The network. Clouds generally refer to wide area networks (WANs) such as the Internet, but can also refer to a private cloud, which is a company's own network. However, the term "cloud computing" most always refers to the public Internet and not to private networks (see cloud computing).
A cloud-like symbol in a network diagram is used to reduce an entire communications network into points of entry and exit. An actual cloud symbol is drawn when the network architecture is not material to the illustration. Inside the cloud, there may be any number of cables, servers, routers, switches and other network devices.
Network Cloud
The cloud symbol represents a communications network without specific details of its architecture. Diagrams use cloud symbols when only the points of entry and exit need to be identified.
A cloud-like symbol in a network diagram is used to reduce an entire communications network into points of entry and exit. An actual cloud symbol is drawn when the network architecture is not material to the illustration. Inside the cloud, there may be any number of cables, servers, routers, switches and other network devices.
Network Cloud
The cloud symbol represents a communications network without specific details of its architecture. Diagrams use cloud symbols when only the points of entry and exit need to be identified.
 | Reproduced with permission from Computer Desktop Encyclopedia. Copyright (c) 1981-2009 The Computer Language Company Inc. All rights reserved. |
Additional Resources
- The cloud computing battleground takes shape. Will it be winner-take-all?
- This year has been one of relatively grand alliances between emerging cloud computing vendors as they fill holes in their capabilities and try to create appealing one-stop enterprise cloud services. We’ve seen major announcements so far from IBM and Juniper, Cisco/EMC/VMware, and most recently BMC and Salesforce....
- Blog posts 2009-11-24
- Google goes all-in with an open source cloud
- Open standards set terms of competition that advantage the low-cost producer of bits and processing. That's Google. by Dana Blankenhorn
- Blog posts 2009-11-23
- Chatting (Not Chattering) About Salesforce - Part I
- (NOTE BEFORE I START: This is one really long post. So rather than post it in all its glory in a single file or post it here over two days, I'm trying something new. I'm posting the first half here. And the second half on PGreenblog. Â Let's see how that...
- Blog posts 2009-11-23
- Beware business cloud dangers, says EU agency
- Businesses should use caution when procuring cloud services, according to the European agency charged with promoting IT security good practice. Businesses should use caution when procuring cloud services, according to the European agency charged with promoting IT security good practice. The European Network and Information Security...
- News items 2009-11-23
- Roku becomes cloud-enabled with new Roku Channel Store and Developer SDK
- The new Roku Channel Store, which is being rolled out to all Roku devices, will greatly expand the capabilities of the $99 set-top on-demand streaming device. Late Sunday night, Roku announced that its players would now have a "Channel...
- Blog posts 2009-11-22
- Taming the Chatter cloud
- more details / demos on chatterPhil - here are some more details on chatter and our take on it. http://blog.appirio.com/search/label/chatter and my demo of it with marc from the second day keynote - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xu-2ZgrmBhsWhile they don't address positioning, they should shed some time on the what/why/impact of chatter. Enterprises...
- Discussion threads 2009-11-21
- Popping the buzzword bubble
- Agility, Enterprise 2.0, cloud, blah, blah, blah... by Joe McKendrick
- Blog posts 2009-11-21
- Taming the Chatter cloud
- To prove meaningful in the enterprise, Salesforce.com Chatter is not only going to have to be upfront about its social capabilities but is also going to have to come with tools that help deliver business value. That could prove a tough nut to crack. by Phil Wainewright
- Blog posts 2009-11-21
- Educating IT decision makers
- Here's the difference:-It's education if you truly let people make their own decisions and support the decisions they make, even if it's your personal opinion the decisions are wrong.-It's advocacy if you do not support the decisions they make when it's your personal opinion the decisions are wrong.So, decidable only...
- Discussion threads 2009-11-21
- Who's afraid of the big bad cloud?
- Not even hybrid apps?Right, got it. You hate everybody who doesn't buy your religion, which doesn't even allow for hybrid applications."I ask why I?d entrust sensitive data to a user with a laptop."You're right, companies can't even trust their own employees. Heck, let's send everybody home and dissolve the whole...
- Discussion threads 2009-11-20
- Who's afraid of the big bad cloud?
- Tech news has been dominated this week by Google's announcements regarding their upcoming Chrome OS. Plenty of geeks are excited; so are plenty of industry insiders and business analysts. You know who aren't excited? Those who say we aren't ready for an OS dependent upon "The Cloud." by...
- Blog posts 2009-11-20
- New Pogoplug brings hard drives online with additional USB ports, bright colors
- On Friday, Cloud Engines introduced its new Pogoplug, adding more sync capabilities, additional USB ports and a splash of color for $129. by Andrew Nusca
- Blog posts 2009-11-20
- Panel: do cloud computing economic advantages break down in enterprises?
- Cost of computingCompanies will utilize this to get rid of expensive license models of Microsoft flavors.Hardware costs are...not the biggest problem. Bandwidth is what is ridiculously high. To get into anything with high enough upload speeds will set you back plenty. Some cable companies are offering decent speeds in the...
- Discussion threads 2009-11-20
- MobileTechRoundup show #190; Should we call them Pocket PCs again?
- I spent a couple of days at the Microsoft Mobius event here in Seattle, but couldn't share much of what was discussed on MobileTechRoundup show #190 due to NDA agreements. However, each attendee did receive an HTC HD2 from HTC so I shared a few thoughts about that device. As...
- Blog posts 2009-11-20
- Panel: do cloud computing economic advantages break down in enterprises?
- A public cloud provider, private cloud operator, consultant, network provider, and venture capitalist were all put in the same room. Here's what they had to say about cloud's business value. by Joe McKendrick
- Blog posts 2009-11-20
- Will Microsoft's Silverlight dampen the appeal of Google's Chrome OS?
- MS is the past Google is the future so NopeGoogle is the old MS, MS is the old IBM. PC_DOS never made it, MS_DOS did. The driving factor was openness and innovation.Today and in the near future, Google has bothToday MS sees profit only and based on thatdrives...
- Discussion threads 2009-11-20
- Chrome OS - The good, the bad and the ugly, and how it fits in with Windows, Mac and Linux
- Chrome OS - The good, the bad and the ugly, and how it fits in with WindowsI gave it some thought too and realized that Chrome OS only has the bad and the ugly. There is nothing good about it. All data stored in the cloud, and on Google's...
- Discussion threads 2009-11-20
- Chrome OS will give Microsoft a run for their money
- SilverLight draws circles around Google's gimmickCompare SL's demo w/ that of ChromeOS and see it for yourself the truth: The former completely owns the latter.RE: Chrome OS will give Microsoft a run for their moneyWhat kool aid are you drinking? NOTHING is secure, and Google wants to take over everything....
- Discussion threads 2009-11-19
- Intuit misses for Q1, continues push into "connected services"
- Bad newsIn Canada, there are basically two favoured accounting packages for small businesses: Quickbooks by Intuit and Simply Accounting by Sage. There is no online version of Quickbooks in Canada. They don't even offer Canadian trials. Sage has no interest in offering cloud services either. ...
- Discussion threads 2009-11-19
- How to add value, not just more tech, with Web 2.0
- Great PresentationI don't know how you find the time to do all the stuff you do and have small new children.We have the Live product here for student e-mailIt's hard to keep up.If building your house on the sand is a bad idea. What about a cloud? Thank goodness the...
- Discussion threads 2009-11-19
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