Yes, you can find basic cloud computing services that are free. They will, of course, be limited as to the amount and complexity of the service provided and their antivirus and other protective components may not be as up to date as those of paid services. A keyword search for "free cloud computing services" will bring up much information on specific companies that are offering free cloud computing.
Cloud computing is the delivery of computing as a service rather than a product, according to Wikipedia. I don't know what else, just look it up please if you have any questions.
The first and fundamental challenge of providing cloud services is service availability. If your organization is looking to adopt cloud services rather than maintain local installations, you have to be convinced you can access the services and data you need whenever you need them without experiencing undue delays. The cloud service must look and feel as if its local, despite the fact that its hosted remotely.
Yes, there is. It is called Erpsoftwareblog.com. You can register and look up all kinds of information about cloud computing on this blog. I believe it is free to join. Check it out.
Businesses that are under pressure to save money can often either reduce or eliminate their IT staff by moving to a cloud computing solution. In such a move, companies pay for their hardware and software services at a monthly rate from a service provider. In exchange, the cloud computing solution provider makes sure software services are always running and up-to-date and that client data is always backed up.
Cloud computing, as a technology, is still in its infancy. Firms involved in the development of cloud computing are still analyzing this new method of data storage and coming up with new findings regarding its efficiency and costs. Those who are interested in learning more about cloud computing can find white papers on the Internet that analyze the technology as a whole and discuss specific cloud services. InfoWorld, HorizonWatching, BusinessWeek and Infosys all contain readily available white papers on the subject of cloud computing.
I would look into either Microsoft or Hewlett Packard for advice on how the set up cloud computing for personal use. There are also vendors that have online websites that may be able to help.
Decreased computing start-up costs.
That's a tough one, but I'd say ServiceMesh (ServiceMesh.com). They are one of the fastest growing cloud computing companies in the states. They won the UP-START 2010 award at UP 2012 - a premier cloud computing event in L.A.
The architecture of cloud computing is how cloud computing is set up and runs. One would need to obtain the "middleware" and Intercloud components. The service is not free and prices vary depending on needs and providers.
On-premises solutions refer to installations of software on hardware owned or leased by an end-user. Cloud computing provides an alternative for users seeking an alternative to purchasing or leasing their own hardware and facilities. With cloud based services, customers can very easily scale up and down their computing power as the demands fluctuate.
From what I can find virtualization unlocks cloud computing and speeds up the server. It allows delivery 30 times faster, cloud computing also saves money because it is possible that you maybe getting charged for the usage, cloud computing optimizes potential.