Cloud Computing

What does the term "resilient" really mean when it comes to cloud computing?

Gmail has millions of users, and most of the people I work with have a personal gmail account, with few if any of them experiencing significant security issues. One thing that we have not explored as a company is using cloud based email, mainly out of security concerns.

I repeatedly hear a number of the same concerns about utilizing cloud services, some of which are valid, some maybe not so much. Compliance concerns is one that I run across often, and with some industries that have rigid statutory compliance standards, such as HIPAA for healthcare providers, it is indeed a serious issue.

There are a number of choices for free cloud storage - Dropbox, SkyDrive, SugarSync, etc. I was wondering if anyone had compared them to see which is the best choice for free cloud storage. Is there anything particularly good or bad about any of them, or are they all pretty much the same?

Have you implemented any special data security measures to protect high value data stored in the cloud? What is most effective?

I'm looking for a really good primer of how cloud storage works and the various options. Thanks!

One concern that I hear regularly about cloud computing is worry about data security. ISO (International Organization for Standardization) has cleared a standard for data transfer between public and private clouds called the Cloud Data Management Interface. Would you seek out providers with ISO certification?

Apple got a lot of press this week for essentially giving a "hacker" (I hesitate to call it actual hacking, it was more like clever thevery) access to Wired's Mat Honan's iCloud account.

Amazon is offering SSD backed High I/O Instances for those willing and able to pay for it. At least for now this seems aimed at those big AWS customers like Netflix that need to eliminate bottlenecks and have the money to pay to do it.

Is there really any significant difference between Google Drive and Microsoft Skydrive or do they both essentially offer the same thing, like Coke and Pepsi? I'm trying to determine if there is any advantage to using one over the other.

Companies make new announcements trumpeting the launch of cloud services on a daily basis, and it is hard to distinguish between the winners and the losers. As companies attempt to develop a comprehensive cloud strategy and launch offerings in alignment with it, what are the fundamental things that should be considered to maximize returns?