It’s hard to master big concepts like Cloud Computing with head down and full focus on the nuts-and-bolts components upon which such grand-but-figurative infrastructures depend. I’m a literal sort working with literal components for whom thoughts of figurative infrastructures can be distracting. The Cloud, Big Data, The Internet of Things? Huge, empowering concepts, no doubt, but concepts that too easily lose meaning with rote repetition sans concrete context.
Shoot, I’m still trying to get used to thinking of touch monitors as “human-machine interfaces.” When trying to calculate which industrial switch, hand-held computer, mobile printer, or, yes, “HMI” best fits a specific application – even a specific cloud-based application – thoughts of clouds or of any-other-big-nebulous-thing else can be headache inducing. Cut to the chase, please. Give me something I can see! And so, I’ve come to appreciate any resource that helps relate these big concepts to the tangible, concrete applications that are more typical of my workday frames of reference.
Take, for example, Zebra Technologies’ white paper, Make the Move to the Cloud with Confidence. Sure, it resorts at times to such cloudy terminology as “maximizing visibility,” and “leveraging” this or that, but before I felt my brain numbing, it hit me with real-world examples of deploying cloud computing for real-world benefit. “The Cloud allows businesses to localize data and applications closer to their customer base by leveraging the growing number of geographically diverse data centers. Data centers with Cloud applications closer to end users mean faster transaction times.” Hmm. Thank you, Zebra! That describes something I can literally see.
Ah, but there’s more! “Achieving a Cloud deployment is no simple task. Enterprises must address integration issues, real-time accessibility, mitigate data security and restrict users, protect data integrity, and manage at-the-edge devices before moving to the Cloud. What’s more, Cloud applications often require a hub-and-spoke integration model that enables the pushing/pulling of data between multiple facilities.” I can see that hub-and-spoke model. I can envision data being pushed/pulled between multiple facilities. This I can work with!
I’ve particular affinity for Zebra and its white-paper success stories because it designs and produces so many of the actual cutting-edge components and systems that allow such big concepts as Cloud Computing to be literally realized. Zebra describes it best: “Zebra’s extensive portfolio of asset-tracking, location and printing technologies … turns the physical into the digital to give operational events a virtual voice. This enables you to know the real-time location, condition, timing and accuracy of the events occurring throughout your value chain. Once you can see the events, you have the opportunity to create new value from what is already there. Once you can see the events happening in your value chain, you can act upon them.”
“Turns the physical into the digital to give operational events a virtual voice.” Well put! In fact, so well put that even I can envision it happening. I’ve shared but three descriptions in Zebra’s white paper that held particular meaning for me. There were many more, and I’m confident that you too will find concrete, real-world answers there to your too big questions, too. Meanwhile, where did I put that screwdriver!?