The words "cloud computing" get tossed around rather a lot, but there's still some misunderstanding as to exactly what cloud computing is and why it is important. It is one of the most inspiring new technologies in years, or more reasonably, one of the most stimulating approaches to technology. There's no doubt that cloud computing will have a major effect on IT business in 2010, so here's a glance at precisely what it is and how it's expanding the functions of the web at large.
To put it simply, cloud computing permits users to access PC power and software thru the Net. Google Documents ( which is, in reality, what I am using to type this article ) is an example of a consumer-marketed cloud computing product. The "cloud" is the web, and the "computing," in this example, is software.