Ex-MySQL chief puts open source in its place

What's bigger than open source? Cloud computing. Plus it's a force for positive change. That's according to Marten Mickos, the recently recruited chief executive of Eucalyptus Systems – the startup that's partnering with Canonical on open-source computing clusters. Mickos was CEO of MySQL and then leader of the MySQL business …

[efeffess]

Cloudy Computing

Don't know if it's just me, but the possible lack of security and the chills I experience when thinking of relying on external services to host my important data are obstacles to my adopting Cloud Computing. If data is stored locally, with backups, and collaboration occurred via encrypted email and/or local, private Web server, how would Cloud Computing serve better?

[Probe]

Not just you

Fills me with horror.

[Dave_Page]

Title

There's no reason the cloud cannot be in your own data center. Some of the vendors have some really cool features these days that are a sysadmin's dream for management, efficiency and availability of services. Eucalyptus is also cool, but has a fair way to go to catch up.

[M Gale]

Re: Cloudy Computing

The idea of Eucalyptus is that you can run your own personal "cloud" (which seems to be as nebulous a term as its sky-borne namesake). As for uses.. well I imagine if you've got a business with a lot of workstations in it, maybe there's some sense in ploughing a fair amount of money into a HAL-strength server while the workstations are cheapy not-so-dumb terminals? Of course, your mileage may vary.

[Geoff Campbell]

Goes around, comes around....

And so, the great centralisation/decentralisation cycle begins yet another weary, weary circuit. Perhaps I'm getting old, but I'm not sure I have the stamina for yet another go around - I think I've witnessed something like three complete cycles in my time in the industry.

GJC

[Anonymous Coward]

Don't know if its just me but...

I don't see cloud computing going anywhere. It has its own small nich but I just can't see it gaining any force beyond limited portable storage.

[cmaurand]

yawn, the cloud again?

I work for a small automobile insurance company. The cloud isn't even on our radar screens. We're so not going there for a myriad of security and privacy concerns. I've already seen articles in the trade journals that talk about how cloud computing hasn't taken off like everyone had hoped. Its a new name for a 30 year old concept (time shared computing) Why, after all the money that we've spent moving computing out of the glass house, would we want to move it back into the glass house?

[Jeff 11]

Clouds

Great for content distribution, really really bad for sensitive data. That's about it. It's nice and cheap-ish but Amazon et al don't manage your instance's security, it's just another nice fat centralised layer they add for someone to eventually break into. I'd love to see anyone try to hold Amazon or Google legally accountable when there's a breach. But don't let that stop the hype machine from blowing out hot air. Or vapour, perhaps...

[Anonymous Coward]

Mickos beged to make quick cash like with MySQL

It is not really opensource company anymore, since Mickos took over. They sell proprietary Enterprise Edition, and open source version is severely crippled and unsupported. It is Open-Core business model which is in fact old proprietary shareware business with new label. It just diminishes credibility of open source when customer get that they are locked in worse than with proprietary software. Those who get burned with fake open source will never look at open source. They will asume it is fake again. It is Better to buy from proprietary company, at least you know what you can expect.