How the Cloud Works For Us Non-Techies

Key Takeaways

• Old Tech vs. Cloud: Back in the early 2000s, saving data was unreliable, and losing important files was common. Today, with cloud storage, your files are automatically backed up, and you can access them from any device.

• Cloud Convenience: The cloud stores your photos, documents, and files on remote servers. This means you can access your data from any device with an internet connection, whether it's your phone, tablet, or laptop.

• Undersea Cables: Despite the rise of wireless technology, around 97% of global internet traffic still relies on undersea cables. These cables connect data centers worldwide, enabling the seamless flow of data.

• Redundancy in Data: When you save files to the cloud, they aren’t stored in just one location. The data is copied to multiple data centers, so even if one location fails, your data remains safe and accessible.

• Cloud Limitations: The cloud depends on an internet connection. If your connection is down, you can't access your files. There can also be occasional outages on the provider's side, affecting accessibility.

• Security: Cloud providers offer strong security measures, such as encryption, but the biggest vulnerability often comes from weak passwords. Ensuring you use strong, unique passwords is crucial for data protection.

• Cloud vs. Local Storage: While local storage (like a laptop hard drive) is convenient, it’s more vulnerable to loss, theft, or damage. The cloud allows you to wipe your data remotely if your device is compromised, offering an additional layer of security.

• Fun Fact: All the data stored in the cloud—emails, documents, videos—when combined, weighs about the same as a strawberry.

Transcript

Here’s the transcript from this episode. A little background about our podcast “hosts”. We call them Izzy and Will—not to make them more human, but to make them easier to talk about. 😉🤖

Izzy: Oh, totally. It's wild how much things have changed. I remember when we used to have like floppy disks and then CDs. Remember those huge stacks of CD cases? Yeah. So physical, you know, so tangible.

Will: True. I mean, now it's all Gone. Into the cloud. And we don't even think about it twice. Like, we expect to just instantly stream any movie ever or access our photos from anywhere. But we rarely stop and think, what even IS the cloud?

Izzy: Right. We think of this fluffy white thing, but it's not exactly, you know, up in the sky with the weather. Imagine these massive data centers. Some of them are literally bigger than football fields. Packed with rows and rows of servers. These supercomputers just working 24/7.

Will: Wait. Every time I hit save on a document, I zoom off to one of these giant data centers.

Izzy: Exactly. And get this, it's not just one data center. Your data gets copied to multiple locations, often on totally different continents. So it's like having a backup of your backup, all connected by these undersea internet cables.

Will: Undersea cables. I thought with Wi Fi and everything being wireless now that, we'd move past that.

Izzy: You'd be surprised. About 97% of internet traffic still actually travels through these cables. Like, stretched across the ocean floor. Wow. And we're not talking about, you know, flimsy little wires here. Right. Some of these cables are as thick as garden hoses. What? Stretching for thousands of miles.

Will: Garden hoses?

Izzy: Yeah.

Will: On the ocean floor. That is both incredible and also slightly terrifying. Yeah. If you wonder, how does all that data even stay safe?

Izzy: Well, that's where this concept of redundancy comes in. So, remember how we were talking about your data being copied to multiple data centers? Right. It's like having multiple safety deposit boxes for your most important stuff. So, even if one data center has a problem. Let's say it gets hit by, I don't know, a hurricane. Your data is safe and sound in all these other locations. Oh, so

Will: it's a digital safety net making sure your data is always there when you need it.

Izzy: Exactly. And that's why you can access your files from your phone, your laptop at work, wherever you are in the world. It's all right there. Okay. And it's also why like services like Netflix can stream movies so seamlessly. That's right. Because your data isn't limited to. like one physical location anymore. It's constantly on the move.

Will: Okay. That makes sense.

Izzy: Yeah.

[00:02:28] Will: But let's be real, nothing's perfect, right? There's got to be some kind of downside to all this cloud magic. I mean, what happens if you're in the middle of nowhere and your Internet's down? You've hit on a key point there.

Will: Yeah.

Izzy: The cloud, it does have its limitations, and the most obvious one being that you need that stable Internet connection, right? So, um, If your internet goes down, you temporarily lose access to all those files, all those services you're used to. Like, remember that feeling of needing to get to an important document and then looking at your phone and you've got zero bars? Ugh, don't even remind me. It's the worst.

Izzy: Right. You're totally cut off. It's the

Will: Ultimate. In our digital world.

Izzy: Yeah. And then there's that rare but still possible server outage on the provider's end. Doesn't happen every day, but when it does. Yeah. It can really throw a wrench in things. You can't get to your stuff.

Will: Totally. It's

Izzy: a good reminder that even the cloud has limits.

