Why Do We Need Another Cloud Blog?

I have been deeply committed and involved with Cloud Computing and its application to Government since June, 2007. Since that time, I have seen some successes, including the delivery of TechAmerica’s position paper to the Obama Transition Team on Inauguration Day, January 20th, 2009, the stabilization of The NIST Definition of Cloud Computing at version 15 on October 7th, 2009, and the launch of Apps.gov on September 15th, 2009.

The Government has moved with unprecedented speed at recognizing the value of and attempting to adopt Cloud Computing, and the private sector has moved even more quickly to minimize the significance of and the effort required to implement the fundamental changes that must occur to realize the full value of Cloud Computing over the 10 or so years it will take for it to mature. I see the repackaging of old products with “Cloud” labels, attempts to redefine Cloud Computing to suit individual corporate interests, and a continual barrage of white papers and seminars that are little more than company commercials.

So although I have been content to sit on the sidelines and watch Cloud Computing in the Public Sector evolve, it is becoming increasingly clear that as Government becomes enmeshed in the mechanics of adopting Cloud, conversations concerning the fundamental shifts necessary to mature, and the subsequent changes caused by the adoption of Cloud Computing, are becoming rare.

The intent of this blog is to facilitate open and honest conversation, unencumbered by hype and spin from either side, of the primary opportunities and obstacles I see at making the promises of Cloud Computing a reality. I won’t be arguing the subtleties of Cloud Computing definitions or the intricacies of various vendor instantiations, there are already plenty of places to do that, but I do intend to point out where I believe we need to more rapidly align public and private sector interests.

I’m sure the majority people reading this will be wary of a system integrator claiming to be neutral on these topics, and time will tell whether I can live up to my intent.

Bill Perlowitz
http://billperlowitz.blogspot.com/