Mar 09 2009
Going to the Cloud
OK, so time to try to walk the talk. Why should my files, emails, calendar and such be tied to a physical device? So here’s what I’m doing.
Files: I’m using Amazon’s S3 cloud storage service along with JungleDisk’s virtual disk software. What does this mean? All my stuff gets stored (encrypted) at a service in the internet, but it looks like a local hard drive to any computer I connect it to (and is available via a browser).
Email, Contacts, and Calendar: I’ve moved my contacts and calendar to GMail, and setup GMail to check all my existing email accounts and consolidate them there. One interface, access to all the stuff, great search and archive capability. Privacy? Well, I pulled some bank account info out of a couple contacts (that shouldn’t have been there anyway). Beyond that, do I really do anything that secret? And with a last name like Nassar, maybe completely open is better! I’ve got it push-syncing to and from my iPhone – good bye Apple Mobile Me.
Basic productivity apps: Hello Google Docs – word processing, spreadsheets, etc.
Misc notes, links, and encrypted stuff (like bank account info and passwords): I’m using a service called Evernote, which is great for clipping and storing things, and allows encryption of any data I desire. Same deal, install the software on any computer I sit down at, and have full access. It also works on my iphone and the web (but web doesn’t show encrypted info).
I can sit down at any computer and do email/contacts/calendar, and with a quick download/install of JungleDisk and Evernote, I’m pretty much in business. Because I’m a techie, depending on what is on a computer I’m using, I might need to download and install a text editor, sftp software, or even a development environment – then SVN in the source.
Time will tell, but I’m hopefully in the process of eliminating my tether to a specific computer. This is pretty cool!
