Rumors have been around forever about a legendary web-based infinite storage system; an almost mythical, ethereal storage technology that could replace the need for a physical hard drive. Even the name for the futuristic internet-omnipotent computing is nebulous: cloud computing. And of course with a project this monumental and with such potential, you can expect a certain company to be involved: Google.
The Gdrive is apparently going to be some sort of all-encompassing, infinite storage technology with no limits. “It’s redundant, repetitive, it’s saying the same thing.”
Google servers and services are already relegating traditional desktop applications to the back of the line. Online services and apps (Google Docs, Gmail, Picasa) have made a statement (with a free pricetag) against traditional desktop software. The new browser Google Chrome drives users to an even more online-over-desktop experience, and points to the increasing irrelevancy of anything not web-based. With rumors going around about having to pay a subscription for an Operating System, an entirely web-based (and potentially free) alternative certainly has its benefits. The unlimited storage-for-life concept is nothing to snicker about either.
Of course there are accompanying rumors about privacy issues and other potential problems with free online storage, especially infinite storage. Would Google have access to all of your files, scanning them for ways to better “serve” you with embedded YouTube and Pandora ads?
Of course, the recent rumors of an ‘09 unveiling of the Gdrive are still up in the air (insert your own cloud reference here), not verified, and far from solidified. But we wouldn’t be surprised to see some of our wildest storage fantasies come true.
MB became the new KB, MB replaced by GB, GB replaced by TB (terabytes). The next step logically would be petabyte, but PB is already taken (by Lead and nut paste), and why not skip straight to the yottabyte (which will commonly be referred to as the GoogleByte.
Physical hard drives are thrown around like AOL trial CDs. Kids look back on the crazy archaic days when desktop computers had desks (and tops for that matter).
For some more news on the future of technology (some of it even more rumor-ific), see these blog posts:
