Comments on: PLM on the Cloud – Tempest or Simply Vapor?

By: Oleg Shilovitsky

Oleg Shilovitsky — Fri, 12 Feb 2010 01:41:14 +0000

Jim, Good buzz summary in my view. I think, cloud in PLM need to expose two problems – interoperability (yes, get of my cloud, please ) and emerging entrance of new business models. Some thoughts about that – http://plmtwine.com/2010/02/05/do-i-need-an-invitation-to-join-cadplm-cloud/.
Best, Oleg

By: Jim Brown

Jim Brown — Sat, 06 Feb 2010 18:22:53 +0000

Derrek,
Thanks. It’s funny to think of the simulation community in regards to the clould. Haven’t you guys been pushing work off to servers wherever you can find capacity for years? Some of the biggest / baddest machines (and clusters of machines) I have seen are for simulation and analysis work. If you can couple that capacity/capability with real-time interaction over the Internet you could really change the pace at which designers get feedback on their work.

Thanks for your thoughts,
Jim

By: Derrek Cooper

Derrek Cooper — Sat, 06 Feb 2010 18:08:07 +0000

Jim.. good stuff here. I am surprised at the reaction to the “cloud”. People seemed to be consumed with the need to have a clear definition of it. Do people not really get it or do they prefer just beating a dead horse? Clearly the “cloud” refers to web-based access to software/data. Some of it could be outsourced, could be “in-house” servers or a combination of all of the above. Performance and security are absolutely two things that will just have to be figured out. As far as PTC, arena etc having these capabilities- sure they have some of the data capabilities, but what SW was showing is way beyond what most companies have ponied up to show. That is – they showed a possible future of MCAD.

Personally, I can’t wait for the “cloud” to become a reality. I use salesforce, google docs, dropbox, jing, screencast.com, ubuntu one everyday and can’t wait for other aspects of software to join the ranks.

The most exciting thing for me is the simulation community. We have as much to benefit from the cloud than anyone. But the challenges are huge. Not only do we need access to software on-demand, our computing requirements are way more than the avg user. So, we can’t simply hook up with am amazon or google service as the hardware requirements for us are way more. BUT- it will be a reality in the near future, guarantee it.

By: Jim Brown

Jim Brown — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 17:05:27 +0000

Funny side note – my browser crashed while I was writing the post, and I lost data. That kind of thing just happens. How tolerant will companies be? How tolerant will their engineers be?

By: Jim Brown

Jim Brown — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 17:03:52 +0000

Steve,
As far as performance is concerned, there are controllable and uncontrollable factors. When things are inhouse, they are (in theory) more controlled. I am curious to see how much bandwidth (and bandwidth latency) issues play as more applications move to the web. One of the reasons we all loved our first PCs so much was that they were lightening fast compared to the mainframes. We need to replicate lightening fast on “the cloud” – no pun intended. Even more interesting is that SolidWorks (and Dassault Systemes in prior conversations) is talking about moving design applications / CAD to the “cloud.” I am as curious about how well they can rapidly track user input as I am about rapid rendering to provide the instantaneous feedback designers want. They want pencil-and-paper fast. Not send-and-receive fast.

I am not saying this won’t be done. But I would be cautious about this and do some serious testing if it was my business.

Thanks for the comment,
Jim

By: Jim Brown

Jim Brown — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 16:58:48 +0000

Stan,
Good point about the mainframe being obtuse. My point about the cloud is that the data is outside of the business. But “cloud” makes it sounds like it is randomly spread across any available server. The truth is that “the cloud” when it comes to virutalizing servers and getting the most out of infrastructure is new. What we are really talking about here is not the technical deployment of servers, but how comfortable are companies outsourcing their apps and data.

Michael points out something I have heard (and believe) but I can’t verify. Most data loss comes from the inside. Physical access to machines is a big key to security. So if a company is going to trust another company to protect their iformation, they must have visibility to security procedures, employee screening, etc. And from my experience, an outsourcing provider is often more careful (and more capable) in regards to security than most inhouse IT groups.

Thanks,
Jim