Hybrid Clouds on the Horizon

When most of us think about Cloud Computing we envision fully automated systems, colocation, and perhaps an absence of on-site resources. The reality is that businesses aren’t simply jumping in head first with a definitive cloud solution; they’re working their way up to it by first implementing hybrid clouds.

But let’s back up for a second; you’re probably wondering what defines a hybrid cloud, right?  Simply put, a hybrid cloud is a juxtaposition of on-site and remotely-located IT resources. In other words, if an IT department decides to supplement their assets with some additional singular cloud services, they just implemented a hybrid cloud. Likewise, if an organization is primarily all cloud and begin accumulating on-site resources for back-up purposes, they too are implementing a hybrid solution (although this might be considered a somewhat backward approach).

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In short, Hybrid clouds make sense – both logistically and economically. The truth is that setting up private clouds can be somewhat expensive at first (due to setup costs and/or hardware purchases, etc…). Furthermore, most of the businesses that end up instituting a hybrid cloud solution tend to be transitioning out of a traditional IT setup and into a more refined and powerful cloud computing infrastructure. This usually means that these institutions are new to the cloud as well; perhaps they’ve only dabbled with SaaS and standalone apps/services.  

Naturally, transitioning to the cloud is a major undertaking and it’s something that’s also seen as being slightly risky. The risks don’t stem from instabilities or shortfalls in terms of cloud technology however; the biggest threat comes from trying to seamlessly move vital “enterprise-specific” assets from one place into the cloud. If a businesses has a specific set of resources which they depend on for daily functionality trying to quickly and fully transition into cloud computing could leave them open to experience one of several problems. Hybrid clouds offer an excellent way to hedge against any perceived risks as well as a means of transitioning into cloud computing slowly, one component at a time if necessary.

Here’s how it usually starts: A company is trotting along just fine, they’re running their daily operations and have a great in-house IT setup that takes care of business. Then, something happens; they start to run out of storage space or begin to experience shortfalls in some capacity or another. This of course leads the IT heads to offer up the idea of adding cloud services to make up for the differences. Pretty soon the organization is using one or more (bundled or separate) cloud services in tandem with their on-site IT capabilities.

The continued proliferation of hybrid cloud computing is more-or-less a direct response to the increasing availability of affordable, constructive cloud services as well as shrinking data centers. It’s actually not that data centers are “shrinking”, so much as they’re not able to keep up in terms of technological development and/or available resources.

At the same time, BIG data is becoming a central focus in IT, which means that IT departments have to greatly expand to simply keep up with the pace that information is accumulating. In other words, outside demands are expanding while the company is perhaps becoming too big for its IT department to handle effectively (using only the assets that are available). The only two available options for a situation such as this are to develop a cloud computing program or purchase additional hardware (at great cost). Given that everyone is being affected by the economic downturn, most businesses are opting for the cloud solution; not only because it’s the most affordable, but also due to the fact it offers a massive jump forward in terms of technological ability.  

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Expect to see more hybrid clouds on the horizon. While there are certainly forces which are adamantly pushing businesses toward adopting cloud computing (in whatever capacity), it will probably come down to stability and cost-effectiveness at the end of the day. In other words, most businesses will opt for implementing a hybrid cloud solution, but might only relegate non-essential components to it. Anything that’s considered to be too risky, legacy software or critical will be deployed on-site. This type of segregated approach to IT is becoming increasingly commonplace and is helping to plug a larger number of organizations into cloud. In this way, hybrid cloud computing is perhaps acting as a transitory step toward a more fully realized approach.

How QR code technology is being used to enhance promotion

Though we are currently experiencing a down economy, there are certain sectors that seem to be doing quite well. Luxury items have not only retained their value throughout this entire economic debacle, they actually seem to be increasing in value. Given this turn of events, it’s not surprising that the marketing strategies used to sell these items might expand as well (especially considering that the holiday season is about to roll past again).

Enter QR code technology…

Through the use of QR Codes, marketers are finding exciting new ways and opportunities to speak directly to consumers. One of the most prominent current methods is mobile purchasing. Basically, through the use of QR codes, intrepid consumers can actually make purchases on the go by simply scanning the QR code on an advertisement or model. Since advertisements can be found nearly anywhere (in magazines, newspapers, street placards, or even online) this means that a “virtual sale” is also possible at any time. It’s quite an ingenious method of “bringing the showroom to the customer” actually and it’s likely that we’ll see businesses employing this tactic more frequently.

