January 22nd 1984 – Apple Computer launched the Macintosh… Introducing the world to distributed graphical desktop computing.
….Fast forward 26 years later through the roller coaster ride of technology….
April 3rd 2010 – The Apple iPad arrives to the public and Apple Inc. introduces us to the dawn of Ubiquitous Internet Computing, or what may be better phrased as the beginning of the cloud computing era.
We are about to transition from the 90′s style distributed computing world into a new era of ubiquitous, mobile, always connected Internet based computing. The majority of our resources, media, and content will reside in the public and private clouds. Access to our content will be from anywhere and from any device, starting on April 3rd Apple’s iPad will provide us with a glimpse of the future.
In the early days of computing we started in a centralized closed environment where information was accessed through mainframe computers and lightweight terminals. As the demand for personal computing power evolved it required the processing power and data be moved closer to the end user due to the limitations of the network. Over many years the networks both within companies and across the Internet have become incredibly fast and reliable. Adding to the increased speed and reliability of wired networks we have seen mobility (wireless) evolve and mature to a level that has finally made the mobile Internet very usable.
Apple’s iPhone which came on the scene in 2007 has jolted the mobile industry forward by providing a rich mobile experience in a small convenient platform known as a Smart Phone. Google and many other vendors are now building phones similar and the demand across the entire Smart Phone market has exploded. The Apple iPhone and the various Smart Phones on the market today are great devices but in looking at use cases and overall user persona’s on how individuals utilize a Smart Phone one trend remains consistent. Smart Phones are great as point devices to handle quick focused tasks that allow the individual access to information or entertainment while they are mobile. When there is a need to be more focused or engaged on a specific task there is normally a shift from a Smart Phone to a larger more powerful computing device such a laptop or desktop.
As we transition from the requirement of having large amounts of storage and processing power locally we can begin to see the transition back to the mainframe days of centralized computing. The key difference is that today’s centralized computing model is distributed across the Internet and within corporations. Cloud based computing is significantly more flexible and open as compared to mainframe computing. Today’s cloud based computing model provides the opportunity to create a mashup of centralized services that can be tailored to meet the needs of the individual.
Now that wireless networks (both Local and Wide area) have reached the speed, performance, and coverage needed the migration into the cloud computing era can begin. With the migration into cloud based computing the requirements for end user devices with massive storage and computing power is becoming less relevant. As we look at the Apple iPad we are seeing the first of many devices that are transitioning us from the standard desktop computing concept. Over time the adoption of devices like the Apple iPad will continue to grow as people embrace the devices when a larger screen and more power is required beyond what can be achieved on total’s Smart phones.
I will be standing at my door April 3rd waiting for the delivery man!!!
