Stuff you need to know:

• Cloud computing systems generally have a front end, which is what the user sees, and a back end, which does all the work.

• Cloud computing shares some similarities with an older model of computing called timesharing. A timesharing computer system connects multiple users to a single computer processor through dumb terminals, which have a keyboard and monitor, but leave the computing to the central machine.

• While cloud computing promises to offload tasks like data storage and processing power, the model raises questions about data accessibility and security. How can you insure that you can get to your data and keep it safe if it's on someone else's computer?