Risks and Opportunities of Cloud Computing

Facilitated by Ross Patterson

The use and development of open source software in the not for profit world is a match made in heaven. Both sides are well aligned on many of the factors both might call most important: ideologies, ethics, communities, and economics. As cloud computing becomes reality with the introduction of serious platforms backed by major players, such as Google App Engine and Amazon EC2, it is becoming increasingly clear that it is a neutral phenomenon. Explore with me the various opportunities and risks that cloud computing poses to the alliance between open source software and the not for profit world from licensing to code and data portability. How do we put our head in the clouds without putting our feet in shackles?