Grid and Cloud Computing

Grid computing

The idea of grid computing originated with Ian Foster, Carl Kesselman and Steve Tuecke. They got together to develop a toolkit to handle computation management, data movement, storage management and other infrastructure that could handle large grids without restricting themselves to specific hardware and requirements.

Grid computing is the act of sharing tasks over multiple computers. Tasks can range from data storage to complex calculations and can be spread over large geographical distances. In some cases, computers within a grid are used normally and only act as part of the grid when they are not in use. These grids scavenge unused cycles on any computer that they can access, to complete. These computers join together to create a virtual supercomputer. Networked computers can work on the same problems, traditionally reserved for supercomputers, and yet these networks of computers are more powerful than the super computers built in the seventies and eighties. Modern supercomputers are built on the principles of grid computing, incorporating many smaller computers into a larger whole. The technique is also exceptionally flexible.

Grid computing techniques can be used to create very different types of grids, adding flexibility as well as power by using the resources of multiple machines. An equipment grid will use a grid to control a piece of equipment, such as a telescope, as well as analyze the data that equipment collects. A data grid, however, will primarily manage large amounts of information, allowing users to share access.

Grid computing is similar to cluster computing, but there are a number of distinct differences. In a grid, there is no centralized management; computers in the grid are independently controlled, and can perform tasks unrelated to the grid at the operator's discretion. The computers in a grid are not required to have the same operating system or hardware. Grids are also usually loosely connected, often in a decentralized network, rather than contained in a single location, as computers in a cluster often are.

Cloud computing

Cloud computing is another definition for the grid computing technology used in the mid to late 1990's. Surfacing in late 2007, cloud computing is used to allow services used in everyday practice to be moved onto the Internet rather than stored on a local computer.

Email has been available in both methods for quite some time, and is a very small example of cloud computing technology. With the use of services like Google's Gmail and Yahoo Mail on the rise, people no longer need to use Outlook or other desktop applications for their email. Viewing email in a browser makes it available anywhere there is an internet connection.

In 2007, other services including word processing, spreadsheets, and presentations were moved into the cloud computing arena. Google provided a word processing, spreadsheet and presentation applications in its cloud computing environment and integrated them with Gmail and Google Calendar, providing a whole office environment on the web (or in the cloud). Microsoft and other companies are also experimenting with moving programs to the cloud to make them more affordable and more accessible to computer and Internet users. The software as a service initiative (the Microsoft term for cloud computing) is a very hot item for many at Microsoft.

Cloud computing at this stage is very popular, aside from the big players like Microsoft and Google; companies have sprung up just to provide cloud based services as replacements or enhancements to applications on your PC today. A few of these companies are Zoho.com, an online office suite, Evernote, a site devoted to online note taking, and RemembertheMilk.com, online task management.

Computing technologies and new programming or development techniques change quite frequently, the goal in cloud computing seems to be to make the technology that the user sees very friendly and keep the experience simple as possible. Internet based development has skyrocketed recently with the boom in blogging and other social networking services aimed at finding new ways to help individuals and business communicate with customers and each other in the cloud computing arena.

Cloud computing is here to stay, at least for now. There are some concerns about storing personal data in the cloud and security of this information, which are quite valid. The biggest is identity theft. The companies providing cloud based services are very committed to security; however it remains the user's prerogative as to whether or not they wish to put their data in the cloud. Before discounting cloud computing, take a look at the services available and give a few of them a try. Before long, the computing environment as it exists today might just be completely cloud based.