Introduction

I don't know about you guys, but I'm sick and tired of hearing about the Cloud. When people talk about it they use future tense as if it isn't already here. The Cloud is going to be this big, giant wonderful thing that is going to change humanity forever. They make it sound like we are talking about something that will end starvation and human suffering. Well, I have news for you, The Cloud isn't really all that new and you don't have to wait for tomorrow to use it.

The first thing that comes to my mind when thinking about data is how secure it is. I don't want the world to access my data; I don't even want my wife and kids to access my data. Do you really think companies like Amazon, Yahoo and Apple are going to lose sleep at night if your data is stolen or worse yet, completely lost? - They are still going to send you a monthly bill through their automated system and if they do something to jeopardize your data, you may even get an automated email letting you know they just ruined your life.

Hello, we just turned your world upside down, sorry about that. Here is a 10 Dollar off coupon for your next monthly bill. You have to fill out the form, mail it in and wait six weeks for it to be applied to your account. Have a nice day!

Big companies make really big targets and attract attention. At IDF just a couple of months ago a few guys were standing in front of a big board that was dedicated to cloud computing. This was another "The Future is going to be great" display. So I walked up and engaged with my concerns and completely off the record these guys confirmed that they too share my concerns.

About a year ago some group of technology undesirables did something beyond my comprehension to get into Facebook. On the torrent sites were a handful of text files with about half of the alphabet listed. Facebook as you can imagine is a pretty big target and these guys managed to pull off a heist. My name was in the file, and so was some of my other information. Luckily everyone reading this knows my name, so no big deal there, but what if these guys were to hack into a server that held say my tax and credit card information?

Oh wait, that really isn't a secret anymore either since Sony gave that away a few months ago too. OK, so let's say I had something of real value on someone else's server like say nudie pictures, something the whole world hasn't already had access to. I'm not saying that I have some pinups of myself, but we know some of you do. (I knew you would click, the temptation was just too great)

It really doesn't matter what your data is. What matters is that it is yours and you most likely don't want to share it with the world. By keeping your data on someone else's server you are opening yourself to trouble beyond your control.

Still, the allure of a better tomorrow is very tempting. What if I told you that a better tomorrow starts today? You've had the ability to build your own cloud for a very long time, but after spending a few moments with QNAP's newest NAS servers I can tell you that it is much easier than before.

Let's take a look at QNAP's new MyCloudNAS Service - a resourceful, easy to build 'net network that isn't going to be a big target for hackers. To hell with their cloud, let's build our own!