Network Computing - Offering More than What I Want?

Network Computing - Offering More than What I Want?

Read an interesting post discussing the importance of network-driven applications and network driven computing, as opposed to client (PC/Laptop) driven computing that is in vogue today.

It is indeed interesting to read some of the latest developments, "Google, Microsoft, and Apple have all announced new online storage offerings...the widening race to stake claims in online storage heralds the impending emergence of a new platform, or paradigm, that has massive disruptive potential." While as an idea network centric computing is nothing new (remember The Network is the Computer slogan from Sun? looks like many years ago!), there is little doubt it can have disruptive potential, most definitely a billion make that multi-multi-billion) dollar idea. My guess is, going by Clayton Christensen's logical description of how disruptive businesses take root, Google and Co will need to try to understand the disruptive process better. If they are able to identify a couple of low-end applications that users will only be too glad to store online and start with these to take the assault to Microsoft, it could work better.

For instance, I'm not too comfortable having all my word processing and spreadsheet and other office applications online. I mean, they are working just fine right now, and the costs are not unaffordable, plus having them on desktops is convenient, need not depend on connectivity. But there are some things I'd like online - mail for one (sadly, an open secret!), whatever application I use to publish my blog (in my case Blogger), my bookmarks, contact details of my friends and relatives (just in case I forgot my diary I can always look it up online from anywhere)...that's all I can think of...for the rest, my desktop applications are doing just fine!

This is I think is the crux - Google and the Bog Boys, in their ever present messianic attitude, try to give us things that we are simply not ready for, or not really keen on...if they instead try to find from folks like me if there are other things I'd love to have online, perhaps that will be a better start for network computing becoming mainstream?

Just some thoughts...