6 ms·

Never trust the cloud, it will always stab you in the back... eventually

by tomc1985 11y ago

Dylan16807 11y ago
You can say the same thing about any service. Or product. Nothing that holds data is trustworthy in the long term, except specialty paper.
- frik 11y ago
  A shrink wrapped product (without DRM) can be used forever, even if the vendor vanishes. Many computers still run old DOS based systems or Win95 with software that still runs just fine in a VM or on old hardware. A subscription based service has disadvantages in this regards, it's like a rent. You don't own it and can't control it.
  - Dylan16807 11y ago
    You can use the bits forever, but that's a different problem entirely. Anything that stores data will physically rot and stop working. You can't trust it much more than you can trust a cloud service. There are many products in the world that can be used for centuries, fixed up when anything breaks. Data storage does not really have any products that fit that description.
    - frik 11y ago
      It's not. * Shrink wrapped software (without DRM) runs on your computer, you have full control over it forever. * Subscription based software with DRM may also run on your computer, but only as long as you rent it, then it stops working and you can't access your data. * Cloud service is a subscription based software that runs on someone else computer, with the same disadvantages as above. A cloud storage locks you in a software eco system/API. So it's a software and storage topic.
      - Dylan16807 11y ago
        Shrink wrapped software locks you into an eco system. How are you supposed to get it to run, without using the right OS and support programs? Many cloud APIs are trivial. Cloud file storage has basically zero lock-in. If your argument is "don't buy subscription software", then I can agree. But "cloud" covers a lot more than that, and cloud data storage in particular, the subject of the article, has very little downside.
        frik 11y ago
        Is that so? OneCloud, DropBox, etc rely mainly on a program that runs only on specific OS versions. The API's are non-standard and do lock in you. And third party programs that break when the API changes. Or who is using such cloud storage only via web interface? We are not speaking about FTP services that were common in the DotCom bubble era, right? And eg MySpace.com originally (until 2001) used to be one of them. And there would be common API protocols like WebDAV and scp/ssh, but do Dropbox & co support them? ("OneDrive for Business", which isn't OneDrive but a branded Sharepoint, supports a limited subset of WebDAV)
        Dylan16807 11y ago
        You can get simple API implementations for most languages, with lots of convenient translation layers that let you switch your code in seconds. They can't change APIs on a whim, that would break existing installs. Or for most of these just use standard filesystem access to your local copy.
- tomc1985 11y ago
  Holding the bits gives you so many more options with regards to spontaneous changes in service quality. As a nearby comment alludes to, you don't have to deal with all the BS that comes with renting. It is saddening to think that people find this kind of impermanence acceptable; they even defend it! (Of cour$e they do) Edit: to be fair, it's nice to be in control of the bits, whether you use them internally or offer them as a service... but as a user it is frustrating to see what used to be a DIY world turn into this... sort-of stucco skyscrapers we call "the cloud" (And it is especially obnoxious to watch companies sell them the cloud, as if it were so unobtainable in the past... but of course there's money to be made in new markets, so onward!)
  - Dylan16807 11y ago
    We're talking about cloud sync. You always have a copy. You're in control.

Never trust the cloud, it will always stab you in the back... eventually

You can say the same thing about any service. Or product. Nothing that holds data is trustworthy in the long term, except specialty paper.

frik 11y ago
A shrink wrapped product (without DRM) can be used forever, even if the vendor vanishes. Many computers still run old DOS based systems or Win95 with software that still runs just fine in a VM or on old hardware. A subscription based service has disadvantages in this regards, it's like a rent. You don't own it and can't control it.
- Dylan16807 11y ago
  You can use the bits forever, but that's a different problem entirely. Anything that stores data will physically rot and stop working. You can't trust it much more than you can trust a cloud service. There are many products in the world that can be used for centuries, fixed up when anything breaks. Data storage does not really have any products that fit that description.
  - frik 11y ago
    It's not. * Shrink wrapped software (without DRM) runs on your computer, you have full control over it forever. * Subscription based software with DRM may also run on your computer, but only as long as you rent it, then it stops working and you can't access your data. * Cloud service is a subscription based software that runs on someone else computer, with the same disadvantages as above. A cloud storage locks you in a software eco system/API. So it's a software and storage topic.
    - Dylan16807 11y ago
      Shrink wrapped software locks you into an eco system. How are you supposed to get it to run, without using the right OS and support programs? Many cloud APIs are trivial. Cloud file storage has basically zero lock-in. If your argument is "don't buy subscription software", then I can agree. But "cloud" covers a lot more than that, and cloud data storage in particular, the subject of the article, has very little downside.
      - frik 11y ago
        Is that so? OneCloud, DropBox, etc rely mainly on a program that runs only on specific OS versions. The API's are non-standard and do lock in you. And third party programs that break when the API changes. Or who is using such cloud storage only via web interface? We are not speaking about FTP services that were common in the DotCom bubble era, right? And eg MySpace.com originally (until 2001) used to be one of them. And there would be common API protocols like WebDAV and scp/ssh, but do Dropbox & co support them? ("OneDrive for Business", which isn't OneDrive but a branded Sharepoint, supports a limited subset of WebDAV)
        Dylan16807 11y ago
        You can get simple API implementations for most languages, with lots of convenient translation layers that let you switch your code in seconds. They can't change APIs on a whim, that would break existing installs. Or for most of these just use standard filesystem access to your local copy.
tomc1985 11y ago
Holding the bits gives you so many more options with regards to spontaneous changes in service quality. As a nearby comment alludes to, you don't have to deal with all the BS that comes with renting. It is saddening to think that people find this kind of impermanence acceptable; they even defend it! (Of cour$e they do) Edit: to be fair, it's nice to be in control of the bits, whether you use them internally or offer them as a service... but as a user it is frustrating to see what used to be a DIY world turn into this... sort-of stucco skyscrapers we call "the cloud" (And it is especially obnoxious to watch companies sell them the cloud, as if it were so unobtainable in the past... but of course there's money to be made in new markets, so onward!)
- Dylan16807 11y ago
  We're talking about cloud sync. You always have a copy. You're in control.