Software as a service (SaaS)

Main article: Software as a service

In the business model using software as a service (SaaS), users are provided access to application software and databases. Cloud providers manage the infrastructure and platforms that run the applications. SaaS is sometimes referred to as "on-demand software" and is usually priced on a pay-per-use basis or using a subscription fee.

In the SaaS model, cloud providers install and operate application software in the cloud and cloud users access the software from cloud clients. Cloud users do not manage the cloud infrastructure and platform where the application runs. This eliminates the need to install and run the application on the cloud user's own computers, which simplifies maintenance and support. Cloud applications are different from other applications in their scalability – which can be achieved by cloning tasks onto multiple virtual machines at run-time to meet changing work demand. Load balancers distribute the work over the set of virtual machines. This process is transparent to the cloud user, who sees only a single access point. To accommodate a large number of cloud users, cloud applications can be multitenant, that is, any machine serves more than one cloud user organization.

The pricing model for SaaS applications is typically a monthly or yearly flat fee per user, so price is scalable and adjustable if users are added or removed at any point.

Proponents claim SaaS allows a business the potential to reduce IT operational costs by outsourcing hardware and software maintenance and support to the cloud provider. This enables the business to reallocate IT operations costs away from hardware / software spending and personnel expenses, towards meeting other goals. In addition, with applications hosted centrally, updates can be released without the need for users to install new software. One drawback of SaaS is that the users' data are stored on the cloud provider's server. As a result, there could be unauthorized access to the data. For this reason, users are increasingly adopting intelligent third-party key management systems to help secure their data.

Reassess Your Computer Interactions

It's time to reassess your relationship with your computer when....

You wake up at 4 o'clock in the morning to go to the bathroom and stop at the computer to check your email on the way back to bed.

You turn off your computer and get an awful empty feeling, as if you just pulled the plug on a loved one.

You decide to stay in college for an additional year or two, just for the free internet access.

You start using smileys: -) in your snail mail.

When you hand-write a note and think... SPELL CHECKER'!

You can't correspond with your mother because she doesn't have a computer.

When your computer's email box shows 'no new messages' and you feel really depressed.

You don't know the gender of your three closest friends because they have non-descript screen name and you never bothered to ask.

Your family always knows where you are.

In real life conversations, you don't laugh, you just say 'LOL, LOL'

If your computer's internet connection goes down, you cannot settle to any other tasks.

After reading this message, you immediately forward it to a friend!