Nearly every day I am reminded how cloud computing is completing revolutionizing how business operate.  I don’t just mean large corporations either. From a small, sole proprietor operation to a large corporate entity, there are software as a service (SaaS), infrastructure as a service (IaaS) solutions for just about any budget or need.

Our Favorite Cloud Services

Here at CGM Web Solutions, we have a few cloud-based services that we are particularly fond of.  Here is a list of a few;

Google Apps for Business

If you are looking for a low-cost e-mail and office application suite for your business that can be accessed from anywhere on the web, Google Apps is the way to go.  With the ability to use Google’s powerful Gmail service from your own domain, you can have a professional looking e-mail addres (you@yourcompany.com) hosted through Gmail.  So you get the benefit of your own domain, backed by the reliability, security and storage of Gmail.  You can also host many accounts under one domain and manage the look and feel of each, so your staff can all share contacts lists, calendars and documents collaboratively in the cloud. Here at CGM Web Solutions, we have recently started offering Google Apps for Business Setup and configuration for small to medium-sized businesses and we think it’s a great product. Contact us for a quote on this or other of our services.

Amazon Simple Storage Service

No Matter how secure your hosting provider is, it’s always good to have a backup. In our experience, cloud storage services are one of the most affordable and reliable off-site storage solutions available. For as little as $0.15/GB, you get redundantly backed up storage space in the cloud.  Here at CGM Web Solutions, we use Amazon S3 to store routine backups of our client’s website through our Automated Website Backup Service.  If you are looking for reliable and secure storage for mission-critical files, this is the place to go!

Is this a car? Is it a smartphone? Is it a gaming machine? Yes to all three. The Toyota Fun Vii is a spectacular design concept unveiled at the 2011 Tokyo Motor Show this week. The 13-foot-long three-seater’s interior and exterior are blank slates for whatever visuals you would like …

baohouse:

One of Tumblr’s server went down today. It happens to be the one which is used to dish out webpages for those of us using a custom domain name (e.g. www.baohouse.net as opposed to baohouse.tumblr.com). Tumblr isn’t as fault-tolerant as I thought it was. However, there were other Tumblr servers…

Great talk on upcoming trends in technology

reddshack:

(via reddshack)

CGM Web Solutions is proud to now offer automated website backup services to cloud storage such as Amazon S3, Rackspace CloudFiles or Dropbox.  We can configure your Joomla or Wordpress website to automatically create a self-extracting backup of your entire website and copy that backup to the cloud storage service of your choice.  Cloud storage provides a highly reliable, redundant storage solution which is off-site from your existing hosting server for ultimate backup security.  Each website backup file can easily be extracted to rebuild your entire website in minutes.  

Contact us at CGM today to inquire about this service!

Have you ever wondered what the visuals look like on hallucinogens? This isn’t far off (um, I’ve read). This is not an animated gif, and nothing is actually moving.

A stealth campaign for Wendy’s brought on 33,000 Twitter followers in about a month with minimal ad support, a feat that many brands haven’t been able to match over several years’ time. The effort, which promotes a new mid-size burger called the W, revolved around a game show on Twitter using …

CGM Web Solutions now has a Google+ Page.  Please check it out, let us know what you think and give us a +1!

CGM Web Solutions is excited to launch the new and improved website for Milton Green Clean Solutions (MGCS). MGCS is a great local Milton business specializing in eco-friendly cleaning for your home, office, or commercial needs.  MGCS uses all eco-certified product, so you know your home will be clean and free from harmful chemicals.  Please check out the new site at www.miltongreenclean.ca