Cloud Computing: The Next Tech Revolution

There is a new technological revolution underway that will dramatically change our lives, much as the PC and the Internet did. It is called cloud computing.

There is a fierce battle over control of this turf, with trillions of dollars at stake. With the growth of computer usage, the explosion of app software, the increasing speed of the Internet and the ubiquitous use of wireless devices, the world is primed for this revolution, with unlimited potential demand, with fortune to the victors and failure to the losers.

Cloud computing allows us all to access superfast computer from anywhere. Just as I am writing this blog from a theater in Brockton, Mass, as I wait to see my daughters dance, I could be crunching numbers on a supercomputer with my Blackberry, using my voice like a keyboard. No more waiting for my computer to boot up, no more backing up my data, no more having to load new software, no more having to purchase faster and faster hardware. Everything will be automated. Like Jack Trance in The Alchemist Conspiracy, The Varicose Vigilantes and The Presidential Pretender, we will all have access to unlimited speed and power. We can have eyeglasses that provide the screen and connection. Everything can be voice activated. No more having to carry around these bulky laptops. We will still have screens that are as big as our laptops, but they will be holographic and will fit into a container no bigger and no more bulky than a small pen.

Needless to say, the battle for dominance in this arena is fierce. As the industry struggles to create standards and mobility between providers, the dominant early players are resisting. I see a new epic battle brewing, like Apple vs. Microsoft, Coke vs. Pepsi, Ford vs. Chevy or the Red Sox vs. the Yankees.

As I write this, the early leaders are Microsoft (no surprise) and Amazon. Look for companies like IBM, Google, AT&T and Verizon to join the fight in some way or another.

This is like the early days of the personal computer, when there were dozens of players, or automobiles, where there were more than a thousand car makers. In the end, though, only a few players, maybe even one, will matter.

This will all be happening at light speed, and it will usher in a whole new wave of business productivity. That’s good, because the way our government is removing business freedom, we're going to need it.

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