On Wed, 2010-07-21 at 07:46 -0700, JD wrote: > On 07/21/2010 12:55 AM, Les wrote: <snip...> > > I watched a very good company have a big breakdown when their old server > > system with dumb terminals went down. The costs, and impacts nearly put > > them out of business. If they had been smaller it would have. > > > > I have no doubt that companies will embrace the cloud. At least until > > it all comes crashing down around their ears. PC's became dominant > > precisely because centralized solutions were an inhibiting factor on > > business, and personal schedules. Some lessons are too soon forgotten. > > > > Regards, > > Les H > > > You forgot to mention the large management bureaucracy they will create > around cloud systems which will cost 10 to 100 times the cost of the > machines. I do not call that smart use or efficient use of money. Cloud environments are not dumb terminal solutions, and when properly built and managed, easily achieve "5 nines" availability. Technology advances / changes do not require additions in bureaucracy, and one does not drive the other. The clients I have deployed these kinds of environments for have saved millions - including being able to reduce the amount of staff needed to administer them. The portals we build for these private cloud environments are self-service, so if anything, bureaucracy is eliminated. I work with our clients to constantly streamline their operations processes as a part of delivering these solutions. The KISS principle just makes things work better. ...But both of you are making my point for me, actually. Lots of assumptions and non-existent "what if" additions that boil down to a lack of understanding of what these environments are really about and what they really do, combined with a resistance to change based on that misunderstanding. Now, that said, cloud environments (private, public, or hybrid) are NOT for all applications or situations. Frankly, I'm not a big fan of VDI (Virtual Desktop Infrastructure) solutions running on cloud infrastructure, save perhaps as a replacement for an existing dumb terminal solution such as a call center application or an airline reservations system. In my company, we architect and deploy cloud infrastructure as a part of an overall bigger solution and methodology that we call Dynamic IT Infrastructure. But that's another story. Cheers, Chris PS: Standard Disclaimer - The above reflects my own opinions and not necessarily those of my employer. -- ==================================================== "The most effective way to do it is to do it." --Amelia Earhart, American Aviation Pioneer -- users mailing list users@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx To unsubscribe or change subscription options: https://admin.fedoraproject.org/mailman/listinfo/users Guidelines: http://fedoraproject.org/wiki/Mailing_list_guidelines