Cloud Computing for Libraries

Citation

Calvert, P. (2013), "Cloud Computing for Libraries", The Electronic Library, Vol. 31 No. 1, pp. 131-131. https://doi.org/10.1108/02640471311299182

Cloud computing was around a long before anyone coined the term. It was thus familiar to us all when the concept grew in significance and was easily absorbed into the practice of information management. Breeding does not need to spend long explaining the nature of cloud computing, for as he says it is pervasive in almost all literature about computing so in this book the definitions are provided in a short introductory chapter. What he does in much more detail is consider the applications of this technology in libraries, so the second chapter is about the various options libraries have for implementing its computer environment. Different hosting options discussed are remote website hosting, server collocation, dedicated server hosting, and virtual server hosting. He then explains the difference between infrastructure‐as‐a‐service, software‐as‐a‐service, and platform‐as‐a‐service. Breeding then deals with some of the best known issues that can deter librarians making better use of cloud computing: security (and privacy), reliability, the practical limitations of putting very large‐scale data files into the cloud, environmental concerns, and version control. While he cannot assuage all concerns, the author does a good job of putting them into perspective.

In the fifth chapter Breeding tells us about the advantages of using the cloud, mentioning several specific cloud applications that are currently used by libraries. Adding extra storage space is the first benefit, and Dropbox is the specific application described. Using Google Docs (now part of Drive) is recommended, though Breeding knows it is not a simple matter shifting from one application to another because all staff have to learn new behaviours such as sharing their documents with others, and that takes time.

This book also covers the crucial matter of costs. Using the cloud can save money, but this is not always the case, as Breeding says. Sometimes a library can cover initial implementation costs from a grant and then cope with the maintenance costs after that, in which case the cloud may not be the best option. It is also necessary to think out a strategy for managing staff responses to the cloud, for not all will accept its use gladly. Some may have genuine concerns about data security and privacy issues, others may feel that their jobs are threatened, so for whatever reasons the managers should have a plan to cope with some staff resistance. This is a neat little book that will really help librarians still struggling with the concept of cloud computing.