosting data in the cloud. Work accordingly.

3. File storage: Storage allocation varies per service. Before using any given service, make certain the product has the capacity to serve your short- and long-term data needs.

Cloud services at Smith
Currently at Smith, there are two supported cloud storage options: Box and Google Drive. Both services make it easy to access, share, and work collaboratively on all your files.  To learn more, visit Smith’s TARA.

About that opening video…
I love moments when the seemingly disconnected fields of art and technology intersect. CLOUD, a large-scale interactive sculpture created from 6,000 light bulbs by Canadian artists Caitlind r.c. Brown & Wayne Garrett was my inspiration.


REFERENCES:

“ABOUT CLOUD.” CLOUD. N.p., n.d. Web. 29 Sept. 2013.

“Cloud Computing.” Cloud Computing. Common Craft, n.d. Web. 29 Sept. 2013. <http://www.commoncraft.com/video/cloud-computing>.

“The NIST Definition of Cloud Computing.” National Institute of Standards and Technology, U.S. Department of Commerce, Sept. 2011. Web. 27 Sept. 2013.

“Resources: Overview – Apps for Education.” Resources: Overview – Apps for Education. Google Apps for Education, n.d. Web. 27 Sept. 2013.

“Smith College Technology And Resource Adviser.” Smith College Technology And Resource Adviser. N.p., n.d. Web. 29 Sept. 2013.

“World Backup Day.” World Backup Day – March 31st. World Backup Day, n.d. Web. 29 Sept. 2013.