The cloud is a very convenient place to store all of your most important files. With cloud storage, you can access all of your most important movies, music, and documents from anywhere. Blomp offers free and affordable cloud storage plans for a variety of devices. This technology has completely transformed the way we store our data, but how did it get its start? Here’s a look at the beginnings of cloud technology and cloud computing.
Early Beginnings
The concept of cloud computing dates back to the ARPANET in the 1960s. Mainframe computing began in the 1950s, and in the 1960s, the US Advanced Research Projects Agency started working to connect them together. This resulted in the ARPANET, where the computers could communicate and share information with each other. This was the predecessor to the internet and to cloud computing and storage.
Customer-Facing Cloud Services
The first customer-facing programs that used cloud technology didn’t emerge until the 1990s. AT&T launched a service in 1994 called PersonaLink Services and referenced the concept as ‘the cloud’ in their advertisements. This platform facilitated both business and personal communication and allowed people to store their files online. It was one of the first options for web-based storage – prior to that, users had to store their data on their own personal hardware.
Salesforce also launched later in the 1990s, and was one of the first cloud computing companies to offer commercial Software-as-a-Service programs. Since these services were web-based, you didn’t need to buy a physical software program in order to use it. Salesforce revolutionized cloud computing and began the broader SaaS trend with their products.
Modern Cloud Storage
The first major provider of cloud storage the way we know it today was Amazon. They launched Amazon Web Services in 2006, which quickly became very popular. Many other cloud storage providers, such as Dropbox, actually use Amazon Web Services as their storage provider. Over time, many other major tech companies have followed suit and developed their own cloud storage solutions.
Cloud storage is a relatively new technology, so we can expect to see it continue to grow in the future. If you’re looking for free and convenient cloud storage, be sure to check out Blomp!