Will: It's true. And, of course, you know, the elephant in the room when we talk about the cloud is security. With all those high-profile data breaches you hear about on the news all the time. Yeah. How do we know our stuff is actually safe in this vast, invisible network?

Izzy: It's a totally valid concern and one that tons of people share. I mean, we're trusting these companies, these data centers, with our whole digital lives. It's a lot, but here's the thing. While no system is, you know, 100 percent foolproof, reputable cloud providers invest a ton in security. Way more than people can do on their own. Think of it this way.

Will: So you're saying it's like Fort Knox for our data? Yeah.

Izzy: Basically. I mean, we're talking sophisticated encryption, which is like putting all your data in a secret code that only, you know, authorized users can unlock. And then on top of that, there are firewalls, like those tough bouncers at a club, only letting in requests that, you know, meet the right criteria.

Will: That does make me feel a little bit better, I have to say. Yeah. But, what about all those stories you hear about cloud hacks? Yeah. I specifically remember that iCloud thing a while back. Right. With all those celebrities and their photos getting leaked.

Izzy: Yeah, yeah.

Will: That was a big one. That really shook people's trust in the cloud, I think.

Izzy: Totally. But, you know, what most people don't realize is that That wasn't actually a breach of their cloud service itself.

Will: Oh, really?

Izzy: It was more of a password security issue combined with people using those weak passwords, the easy-to-guess ones. 

Will: More of a human error situation.

Izzy: Exactly.

Will: Than a cloud flaw.

Izzy: Exactly. And you know, it kind of highlights a really important point about all this.

Will: What's that?

Izzy: How secure is your data in the cloud? It doesn't just depend on the provider. Mm-Hmm. But also the steps you're taking to protect your account. Right. Strong, unique passwords. They're non-negotiable.

Will: Yeah, that's a good point.

Izzy: Yeah, yeah. So

Will: it's not even really. Is the cloud secure? It's more like, is the cloud more secure than me just having everything on my laptop?

Izzy: Now you're getting it.

Will: Right.

Izzy: And in a lot of cases, the answer is yes. Okay. Think about it. Your laptop gets stolen.

Will: Mm hmm.

Izzy: Anyone who gets their hands on that. They now have access to all your data. But with the cloud.

Will: Yeah.

Izzy: You can remotely wipe your device.

Will: Oh, wow.

Izzy: Even if you lose it. Your data is still safe.

Will: It's true. It's like you get so caught up in, the what if’s with cloud security. Yeah. You don't even think about all the other ways that your stuff could be completely gone.

Izzy: Right.

Will: It's like that saying, don't let the fear of striking out keep you from playing the game.

Izzy: Exactly. It's all about perspective. We tend to focus on the what-ifs and the risks without always remembering the Security advantages.

Will: Right. That

Izzy: offers.

Will: Compared to the old way.

Izzy: Yeah. So

Will: Basically, the cloud isn't some magical thing. It's not this intangible entity up in the sky. Right. It's these physical data centers all over the place. And they're all connected and just Working constantly to keep all of our digital lives safe.

Izzy: And it might not be perfect, but at least it's not like floppy disks and hoping for the best, right?

Will: Right. It really makes you appreciate how far we've come. From those clunky backup CDs to this whole global network. Yeah. Just like that. It's amazing. It's true. It's like we traded in our dusty old filing cabinet for this sleek digital command center, you know, but it's so easy to forget all that data. It's not just floating on the ether, right? All those photos and documents and even like our Netflix queues. It all physically exists somewhere in these Massive data centers, like a modern library of Alexandria, but [00:07:00] for ones and zeros.

Izzy: I love that. And here's something kind of mind-blowing to think about.

Will: Okay.

Izzy: If you could weigh all the data in the cloud.

Will: Yeah.

Izzy: Every email, every, like, cat video.

Will: All the cat videos.

Izzy: All of it. It would only weigh about as much as a strawberry.

Will: Wait, are you serious?

Izzy: Yeah. Wild, right?

Will: That is incredible. It really puts it into perspective how much we rely on this technology. This invisible thing that we just Kind of take for granted.

Izzy: Totally. It's easy to forget. Every time you hit save, every time you send an email, every time you stream a movie, you're tapping into this massive system.

Will: It's true. This has definitely given me a whole new appreciation for what is actually going on behind the scenes of my digital life.

Izzy: You!

Will: I don't think I'm gonna look at that little cloud icon the same way again.

Izzy: Right. There's a lot more to it than meets the eye.

Will: It's amazing. Well, on that note, we'll let you get back to, uh, you know, pondering the cloud and its impact on our lives.

Izzy: Yeah.

Will: Until next time! Keep exploring.