Cloud computing is one of the hottest technology, which not only simplifies your life but also provides stable and secure connectivity to your websites and apps. We have seen several articles, tutorials and code samples regarding cloud computing. However, it doesn’t get any better when you interview a person who is familiar with the topic and also currently working with a reputed company who build products related to cloud computing.
In this interview, Joydip Kanjilal, Chief Software Architect, Gaian Solutions Private Limited shared with us the real purpose, benefits of the cloud computing including the kind of products his company is working upon.
Can you share with the real purpose of cloud computing?
Stephen Hawking rightly said: “We are all now connected by the Internet, like neurons in a giant brain.” Cloud computing is fast emerging as a popular platform for enterprises to leverage the features and benefits of shared infrastructure, reduced costs and lower management overheads. It is a phenomenon that promises to increase business agility by increasing the speed with which applications are deployed. Cloud Computing is not a technology revolution, rather, it is a business and process evolution.
Should all businesses use cloud computing? Well, it depends There are certain downsides to using cloud computing as well. There are a lot of risks and technological challenges involved in using a cloud computing model for your applications. These include: data security of the enterprise data stored in the cloud, performance issues, capital expenses, ability of the applications deployed on Cloud Computing platforms to integrate with the legacy systems, etc.
What will happen if cloud computing doesn’t exist?
Cloud computing provides a comprehensive solution that delivers IT as a service and simplifies IT infrastructure sans the need of sacrificing customisation and integration capabilities. From improving healthcare standards to reducing carbon footprints, the cloud is driving a quiet revolution.
And, the economics of cloud computing are compelling too. Had cloud computing not been around, the companies would have had to spend millions of dollars on operational expenditure and most importantly, it would have been a great challenge to design, develop and deploy applications at reduced operational and infrastructure cost while at the same time continue to increase the business agility of the enterprises.
Can you share with us the latest platforms under which cloud computing works?
Amazon’s EC2, IBM Computing on Demand and Microsoft’s Azure are among the key cloud computing platforms around.
Do you think cloud computing is helpful in the implementation of Government projects?
Ever since e-governance became popular, the governments around the world have been trying to introduce technology into how they function and deliver services to its citizens. Cloud computing plays a major role here and it helps deliver information and services more easily, widely and transparently.
People say usage of CDN improves the loading speed of high traffic sites. Is it true and if so how does it work on the backend?
Yes, that’s correct. A Content Delivery Network (CDN) is a network of geographically dispersed servers. Essentially, CDN helps to improve your user’s experience in terms of speed by providing alternative server nodes for users to download resources. These nodes are geographically closer to your users and hence ensure a better user experience by providing faster response due to reduced latency.
Can you disclose the benefits of Gaia TV Platform, which you company is developing?
Gaian Solutions offers dynamic content delivery products and solutions to the new generation television ecosystem of broadcasters (television channel providers), MSOs (DTH, Satellite, and Cable Operators) and enterprises (Retail, Large Corporate, and Government). The products and solutions affect a wider network of entities, primarily, the advertising fraternity, SMEs, and end consumers.
GaiaTV platform promises to redefine TV for the connected world and comes pre-integrated with several content feeds from global sources. These feeds can be in the form of RSS, KQML, Atom, or a custom format. Common content apps include airport schedules, train timings, show times, news, weather updates, and VOD services. Due to Gaian’s common multi-device application framework, such apps can also be delivered over smart devices with minimal effort. Additionally, all application information and descriptions can be localized for multiple languages.
What will be the situation of Cloud computing after 10 years? Do you see any potential for growth?
Absolutely! Cloud Computing is set to transform the way applications are built and deployed–it promises reduced cost of maintenance, reduced complexity and better scalability and greater flexibility. It is a new way of looking at how people and organisations buy, consume and pay for IT. And, as the Internet of Things has already taken the software industry by storm, it would definitely need cloud platform for it to work.
As more and more organizations continue to leverage the cloud platform and explore possibilities of adapting to IoT, there is a lot of chatter and hype around the IoT and cloud right now. That said, I am sure that many more enterprises would be leveraging hybrid clouds in the near future. The essence is, cloud computing would continue to grow in the years ahead and more and more applications would leverage the faster, cheaper, better, and reliable infrastructure on the cloud.
Does cloud computing benefit IoT devices and if so how?
The Internet of things (IoT) is fast becoming one of the most relevant trends in the history of the software industry. It is a network of physical objects and / or connected devices through advanced communication protocols without human operation. There are numerous use cases and opportunities across different industries for adapting to IoT.
The cloud and the IoT are have to co-exist anyway – the IoT requires the cloud for it to work, and the cloud will evolve more and more to better serve IoT in the years ahead. In essence, the cloud platform is the best place to build IoT initiatives – it provides a powerful and complete solution for rapid development and integration of IoT technologies.
How does cloud computing benefit rural India?
Cloud Computing is a boon to the rural development in India! It enables elastic processing power being accessible by thin clients. Many citizens benefit from the faster, cheaper, better, and reliable applications on the cloud sans the need of huge capital investment and infrastructure expertise. While television & internet has already been a catalyst in learning, education & governance even in rural areas, cloud computing allows ease of use with reduced cost and maintenance overheads.
Can you share the kind of products your company is planning develop in the next 5 years?
In this era of high-speed internet, there are a lot of challenges for content delivery networks to serve the right content to the right people and, at the right time. At Gaian Solutions we help all the actors of the content delivery networks—broadcasters, cable TV operators, enterprises, & advertisers alike, overcome this challenge. At Gaian Solutions, we wish to continue to innovate in the area of content presentation styles, targeted content delivery, content monetization, business intelligence, and analytics and come up with world – class solutions in these all of these areas in the years ahead.
