The new, new thing when it comes to Internet technology is cloud computing, or just the "cloud" for short. In essence, cloud computing is simply moving applications such as word processing, email, databases, and the like from the computer on your desk to a remote server far, far away from your office. If, for example, you use the popular Gmail, Hotmail, or AOL email systems, the computer program that runs these applications does not reside on your computer -- it actually lives on a huge computer located at the host's facilities. Similarly, if you use Google Docs, the word processing and spreadsheet applications you are using do not live on your computer -- they are hosted on Google's massive server farm. In addition to work applications such as these, an ever-increasing number of companies -- large and small -- are moving their websites and ecommerce platforms to the cloud. By doing so, these companies don't have to invest in buying the equipment and people required to run and maintain their own websites and ecommerce platforms, potentially saving a lot of money in the process. 

So far so good.

The problem, however, is this: What happens if the cloud breaks?

Well, two days ago -- on April 21, 2011 -- we found out what happens. And it wasn't pretty.

It was on April 21, 2011 that Amazon Web Services servers went down, putting numerous websites and ecommerce platforms out of commission. Social media websites Foursquare, HootSuite and Reddit crashed on Thursday because of problems at Amazon Web Services' data center, and these and other sites experienced ongoing outages and spotty service into Friday. To say that these companies were not happy would be putting it mildly. "We're past the point of this being a routine outage," said Simon Buckingham, chief executive of New York-based Appitalism, an apps marketplace that has its platform on Amazon's servers. "Customers like myself have assumed that if part of Amazon's data center goes down, then traffic will get transferred in an alternative capacity. The cloud is marketed as being limitless, but what this outage tells us is it's not."

So, if you have moved your website or ecommerce platform to the cloud -- or are thinking about making the move -- what can you do to prevent your own cloud calamity? Here are five tips on how to select a cloud computing vendor from the ISL Online blog:

Flawless, authoritative expertise
Businesses don’t want just vendors; they need experts. Cloud computing vendors handle clients’ data as their own and perform critical business functions with all necessary data being migrated or transferred to the vendor. As a business, you’d want to do business with a vendor who understands that and secures data efficiently. Expertise from cloud computing vendors rests not only on their technological prowess but also on their willingness to approach clients to help them transfer data, train employees formally on how to mitigate any risks involved while keeping all data secure and safe.

Have a system to let you evaluate their service
Good cloud computing vendors will give you a heads up on the process of evaluation and devise policies and systematized procedures to clearly state the importance of sensitive information being dealt with or being stored in the cloud. They make clear references to what data is considered sensitive or proprietary. They will seek to involve the IT department while adopting the service and even train your employees on your behalf. Further, they help develop tools and systems that identify, classify and sort data by analyzing risks involved.

Diligent about data security and granular data access
How does your cloud vendor store data in the cloud? What steps has your cloud vendor taken to ensure security and protection for your confidential data? Businesses prefer vendors who can provide restricted access only to authorized personnel to avoid unauthorized users to access critical data, successfully isolate a corrupted file/database in the cloud so that it doesn’t spread to the rest of the system, etc.

The Always On promise
Does your Cloud Vendor promise an uptime? The cloud service should breathe when your business needs it the most since Cloud application latency (non-responsiveness) can be expensive – in the form of losing customers, productivity or profits. Does the cloud service you are considering have a back-up through a robust infrastructure with service level agreements in place?

Paranoid Customer Service
Your business actually profits from a vendor with a paranoid level of customer service. You could check to see what does the industry have to say about them? Do they return your calls within a day at least? Is your cloud computing vendor transparent about their pricing, policies and other terms/conditions? Do they answer your questions in full about their infrastructure, data security protocols and disaster recovery plans?