clouds

Google Apps reseller Cloud Sherpas raises $40M

Cloud Sherpas, a startup that helps customers move to Google Apps and Salesforce.com, raised $40 million in second-round funding and acquired a rival, CloudTrigger.

The 350-employee company plans to use the money to fuel further acquisitions and to expand its existing business, a move that it expects will increase 2013 revenue to $100 million.

First-round investors Columbia Capital and Delta-V Capital invested in the second round as well, and new investors Greenspring Associates and Queensland Investment Corporation joined. Cloud Sherpas didn't disclose the company valuation. It's raised $80 million in total so far.

Acquisition is par for the course at Cloud Sherpas. … Read more

Dropbox snaps up cloud-based photo organizer Snapjoy

Dropbox is continuing to reveal its interest in getting into the online photo sharing space. The latest piece of evidence is the acquisition of Snapjoy, a startup that provides a cloud-based photo library.

For reference, Snapjoy's platform can be used to collect photos from a multiude of online and offline sources (i.e., Flickr, desktops, an iPhone, etc.) to be stored in a cloud-based account. Users can elect to share some or all photos, either via invite to select friends or on social networks.

One of the differences that Snapjoy aimed to convey is that its elegant photo stream … Read more

CloudOn MS Office app adds support for iPhone, SkyDrive

CloudOn's Microsoft Office app has expanded its horizons beyond just the iPad.

Released today, version 3.0 of CloudOn supports the iPhone, the iPad Mini, and the iPod Touch.

It handles the iPhone 5, taking advantage of the new phone's longer screen. There's also a special reading mode for the iPhone, so you can easily scroll through a document without the Ribbon or keyboard getting in the way.

The app has kicked in support for Microsoft's SkyDrive. That means you can store your documents on SkyDrive, Dropbox, Google Drive, or Box.

CloudOn lets you create and … Read more

Google Maps returns to the iPhone

Thursday's CNET Update is following directions:

Apple users can have more peace of mind while traveling thanks to the new Google Maps app. The app includes turn-by-turn directions and public transit information. Within a few hours after going live, Google Maps was the top free app on the iPhone.

Apple kicked Google's map off iOS 6, but Apple's version has been plagued with errors and even caused some people in Australia to be stranded in the wilderness. Some iPhone owners have avoided upgrading to iOS 6 to avoid using Apple Maps. Having Google as an option again … Read more

Report tags top consumer trends for 2013

Cloud computing is one of the main trends to keep an eye on in 2013, according to a new report from Ericsson.

The electronics firm's "Ten Hot Consumer Trends 2013" report (PDF) suggests that not only is cloud computing becoming increasingly important in our daily lives, but young people's use of the Internet will drive new businesses and products in the coming year.

The most important technological trend is cloud computing. More than 50 percent of tablet users and 40 percent of smartphone users in the U.S., Japan, Australia, and Sweden subscribe to these kinds … Read more

Amazon Cloud Player arrives on Roku, Samsung Smart TVs

It's been months since Roku announced that the Amazon Cloud Player was "coming soon," but today the company finally made good on that promise.

Amazon's cloud music service is now available on Roku and Samsung Smart TVs, offering the ability to stream your own digital music tracks without needing to keep a separate computer running. For Roku, it's a solid response to Apple's iTunes Match service, which offers cloud storage and streaming for $25 per year.

While Amazon Cloud Player started off as a largely free service, it now requires a similar fee as … Read more

Apple's iCloud lock for Macs is not very secure

One feature in Apple's iCloud service for OS X is its lock option, which allows you to remotely set a PIN for your Mac through iCloud's Find My iPhone service, and require that it be entered to boot the system.

This lock is similar to a firmware password for securing Mac systems. Not only does it prevent booting to alternative boot modes such as Safe Mode or Single User Mode, but it prevents loading in special hardware modes like Target Disk and Internet Recovery so the hard disk cannot be wiped or otherwise accessed.

Unlike the firmware password, … Read more

Adobe Creative Cloud becomes a team player

I'm not a big fan of the subscription pricing model for software, especially software on the critical path for production work. I like knowing that in five years I won't still be paying for software that I didn't really need to upgrade, or that if Adobe suddenly decides a subscription is worth $99/month, I'm not caught flat-footed looking for a Photoshop replacement because I don't really own the version I've been using. But some people like it, some don't; some think it's overpriced, others think it's a steal. (Read our survey results on that.) … Read more

Cloud computing goes mainstream

This year, the shift away from desktop software toward cloud-based apps and services really took hold. More people are managing and sharing documents with Google Docs and Microsoft's Office 365, they're storing photos and music in iCloud and Amazon Cloud Drive, and they're turning to online music services such as Spotify and Pandora. E-mail is quickly becoming a cloud-only affair: Microsoft launched cloud-based Outlook.com even as venerable desktop e-mail apps like Mozilla's Thunderbird and Sparrow disappeared forever in 2012. And why buy boxed tax-prep software when the same capabilities are available in-browser from the same … Read more