Cloud Computing… revisited

When I first looked at the Dell Mini 9 several months ago, I also looked into cloud computing for file synchronization and storage. Netbooks and cloud computing sort of go hand-in-hand, since we’re talking about using a very portable computer as a secondary machine which can easily be connected to the Internet. Since it’s been about 7 months since I last looked at the cloud computing offerings, I quickly reviewed the current status of three file syncing/storage utilities: (1) DropBox, (2) SkyDrive, and (3) LiveMesh.

DropBox appears to have not changed, still allowing only 2 GB of file storage for their free service. SkyDrive also remained unchanged with 25 GB of storage, but you still can’t upload folders of files or large single files. My favorite of these three is LiveMesh by Microsoft. I’ve been using it since I began my first evaluation and it continues to work very well. I really like the seemless integration with my Windows Vista desktop PC, where any files in a designated “LiveMesh” folder automatically get synced between the machines I’ve specified. I can also access these same files on the Internet via any web browser, as they are stored on Microsoft’s file servers as well.

Although LiveMesh has a limit of 5 GB of online file storage, there is no limit for file syncing between your “ring” of machines. So you can sync 50 GB of files between your various PCs and laptops using LiveMesh, but you can only store 5 GB of data on Microsoft Servers in the cloud.

So for me, it seems that LiveMesh is the winner for file syncing between my machines. Unfortunately, I often forget I have it running on my systems (since it is so silent and unobtrusive) so I don’t make a lot of use of it. But maybe that will change when I get my Dell 11z.

Lessons Learned…

So what have I learned from my brief experience with the Dell Mini 9 Netbook?

I’ve learned that keyboard size and key placement should be a big consideration for touch typists who are looking for a Netbook system. A 10″ system might be the threshold for such users, but you’ll need to test out the Netbook to see first hand.

Also, the screen resolution is a factor for effectively viewing web pages. The current standard of 600 pixels for vertical screen height is too small for viewing modern day web pages. A pixel size of 800 would probably be the minimum (however, most Netbooks don’t go above the 600 pixel threshold).

The Intel Atom CPU seems to do a good job for running applications in Windows XP and Windows 7 Beta OSes. Having 1 GB of RAM seemed sufficient, but 2 GB would be better when running multiple applications simultaneously.

The use of a Solid State Disk (SSD) Drive was a rather pleasant experience, since it allowed for a silent running system. The access speed of a SSD was perfectly acceptable, and having only 16 GB for the OS and files wasn’t a big issue since files could be stored on a SDHC card.

Having the Dell Mini 9 also allowed me to investigate using Windows 7 Beta as a future Operating System. I was pleasantly surprised to find Win7 runs quite well on a Netbook computer, with no issues regarding hardware drivers, etc. It worked out so well, I just might install Win7 on my Latitude D610 laptop just for grins. So, it seems that Win7 can run effectively on low-powered processor with just 1 GB of memory and slower storage drives.

Aside from the Netbook aspects, I also learned a lot about the world of online file syncing and storage which was quite valuable. Microsoft Live Mesh is a wonderful file syncing application with remote desktop connection capability. Other online services such as SkyDrive and Zoho are also useful for online file storage and document management. With these utilities, files can be synced and accessed from multiple PCs and hopefully smartphone devices in the near future.

So I can’t say that the time I’ve invested in learning about Netbooks and waiting for my Dell Mini 9 to arrive was wasted, as I’ve gained knowledge that I can use for my everyday activities.

It might be that later this year or next year that the 10″ or 11″ Netbook models will have everything I need to jump back into the Netbook scene again… but until then good luck to those enjoying their Dell Mini 9s!

Live Mesh and SkyDrive – More Cloud Computing Services

In my evaluation of the various “Cloud Computing” Services (where files and data are stored or shared on Internet file servers) I’ve come across several different viable options. In a previous posting, I mentioned the Zoho Online service (for online document management) as well as DropBox (syncing files between PCs and Internet file server). Although I’m testing both of these services currently, I did come across two offerings from Microsoft called Live Mesh and SkyDrive that appear promising.

Live Mesh is Microsoft’s answer to syncing files between different PCs and to the “Cloud” (Internet file servers), and thus competes with the DropBox service. The image below shows the Live Mesh “ring”, where you add different machines and devices for syncing of files. In this example, there are three computers in the “mesh ring”, (One Desktop PC and two Laptops), as well as “Live Desktop” which is the Cloud Computer (Internet file storage):

You can then specify on each machine in mesh ring, specific folders which you want the file contents to be synced with the other machines. What’s nice, is that you don’t need to sync your folders with the Live Desktop, as you can just sync between PCs you have in your mesh ring. Thus, you don’t need to sync sensitive files to the Cloud.

When you install Live Mesh, a small service utility runs in the background on your PC and a icon appears in the task bar. Folders can be made part of the live mesh by right-clicking on them and selecting “Add folder to live mesh…” from the popup context menu. That’s it! So on every machine that you want to add to the mesh ring, you simply visit the www.mesh.com web site, click the “Install Software” icon (big orange “plus” symbol), and install the Live Mesh software on your PC. Very easy to install and configure.

