By: Blue Rose
Recently major developers have created a new idea called "Cloud Computing"
The idea is that, instead of installing information on many different computers, the information is stored on a central server somewhere, and people log in to access the data.
Imagine for a moment you own a business. Instead of buying 1000 copies of Microsoft Word, you buy one copy, upload it to your server, and your employees log-in to use it.
The next time you have to install an updated version of the software, all you do is update the one copy you have and it's updated for everyone.
You can see from a business stand-point how this could be a real game changer.
No one has been more avid about embracing it than the Video Game industry.
A couple of the notable companies that have done this are Gamestop, and Steam.
Through the Steam Engine, a free software client, you can buy hit PC games online without going to the store, installing them, and, most importantly paying full price.
Since Steam has no physical product, they have no per-copy expenditures. This allows for a huge fluctuation of prices.
A great example of this happened to me recently. Reach decided he was going to buy a copy of the game Mount and Blade at its release price, $30. I decided the game was to expensive to pay that for, so i waited.
Well, eventually, they had a sale and i ended up getting the game for a whopping $5.
Without the expense of brick and mortar stores, and the expense of the CD, Case, Guide, etc. etc., Steam still made more than enough money to make the sale worth it.
Not only are the games cheaper, and more convenient, they are built into a network only available through cloud computing.
At any point, in any game, i can Voice chat with any one of my friends, or i can bring up a menu that lets me instant message anyone on the steam network.
There's even a tool that, with one click, lets me join any of my friends in any game we both have.
So you can see how cloud computing will be a huge game changer in both the business, and the computing world.
It offers a great alternative to the typical way of software installation, and networking opportunities that could change the way we interact forever.
Reach's note: It was the best $30 I've ever spent! I couldn't have gone two years without Mount&Blade. I would have become a shell.
The argument that the video game sector of business has been most open to the idea of cloud computing, and the note that it is a new idea, are highly open to debate. Ranging from the existence of server editions since Windows 2000, to your example of Steam, the deeming of the existence of this type of computing may be new, but the actual usage of cloud computing is not. The presenting of outdated information presents a somewhat 'writer's block'-esque facade. Personally, I would prefer no post rather than a bland attempt to inform a group about a well known form of computing.
ReplyDeleteWell, I'm sorry you feel that way but you have to remember the language in this type of article has to be slightly exaggerated in order to keep events fresh.
ReplyDeleteWhile cloud computing has been around for a long time, I don't think anyone would argue that it has ever been ingrained in society as much as it is today, and the goal of this article was to inform a mass of the population that likely doesn't even know what it is.
As for my opinion that the video game world has embraced it the most, that certainly is up to debate, but I still believe it to be true.
90% of the people I know that play video games do it through some sort of online network (such as Steam), yet nowhere near 90% of people that use a computer could even tell you more than one application of Cloud Computing.
I wonder what your audience is. I understand that this blog serves as an umbrella for many topics and ideas, yet there should be some way to specify which articles are meant for which topics. Cloud computing, a topic that deals with deeper computing topics, is understood by those who care about it. Those who are unaware of it most likely share no desire to gain an understanding, as they have obviously not been around long enough to become informed of services such as Steam. There needs to be a better way to categorize articles, so as not to confuse readers and/or waste their time. I, as an experience computer user understand the concept that is cloud computing, looked upon this article with the possibility of learning something new, yet all I received was a summary of a well known topic (in the computing community).
ReplyDelete-Your_Friendly_Neighborhood_Commenter
I'm sorry but you likely won't find anything that in-depth here.
ReplyDeleteThe goal of this blog is to entertain a large demographic of people. Technical Jargon, and too in-depth of an analysis tends to alienate people with these kinds of things, and that's not our goal at all.
What we are very open to here are s-words, however, is further analysis and commentary from our readers. If you wish to discuss a topic further, and more in-depth, I almost always reply to my readers' comments, and I know Reach does the same.
Something I'll try and keep in mind, however, is to add a little more in-depth commentary toward the end of an article, but I can't promise too much as far as what experts might be interested in as these things go.
What I can promise is I will try and keep publishing topics that are open to discussion (constructively of course), so that you can get the intellectual snack you're looking for.
I posted in the Legend of Zelda article, yet it appears that you are trying to shut me up. Similar to how war forces technological development, I'm using argumentation against the article to open up different viewpoints, effectively turning that "intellectual snack" into a meal. I hope you realize that my words, although hostile, do in fact spur discussion, and force creative argumentation.
ReplyDelete-Your_Friendly_Neighborhood_Commenter
The reason I was trying to avoid confrontation is because I feel you are becoming frustrated, and honestly because I don't like some of the personal comments made toward me. I don't mind if you analyze my argument, but the comments about how you think i probably just have writers block, and the like, I don't appreciate.
ReplyDeleteI formally apologize if you feel as though I personally attacked you. I was attempting to portray my opinion that a general explanation of cloud computing seemed as though there were nothing left to cover (as I had expected somewhat more in-depth topic discussion).
ReplyDelete-Your_Friendly_Neighborhood_Commenter