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However, simply being present doesn’t always increase sales, does it?  Recently, a new promotional tactic has emerged in tandem with the use of QR codes, let’s call it “mobile discounting”. Simply put, some organizations are offering significant discounts to those who actually use QR codes to make their purchases. Sometimes the discounts are instantly deducted while other times you might have to mail in a rebate.

It’s not just those that buy luxury items that are being targeted by QR code-based advertising campaigns. For example, just the other day I encountered a somewhat unexpected QR code marketing strategy, on the top of a pizza box, no less. After paying the delivery man and taking my pie inside, I glanced at the top of the Papa John’s box suddenly realizing that is was basically a large rendering of the most recent Taylor Swift album’s artwork. In one of the corners however, there was a punctuating QR code on full display. In other words, there’s a great example of how businesses are using QR codes alongside cross-promotional techniques to drive sales and help consumers quickly learn more about a product.

Without a doubt, there are probably some of you out there right now saying “QR codes are a simple marketing gimmick, nothing more”, right? Well, I hate to say that you’re wrong, but it’s actually much more than that. Take a look around you; have you noticed the extreme proliferation of mobile computing devices? Now, thanks to QR code technology, each and every one of those devices is not a sales/purchasing tool. Now, given that there are probably billions of handheld devices out there which are capable of scanning QR codes it’s not hard to see how one could begin to expect more sales, is it? At the same time, the world’s population continues to boom, and setting aside space for both showroom and storage isn’t always possible in terms of logistics. In essence, the use of QR code technology will allow businesses as well as manufacturers to effectively get a greater volume of products into the hands of the average consumer.

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The main hindrance to utilizing this technology (QR code marketing into sales) seems to be public awareness of it. While most people are aware of its existence at this point, not everyone is “clued in” to this situation. Now, given that QR code-based marketing has been fairly successful up to this point while only depending on a portion of the public to drive sales, what’s going to happen when everyone (and their grandmother) begins to use it to do their shopping? For instance, there are already some grocery stores in big cities like NYC which post lighted “shopping boards” around town (on the street, in subways, bus stops/stations, etc…). These boards allow customers to do their shopping by scanning the corresponding QR codes next to the products they want to purchase; then, they can have their goods delivered at a time of their choosing (or perhaps pick them up).

We’ve only scratched the surface of what can be done in the realm of marketing with QR codes. Without a doubt, we will continue to see new marketing strategies emerge which will make great use of this convenient technology. The 2012 holiday season is serving as a bit of a test for QR code-based marketing actually, once we’re into 2013 (and after the proverbial “smoke has cleared”) we’ll be able to break down the data and figure out what effect it actually had on sales.

Cloud Computing isn’t perfect, but it’s far from broken…

The most recent Amazon cloud outage isn’t a herald of worse things to come; it’s more like a learning opportunity

Yes, on October 22, 2012, Amazon’s large Virginia data center experienced some technical difficulties which brought the popular sites Reddit, Foursquare and others for a number of hours. This of course comes on the heels of the last significant outage, which occurred around 5 months ago. The question is; are we collectively blowing these events completely out of proportion?

Given the recent turn of events involving AWS, it would appear that some on the internet have never experienced server / site downtime before (or perhaps just want us to believe that). Fact:  quite a number of service outages and site disruptions have occurred prior to the rise of cloud computing. Likewise, in many of those cases, we weren’t looking at mere hours of not being able to surf the net, but days. Additionally, some of the events in the distant past were also followed by significant loss of user data as well. Compare and contrast this with cloud computing and its various implementations for backing up user data.

In the past, many critical errors might have been caused by massive hardware failure. Naturally, since non-cloud systems don’t (or didn’t) tend to provide for contingencies, bringing them back online often meant replacing racks of expensive hardware which would often have to be ordered and shipped. What makes the cloud so different is that everything can be more easily copied, backed up and moved around. In other words, when a cloud outage occurs it’s often simply a matter of moving things around and reconfiguring as opposed to waiting by the loading dock for new hardware to show up.

Having said all that, it is somewhat troubling that AWS would experience such problems at the same data center. But we shouldn’t use these minor events to berate Amazon or their abilities; instead, we should be learning from our mistakes. The simple truth is that there is immense power and ability inherent in AWS; it truly is a marvelous implementation of some very cutting edge technology that not only works, but allows us to achieve some very amazing things.

