Re: Issues with synching to "the Cloud"
Zombie Elvis
<paulas...@hotmail.com> wrote:
>Hello all,
>From what I've been reading, after my TX and hubby's Zire go to the big Palm
>graveyard in the sky, assuming that they can't be fixed, I guess I have two
>basic options -- HP and synch to my PC or Palm (or iTouch or such) and synch
>to "the Cloud". I've had HP's before and am not thrilled with them but the
>thought of synching my data "out there" is even less appealing (even
>"un-sensitive" data such as dental appointments and my brother's address).
The point about "the Cloud" is that computing power and connectivity
have become so ubiquitous that individual computers have (or should)
become interchangeable. You've already seen a version of this in that
when your TX and Zire finally die, you can just get a new one and sync
it to your computer. Of course in practice, Palm has stopped making
these devices and you have to get new ones which may or may not work
with old data. Moreover what if your house burns down and destroys
your computer?
That's where the Cloud's value becomes more clear. If your data is in
the cloud it is always protected and backed up even if disaster
destroys your local computers and backups. (Realistically when we talk
about the Cloud, we're really talking about a companies like Google
which has many data centers in many locations and which won't lose
data if a hurricane takes out one or more of them.) The other thing
about putting "unsensitive" data in the cloud is that it makes it easy
for families and businesses to keep in sync with each other. Maybe the
dentist calls you to change the kid's dental appointment. You update
your calendar and because it's in the cloud and linked to the hubby's
calendar, he knows about the change of plan and you can both adjust
your schedules more easily than if the information were trapped on
your Palm TX. Palm tried for a decade to implement a solution like
this one and failed. Scaling upwards, Microsoft has generally used
Exchange and Outlook to implement similar solutions across companies.
The Cloud is essentially the same concept applied to consumers and to
companies who don't like Microsoft's solutions.
>
>Am I missing something or is this "the future"? Why? Where's the security in
>that? OK, so I have a "password" and even if it's a "strong" one, I'm still
>relying on someone else. Am I wrong to be this paranoid or have I watched
>The Net one too many times.
>
>Thanks for any and all explanations. . .
Encryption has become very advanced and reliable. If you encrypt your
documents with TrueCrypt or a similarly powerful encryption solution,
you should have no reason to worry. Even if someone is holding on to
your data, they will not be able to read it without your password. Of
course, that is another problem. I don't really see any good
encryption solutions that are "baked" into the Cloud based solutions.
So for now if you are really worried about the security of your
records, you will probably have to use something like Truecrypt to
encrypt your data before putting on the cloud. The best solution would
be if those cloud providers already had such an encryption scheme in
place so that the only thing you need to worry about is keeping your
password safe. Of course for many the easiest way to keep your
password safe is by storing it on a stand alone device like a PalmOS
PDA....
The point is that these cloud solutions are still half baked but they
are also very convenient. I already put a lot of my stuff on Google
anyway, so it makes sense to have a device which can read and sync
that data. Cloud computing is still evolving. We will gradually put
more stuff on the Cloud as it becomes more reliable but this will be a
long process....
--
Cause, really, nothing says "I'm a counter culture
rebel, fighting the establishment" like an Aibo on
a skateboard.
- Seen on Slashdot
Roberto Castillo
roberto...@ameritech.net
http://mind-grapes.blogspot.com/
http://zombie-gulch.myminicity.com/
Richard B. Gilbert
> Hello all,
> From what I've been reading, after my TX and hubby's Zire go to the big
> Palm graveyard in the sky, assuming that they can't be fixed, I guess I
> have two basic options -- HP and synch to my PC or Palm (or iTouch or
> such) and synch to "the Cloud". I've had HP's before and am not thrilled
> with them but the thought of synching my data "out there" is even less
> appealing (even "un-sensitive" data such as dental appointments and my
> brother's address).
>
> security in that? OK, so I have a "password" and even if it's a "strong"
> one, I'm still relying on someone else. Am I wrong to be this paranoid
> or have I watched The Net one too many times.
>
> Thanks for any and all explanations. . .
>
>
I wouldn't want to synch to the "cloud" either. A "cloud" is a pretty
nebulous thing. If it doesn't work, who is responsible? Who, or what,
guarantees security? Who or what guarantees that your data will
available when/if you need it?
Synch to your PC. For greater safety, copy the files to some sort of
removable media; e.g. floppy disk, CD-ROM, or DVD. Remove the media and
store it in your safe deposit box, or some other safe and secure
storage. It's up to you whether or not to leave copies on the PC. I
would but YMMV.
I'd also suggest that you not store anything on your hand held that you
would not want to see on the front page of the New York Times!