Work Online Using Zoho Service

Last year, I tested out Google’s suite of online products to see if I could be more productive with “cloud computing”. Specifically, I tried to integrate my email, calendar, and documents into Google’s system. As it turned out, I was unsuccessful since most of my daily business activities revolved around Microsoft Exchange on my company’s server. The only Google piece which I had marginal success was with Google Docs, particularly viewing doc files using my mobile Smartphone device (inside a web browser). Ultimately, I didn’t utilize Google Docs very much since I didn’t like Google’s web desktop interface for adding or editing document files online. It just seemed a bit too confusing and cumbersome for me.

Now that the year 2009 has rolled around, I’ve decided to try once again with the online document storage and access (especially since I’ll be getting a Netbook soon). Google Docs still looks the same as it did last year, so I began to investigate other similar online services. One service that I happened upon is called Zoho, which looks very promising. If you visit the www.zoho.com web site, you’ll see that they offer numerous online services for both personal and business use. Like with the Google suite of products, Zoho offers most of their services free of charge with 1 GB of storage space.

What I really like about Zoho is the clean web interface for creating document files, and organizing them into separate folders.You can also upload MS-Word, Excel, and PDF files easily into the Zoho document control system, and view/edit them online.

So, I began uploading and creating documents that I plan to access online during my business travels. The only major caveat that I found, is that I can’t view my documents using my Motorola Q Windows Mobile 5 smartphone (which is the whole purpose of this exercise). When I try to visit mobile.zoho.com in Pocket Internet Explorer on my smartphone, all I get is a non-functional blank page. I posted a message on the Zoho forums asking about this, and I’m currently waiting for a response. I have a feeling that Zoho is still relatively new, so they are still working out the kinks.

Even still, I do recommend you check out this service if you’re planning to do any online document editing, storage, and management (especially since it’s free!).

Sync Files Between Computers Using DropBox

In my last posting I mentioned a online service called Dropbox, which is a way to sync files between your different PCs and store them on a online server. I just installed their software and tested it for a bit, and I have to say I really like it. It’s very simple to setup and use, and the syncing process is automatic. You basically have one folder called “My Dropbox” that is setup on your PC system, and all files in that folder are uploaded and synced to Dropbox’s online server. Now, if you install the DropBox software on a 2nd computer system, you can sync all the files in your “My Dropbox” folder to it, and vice versa. The syncing is done automatically by a service running in background on your PCs via the Internet. Aside from syncing, your files are also stored (and thus backed up) online, so they are safe in case your hard drive crashes, house burns down, etc. In addition, you can access these files from any PC using a standard web browser connected to the Internet.

This auto-syncing feature is very similar to the online backup services offered by Carbonite and Mozy. The only difference, is that those services are strictly for backing up files, not syncing across multiple PCs.

So far as security, the Dropbox web site states the following:

“We take utmost care to ensure Dropbox is secure. All transport of file data and file metadata occurs over SSL. All files are encrypted with AES-256 before being stored on our backend.”

So from this, it appears that files stored on Dropbox’s online servers are encrypted.

The Dropbox service is free  for up to 2 GB, and if you need more space you can pay a monthly fee. For myself, I think I can get by with the 2 GB limit. What I plan to do, is carefully think what files I really need to share across my computer systems, and just sync those files. Of course, this may add a level of confusion for me, as I may forget what files I have synced and not, but I guess I can stretch my brain a bit for progress.

Will “Cloud Computing” Really Catch On?

One of the computer buzzwords these days is “Cloud Computing”, where everything is done online while connected to the Internet. It seemed to have started when people were able to use a web browser to check their emails and not have to download them to their PCs using an Email Client program, but now has expanded to more PC-like functionality. With more people connected to the Internet via wireless Broadband, DSL, or Cable, it seems that the PC capability can be offered with online resources.

For example, my wife uses an online service called Carbonite that backs up her important documents to an online file server. This is done automatically, as her main Desktop PC is continuously connected to the Internet via a Cable Modem connection. It’s a great backup solution if you have the transfer bandwidth and a constant Internet connection.

It’s going to take a huge paradigm shift on my part to move away from the “old school” PC approach to the new online cloud era.  Jumping on the cloud computing bandwagon, I’ve tried to use the Google Suite of online tools (Email, Calendar, Docs, Contacts) to centralize my important information so that it is accessible from my Desktop PC, traveling laptop, and my Windows Mobile Smartphone device. Unfortunately, I haven’t had much luck. Most of my calendar activity revolves around Microsoft Exchange, since that is what my company uses to handle calendar, email, and contact information. As such, it’s difficult for me to effectively integrate my work calendar/email/contacts with my personal schedule data. Sure, there’s lots of utilities that will “sync” such information here and there, to and from Google, etc., but I can’t seem to find anything that works well and doesn’t require an active personal computer constantly managing everything.