Ten IT Trends for the Years Ahead

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Mobility and agility are the two key concepts for the new decade of computing innovation. At the epicenter of this new enabled computing trend is cloud computing. Virtualization and its highly scaled big brother, cloud computing, will change our technology-centered lives forever. These technologies will enable us to do more; more communicating, more learning, more global business and more computing with less — less money, less hardware, less data loss and less hassle. During this decade, everything you do in the way of technology will move to the data center, whether it’s an on-premises data center or a remote cloud architecture data center thousands of miles away.

1. Mobile Computing

As more workers report to their virtual offices from remote locations, computer manufacturers must supply this new breed of on-the-go worker with sturdier products loaded with the ability to connect to, and use, any available type of Internet connectivity. Mobile users look for lightweight, durable, easy-to-use devices that “just work,” with no lengthy or complex configuration and setup. This agility will come from these smart devices’ ability to pull data from cloud-based applications. Your applications, your data and even your computing environment (formerly known as the operating system) will live comfortably in the cloud to allow for maximum mobility.

2. Virtualization

By the end of this decade, virtualization technology will touch every data center in the world. Companies of all sizes will either convert their physical infrastructures to virtual hosts and guests or they’ll move to an entirely hosted virtual infrastructure. As more business owners attempt to extend their technology refresh cycle, virtualization’s seductive money-saving promise brings new hope to stressed budgets as we collectively pull out of the recession. The global move to virtualization will also put pressure on computer manufacturers to deliver greener hardware for less green.

3. Cloud Computing

Cloud computing, closely tied to virtualization and mobile computing, is the technology that industry observers view as “marketing hype” or old technology repackaged for contemporary consumption. Beyond the hype and relabeling, savvy technology companies will leverage cloud computing to present their products and services to a global audience at a fraction of the cost of current offerings. Cloud computing also protects online ventures with an “always on” philosophy, guaranteeing their services will never suffer an outage. Entire business infrastructures will migrate to the cloud during this new decade, making every company a globally accessible one.

Read the rest at ServerWatch.