Company cloud, community cloud, virtual cloud and the list can continue.

Be prepared to hear more and more about this term. There is no relation between clouds in the sky and this term. IT meaning for cloud may be a mixture: rules, standards, organised data.

A cloud can be a way of organising data on the net but a cloud can keep together a group, a community with common features / interests.

Data on the net may consists of any type of files mixed in a specific way. AT the same time a cloud involves a specific way of processing and a specific set of rules of getting access to data (files).

Very easy, anyone may consider a cloud as being an object with all object means in programming: properties and methods. If we go a bit further it’s pretty easy to consider that cloud inherits / shares properties and methods; many clouds can create a new bigger cloud.

This is just a theory easy to be seen by anybody. Into the real life there are hosting companies which host files, which allow people to access and manipulate those files based on specific rules and permissions, for example the owner of a web system can change his space (add / delete its file and configure its environment) and the internet user can interact with his website.

All hosting companies and internet providers are already using one of a very few management tools available on the market. The WWW has already its standard and on top of that is more or less running in a virtual environment.

What is happening now is that the clouds merge one into the other. Data began to be structured in such a way which allow to be used in different clouds. The most relevant example are “plugins” which allow to sell Amazon products on your website or which allow your website users to place bids on products from eBay. Facebook and YouTube integration are more examples and Google virtual gadgets are more and more used.

Less than 10 years ago 4 digits password were absolutely stressful and now any IT “worker” keeps in his memory IP address and many 8 digits long passwords with no problem.

The internet is more and more part of everyday life or we are more and more part of the internet.

Having a barbeque you may ask yourself “Is this meat real?” Honestly I have no idea.