Google outage makes some rethink cloud services

While it is not completely accurate to say that Google suffered an outage, the fact remains that a technical issue resulted in slow or interrupted access to a number of Google services yesterday. Up to 14 percent of users were affected for at least an hour, though it is next to impossible to know for certain. Regardless of the exact percentages though, it is Google that we talking about here--hence the number of affected users will certainly be astronomical.

Even though the problem was quickly rectified, the repercussions were felt far and wide. For one, the temporary disruption crystallized many peoples' fear--subconsciously or consciously--that we rely too heavily on cloud services. You see, while few would dispute that such services are incredibly convenient, there is no guarantee that a particular organization will not just close down without warning.

Let's take the popular idea of storing one's data using an online storage service as an example. One such service--Digital Railroad abruptly shut its door just last year, leaving users high and dry. One user who was hit particularly hard was Canadian photographer Ryan Pyle, who suddenly had 7,000 fewer edited and retouched images that he stored at Digital Railroad.

What are the cloud services that you use? Did the Google outage result in you reconsidering your options? - Paul