I have been reading a series of articles in the You are Never Alone blog about 'Cloud' computing. This is the term given to a range of web based applications which allow users to access, create, store, and share information from any computer with an Internet connection.
A simple example of a 'cloud' application is web based email services like yahoo, hotmail and gmail. Applications like Google docs and zoho mean that people no longer need to have commonly used software for wordprocessing and spreadsheets loaded into their computer because they can create and store these online. Scribd, Box and slideshare are examples of file storage and sharing devices which are able to be used by subscribers at no cost. And of course the multitude of social networking (Facebook), blogging and microblogging (Twitter) tools which continue to grow in popularity are a major part of the 'cloud'.
In the first installment Kerry discusses one of the key issues related to cloud computing, intellectual property, data security and privacy. With an increasing number of people utilising these applications, access to personal data becomes an obvious concern. In a recently broadcast discussion on the topic of cloud computing by NHK (Japanese TV) the major issue discussed was that of security and privacy. Japanese consumers are especially concerned that the major cloud computer 'farms' are in the US and being offshore heightens their fear that the data will be tampered with or lost. This white paper from Canada 'Privacy in the Clouds' opens with "the Internet has entered a new phase...where it is no longer just a communication device but a vast interconnected virtual supercomputer."
The availability of these applications online means that in the future schools (and homes) will no longer need to spend large amounts of money paying for site licences and installing software on individual machines. Of course the savings here may be offset by the need to improve connectivity and wireless infrastructure. Other implications for schools raised in the second installment include: the reduced need for storage devices making handheld devices more viable, software producers changing the way they market their product, and the issue of equity both for computer access at school and home.
The final installment by Kerry (at least for now) begins with a link to this interesting article from The Economist and goes on to provide some links to new sites providing directories to cloud computing sites. I found this link particularly interesting Cloud Education.
As we plan for the 2009 software purchase, I wonder if there are plans to reduce our depedence on locally loaded software and open up to what is available on the web? For schools, putting the safety and well-being of their students first always heads discussions on how much we open up.
5 comments:
Heath, schools like Hale are likely to leverage off the 'Cloud' in the future but may pay for a premium service rather than the free options that will be available. The decision to pay for a premium service, such as Microsoft Office Online, will be based on many factors. For example, status, continuity of chosen software platform, remove exposure to advertising that the free products will inevitably have etc. The next release of Office (Office 14 or Office Web) will be available via a browser. Web-based versions of Office applications like Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and OneNote would allow users to collaborate with others and across multiple devices more efficiently. SharePoint Server technology will be integral to the functioning of this new way of accessing and using Office applications.
I am glad that you shared this with me, Rob as I was not aware that the next version of Office would be Web-based. What does this mean in terms of data storage, will files still be stored locally or on a remote server? I know that I am probably utilising the SharePoint server technology already, but what is this exactly?
Office 14 will be interesting as it is such a big shift. UI guess we will wait and see. Part of the purchase price might entitle the user to a quantity of storage online (similar to Google Docs) and we might be able to rethink the need for student F drives. The SharePOint technology that will be further incorportated into Office will be based around collaboration so multiple people can work and share the same document and have version control. Windows Vista is also due to be replaced soon with a much more user friendly OS along the same lines as Apple - it will be called Windows 7 and looks very interesting. OUr decision to go with Sharepoint has been a good one, seen as Microsoft appear to be incorportaing it in lots of what their future plans.
Many of the Web2.0 technologies (software/cloud computing) do have free access and that can mean advertising. As Rob suggested, paying for a premium service can avoid advertising. However, there are many tools out there that have education accounts for free that have no advertising. eg PBWiki, VoiceThread, Edumodo, Edublogs. St Peter's in Adelaide is having similar conversations about open source software like OpenOffice vs MS Office. I think there is a fear of changing to some of the opensource choices and that the fear is mostly due to perhaps, ignorance. We used Google Docs (google forms) this year for parents to access Sports Choice forms for 2009. While a few parents had trouble working out how to type in a web address, the majority had no problems at all. There was no advertising and once it was done, the data was already in a spreadsheet. It saved hours of re-typing data from paper forms. In this way we are having our parents collaborate with us. I think we owe it to our students to use the tools that they are already using - keeping in mind that we need to educate them (and their parents) about cybersafety and do what we can to minimise threats.
Thanks for sharing your thoughts on the possibilities presented to schools with new web based applications. I had a quick look at voicethread last year and have also been using edublogs, although not yet with my students. I think your idea to introduce the new format by way of a specific task ie. sports choice form is excellent.
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