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This notion that “if AWS goes down, so does the entire internet” is not only silly, but extremely misaligned with reality. Sure, if Amazon were to keep growing at its current pace, and were able to dominate the competition in the long-run, they would likely become tasked with running most of the major sites on the planet. However, if such a thing were to happen, wouldn’t they also increase their capabilities and expand their budgets as well? Moreover, why is it that the tendency is to assume the worst in every single scenario?

For starters, since we’ve experienced at least two events which are relatively close together in exactly the same location it’s safe to assume that this is a unique problem. In other words, given that the same data center is crashing it’s entirely logical for one to deduce that this is not a systemic problem we’re dealing with. A good comparative example would be in food production; just because one factory allows tainted spinach, peanut butter, etc…to enter into circulation doesn’t mean that all of these items produced by other companies are also contaminated.

According to recent reports, the actual AWS outage / event in question was triggered by a memory leak which led to “cascading failures”. Once again, these types of events are more-or-less expected when it comes to fully implementing a new technology for longer periods of time. Call it “working out the bugs” if you like. If anything, these types of events highlight the need for increased scrutiny and the development of new solutions and if necessary, better replacement components/technologies.  

Although it’s somewhat macabre to say so, these types of events are sort of similar to growing pains. People often forget that cloud computing has pretty much replaced traditional grid/waterfall computing/networking in a relatively short amount of time. To tell you the absolute truth, it’s astounding that cloud technology has been as monumentally successful as it has been.

Furthermore, the doomsayers have been predicting terribly crippling events which last for weeks on end ever since the cloud and AWS hit the market. While it would be reckless to assume that these paranoid individuals are completely without merit (they do occasionally make some excellent points which we should learn from), most people are clearly jumping on the fear bandwagon as if it were a pop culture meme. The fact of the matter is that cloud computing has already worked its way into our lives, digital Armageddon has yet to occur and we have no logical reason to assume that it is coming as expected. The threat of solar storms, CME and EMP attacks are often used to undermine cloud computing and its stability…news flash: no computer system or server farm is truly fully protected from these events, cloud or otherwise. Need evidence? During the “Carrington event” in the 1800’s, a solar storm caused the telegraph wires to burn!  

In short, let’s actually give cloud computing time to grow, heal and develop before we label it a broken, transitional technology. The internet of today has been greatly empowered courtesy of the abilities of cloud computing. In truth, most of the activities we engage in online every single day wouldn’t even be possible without some form of cloud computing to drive them.

Yes, Brain – Computer interfaces actually exist!

While it might seem like something out of a science fiction movie, the technology to control certain devices with your mind is here and is very real

Recently, two devices which allow for the human brain to interface with machines have emerged on the consumer market. The first one, called “Emotiv” is a headset that allows for direct control of video games wirelessly. In other words, one would only be using the power of their mind to control the onscreen action. While this is certainly a breakthrough in and of itself, it actually only barely touches upon what the Emotiv headset is capable of being used for.  Brain Computer interfaces

This is where things get a little complex (and somewhat morally ambiguous). You see, the Emotiv headset is also being used in testing to determine if subconscious thoughts can be downloaded straight out of a person’s mind. We’re not talking about full on “jacking into the Matrix” here, but it has been proven to be somewhat useful in situations where certain things were suggested through additional stimuli and bits of information were extracted from the wearer’s subconscious. The thing is, it’s not currently all that accurate, so it might be quite a while until such technology can be used by the state department or justice system to determine who did what, when, where and how in any instance.

However, the potential uses for a working device that’s capable of determining whether or not someone is telling the truth or lying are numerous. First off, there would be no need for any forms of harsh interrogation; this would apply both to governmental as well as more local police forces. The numbers of individuals who are routinely wrongly convicted would drop as well. Billions of dollars (which normally go into lengthy inefficient judicial procedures) might be saved worldwide, and we would always “get the right person”. Having said that, there are just as many scary dystopian uses for this technology as there are positive applications. In order to prevent such situations from emerging it is imperative that more people become aware of this emerging technology and understand how to apply it in a morally acceptable manner (particularly those in tech careers or IT).  

