The cloud. We’ve all heard of it. But one thing that isn’t mentioned as often is where it can actually be put into place. We, as humans, need to know how a specific service will benefit what we do. It is not as commonly known that the cloud can be used to benefit any industry.
One of the most popular and well-known uses of the cloud would, of course, be Apple’s iCloud which has revolutionised iPhones and how we store the media we capture on these devices. Personally, this is where my first experience of the cloud started and was more than likely the first time I had ever heard of this “cloud”.
So, apart from storing selfies, food pictures and screenshots, what else can the cloud be used for?
1. MUSIC ON THE GO
One way to tackle the daily commute is to stick your earphones in and block out the others.
Music applications have taken over the way we gain access to music. Instead of having to pay for each individual album we fancy listening to, we can now simply stream it via an app.
The likes of Spotify use a data centre through a cloud platform to make music readily available as soon as you search for it. Without the cloud, you would have a hard time listening to any song you wish whenever you fancied.
2. HEALTHCARE
The adoption of cloud computing within the healthcare industry is one that is slowly but surely picking up speed. In the near future, you can expect to enter a hospital ward and see staff kitted out with tablets and wearable tech.
This advancement in tech will see the benefits of a more seamless experience with patient information being made accessible from any authorised device. This will also result in a better diagnosis and recovery of the patient with exact information being updated continually.
3. SCHOOLS, COLLEGES, UNIVERSITIES
The cloud can be used at any organisation. But for the education sector, it offers an even more significant advantage.
By hosting applications in the cloud, this means the responsibility of these apps is down to the cloud service provider. For many educational facilities, budgets are tight resulting in the likes of tech being pushed to the end of the list. However, it is vital students are provided with sufficient technology to improve their transferable and necessary digital skills.
The cloud can allow education organisations to take advantage of full IT systems for a much lower cost. The likes of Office 365 are a staple product for education. Word is an essential for writing essays, PowerPoint enables class projects and Excel is required for creating class timetables.
With the cloud, you have access to all of these applications with the work you have carried out when using them in the classroom at any location. This, in turn, eliminates the well-known process of emailing your work to your personal email and then downloading the file onto your personal device and then having to repeat the process once you’ve made changes, which can be easily forgotten and increases the chance of error.
4. BANKING
Banks are able to boost computing power to meet the demand peaks in activity without needing to worry if the technology is up-to-date. Corporates are able to access bank systems using web browsers from anywhere at any time.
For the consumer, the need to travel to a bank to make transfers between accounts is eliminated as the cloud allows you to easily process payments wherever you are via mobile banking.
For most of us, this is music to our ears. Being able to transfer money from one account to another, setting up savings accounts and simply just checking up on funds is something that once required human interaction but now can be done easily at work, at home or on the bus.
5. DESIGN
For the designers and architects out there, you will appreciate that it is difficult keeping designs in prestige condition and well-organised. With the cloud, you are able to design in 3D with the likes of Revit and ARCHICAD being available.
Data is accessible via Wi-Fi and is retained under intense security. Design on the go with peace of mind that your hard work won’t be at risk of being torn, crumbled or stolen.
REVOLUTIONARY
Cloud computing is a revolution, not simply a trend. The longer you ignore it, the more damage you will do to your business’ productivity and budget costs. If you’re interested in transforming the way you work, do not hesitate to contact us.
