The concept of Software as a Service and Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS) is an extension of current software and hardware systems. SaaS and Iaas are also facilitators for replacement of aging software and hardware. SaaS and Iaas are always less costly than deploying new equipment and continuing to pay for staff for operations and maintenance. The concept of on-demand computing enables the customer to buy what they need when they need it, then turn it off when they're done. SaaS and Iaas also provide rapid deployment (sometimes same day) of systems that traditionally took months to deploy.
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Cloud computing is a new name for an old way of computing. Early cloud computing was hosted on a mainframe with time sharing. As the power of PCs grew, companies built internal data centers for hosting back office applications. Today, with advances in internet technologies, cloud computing has evolved to a point were applications and data can be hosted from anywhere. Companies no longer have to bear the cost of internal data centers and the support of those data centers. Cloud computing also supports the concept of on-demand, "Software as a Service" use of applications and services such as e-mail, document management, collaboration, and today's social networking. |