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Another device that’s recently emerged in the Brain – computer interface department is the “iBrain”, which was developed for use in diagnosing certain types of disorders. The iBrain headset is essentially something which is to be worn while sleeping so that neural patterns can be identified and certain areas of the brain, mapped (perhaps). Its inventor, Dr. Philip Low has actually been working closely with internationally renowned figure Professor Stephen Hawking in order to perhaps devise a better means of treating his neurodegenerative condition or even helping to determine the nature of it. Over time, the good Dr. seeks to refine the technology allowing it to be used in a variety of situations, like diagnosis of autism, sleep disorders as well as more assistance-based applications (like those suffering from paralysis or ALS).

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At this point you’re probably either extremely excited or completely mortified in fear, right? While it’s true that there is a great deal of power inherent to the very design in terms of technology of these types of devices, we shouldn’t be so short-sided as to label certain types of technology as too frightening to use or explore. In reality, these types of interface technologies will do an extraordinary amount of good for some individuals as well as the whole of society.

A good parallel to draw is the fear experienced by the global citizenry around the time nuclear weapons cam onto the scene; the fact of the matter is that no one really anticipated us (human beings) to have lasted as long as we have with such powerful weapons available (assuming that we would have blown ourselves up by now). The same kind of thinking applies in this situation as well, while brain – computer interface technology could theoretically be used for nefarious purposes, there’s no reason to assume that this will be the case.

Why BIG data might soon play a central role in most IT careers

If there’s one thing you can count on, it’s that we’re going to continue to see extremely large amounts of data being collected from every direction on a daily basis. Likewise, the overall amount of data being compiled daily is only going to increase. Whether we’re talking about the private or public sectors, individuals or businesses, there is a corresponding pool of data which must be dealt with.

But simply devising storage solutions for all this data is only half of the story, the difficult part is actually obtaining (or extracting) valuable information / intelligence from said data pools. This goal of using BIG data in a way that increases its overall usefulness is entirely dependent on organization and analysis tools, many of which are currently under development.

Businesses and larger organizations see the inherent value in devising better systems for managing BIG data, largely because they have been using consumer data to create better sales strategies for a long time now. Simply put, there is a lot of evidence out there that proves just how value BIG data analysis actually is and even how it might be used to help companies increase sales and stop profit losses. But what’s even more obvious is that BIG data is going to continue to be accumulated anyway (regardless of whether or not it is used in any meaningful way), so there exists an opportunity to transform something which is essentially limitless into a means of generating useful information / profits.

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This of course leads us to the realization that it will be IT personnel who will ultimately tasked with implementing big data strategies and analysis. The question is; are you, as a current or future IT employee, prepared for the challenges posed by BIG data? At this current point in time, many IT professionals simply aren’t as well prepared for a move toward utilization of BIG data, which is great news for those who are intrepid enough to make their own preparations. A complete certification course covering BIG data management is a simple and affordable way to introduce yourself (and your entire organization) to the benefits of this emerging sector which is absolutely bursting with potential.   

Still not convinced?  Here is a quote from a report conducted by the McKinsey Global Institute:

“By 2018, the United States alone could face a shortage of 140,000 to 190,000 people with deep analytical skills as well as 1.5 million managers and analysts with the know-how to use the analysis of big data to make effective decisions.”

In other words, we currently don’t have anywhere near the amount of BIG data specialists / analysts that we need in this particular sector (right now). Regardless of what facet of the IT industry you are entering and/or specializing in, having some training (and even better, certification) in this burgeoning growth sector will not only ensure your ultimate employability, but also promote additional success.

Another hidden factor (in the explosion of BIG data onto the IT scene) is the increased competition that’s going to result from its use. For example, if BIG data is used to more intimately highlight specific consumer traits and target demographics, less time can be spent on useless promotion. Likewise, if businesses are able to pinpoint their consumer bases for certain products they can also more easily predict their desires. Or, to put it another way, a company can effectively target an audience for a new service/product that’s on the drawing board well in advance of its actual production and release. Naturally, once it becomes common knowledge that BIG data analysis can be used in any number of ways to build an organization, everyone is going to want “in” on it (in reality, this is already happening to a large extent).

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Aside from actually trying to increase sales, one of the best ways to spur growth is in risk avoidance. BIG data will undoubtedly bring a whole new way of looking at and addressing risk avoidance to the forefront (and it will be up to IT personnel, in most cases, to spearhead this sort of development). Understandably, this will create more important responsibilities for IT workers, which will likely translate into larger salaries (for those with the proper training and knowledge).