Importance of Using Cloud Technology Tools

Importance of Using Cloud Technology Tools

To this day, my sister and I still talk about one of our biggest fights when we were kids. She had done something to annoy me, so I decided to retaliate by ‘editing’ one of her homework assignments in Microsoft Word. If I recall, my edits went: CTRL+A, backspace, and then CTRL+S, which means I selected ALL her text, DELETED it and SAVED her new blank document in place of all her hard work (sorry again, Sarah!). Needless to say, she was VERY upset to hear she lost all her work. Even in our 30’s, this story dates us, because with today’s cloud technology this would have been very easy to fix.

What is the “Cloud”?

The “cloud” refers to physical computer servers all over the world that are accessed over the internet AND the software and databases that run on those servers, used for personal and business communication.

“The cloud enables users to access the same files and applications from almost any device, because the computing and storage takes place on servers in a data center, instead of locally on the user device. This is why a user can log into their Instagram account on a new phone after their old phone breaks and still find their old account in place, with all their photos, videos, and conversation history. It works the same way with cloud email providers like Gmail or Microsoft Office 365, and with cloud storage providers like Dropbox or Google Drive.” ("What Is the Cloud? | Cloud Definition ...." https://www.cloudflare.com/learning/cloud/what-is-the-cloud/)

Cloud Storage Services

As mentioned in the quote above, many different companies now offer their own cloud-based storage technology under various names. To put it basically, they are all an on-demand service where you can access your information anytime, anywhere, and on pretty much any smart device such as a tablet or smartphone. They can store different file types so you can save your pictures, documents, presentations, and spreadsheets all in one place. When you’re using cloud storage technology, you get immediate access to your information, you don’t need to worry about losing your information due to hardware failure or accidental deletion, it’s cheap if not FREE, and these tools have amazingly easy sharing capabilities. If you haven’t already done so, it’s time to make the switch to the cloud!

Count on Cloud Convenience

My favourite reason to use a cloud storage service and the accompanying applications is because of extreme convenience. I can’t count the number of times I needed to find a picture I saved, access and change a document quickly, or make suggestions or comments on someone else’s work and just whipped out my smartphone instead of going to get my computer and logging in. It’s been a huge time saver for me as my phone is always by my side. Also, who carries their computer with them ALL the time? Whether it’s your phone or another smart device, you just need to download the right apps. There are many different cloud storage apps available, just find the one that works best for you. I am a big fan of Google Drive as it is extremely easy to use and because Google has so many other apps integrated with it (G-Suite). I use Google Docs, Sheets, Slides, Keep, Calendar, and more Google Apps, and they are all easy to access and use on my phone. Using the cloud with a smart device makes my work so much faster and I can always access my files from anywhere.

No Need to Worry

Using the cloud means no more losing information! Do you recognize this “blue screen of death”? This is a classic hardware failure situation where your entire screen turns blue and you receive an error message.

Once you finally get your computer working again, there’s a good chance whatever you were working on could be gone if you have not saved recently. Did you accidentally delete your files? Did you delete someone else’s files or their work in a document? Most cloud tools have a trash can AND some sort of a revision history where you can track every change made to the document, even deletions, so no more worrying about losing information like Sarah did. I could write a whole other blog about using revision history to recover lost information.

Share Files More Efficiently

Have you ever played “email tag” back and forth sending new versions of a document with edits or suggestions? I’ve been a part of many groups who do this and there is an easier way! One of the lesser-known capabilities of cloud technology is extremely easy sharing abilities. Using cloud technology will eliminate the need for ‘“email tag”. One person creates the file (whether it’s a folder, document, spreadsheet, presentation, etc) and shares it with all the necessary people. You can even change their permission settings to change how they access the document based on whether you want them to edit, make comments, or only view it. If giving them editing permissions in either Google Docs and Microsoft Word, there is also the ability to use a suggestion mode where you can edit as normal, but those edits appear in another colour with your name attached to them. No more emailing drafts back and forth! You can make comments and tag the necessary people if you need to alert them to something, or ask a question within the file, and they will be alerted automatically.

Save your Money!

As of July 2020, it costs $139.00 to purchase Microsoft Word for ONE PC or Mac. However, Microsoft’s cloud-based technology, Microsoft 365, includes almost all the same features as the paid version and is FREE. Of course, there are some limitations to the free versions, like storage (5GB in OneDrive and 15GB in Google Drive). I pay $2.79 a month to get 100 GB of data in Google Drive and have only managed to fill up 30 GB in two years, loading lots of pictures.

Pro-tip! I answer Google’s survey questions to get Google Play credit, which I use to automatically pay monthly for my storage - click here to download the app.

It would take four years of my Google Drive usage to spend almost as much as one Microsoft Office download for a single device. Many people upgrade their computers for a new device every few years anyway, and the process to transfer your Microsoft products to a new device can be a nuisance.

Read Before You Choose

It is important to read the Terms & Conditions (including privacy statements) for each cloud service as you need to be comfortable that your confidential information will stay that way. Be aware of what they are allowing various services to use their collected data for! Check out this website for an easier breakdown of the Terms & Conditions from many popular websites that are often too long and confusing to read.

Reach out and let me know how I can help YOU!

Do you need help getting set up in the cloud? Do you want to chat about your options? I can help. Choosing your best fitting storage app is important and depends on your needs, but also your current computer and technology use! Apple users might want to stick to iCloud, frequent Microsoft users might feel most comfortable using OneDrive, and longtime Gmail users, like me, might prefer Google Drive!

The specifics of each cloud technology are a little different but most of them have very similar features. Contact me to help decide which one would be best for your own needs and to help set you up “in the cloud” as soon as possible.

Lisa Charow-Jay

Thursday, July, 16th, 2020