Book excerpt: The complete reference guide to the hot technology of cloud computing Its potential for lowering IT costs makes cloud computing a major force for both IT vendors and users; it is expected to gain momentum rapidly with the launch of Office Web Apps later this year. Because cloud computing involves various technologies, protocols, platforms, and infrastructure elements, this comprehensive reference is just what you need if you?ll be using or implementing cloud computing. Cloud computing offers significant cost savings by eliminating upfront expenses for hardware and software; its growing popularity is expected to skyrocket when Microsoft introduces Office Web Apps This comprehensive guide helps define what cloud computing is and thoroughly explores the technologies, protocols, platforms and infrastructure that make it so desirable Covers mobile cloud computing, a significant area due to ever-increasing cell phone and smartphone use Focuses on the platforms and technologies essential to cloud computing Anyone involved with planning, implementing, using, or maintaining a cloud computing project will rely on the information in Cloud Computing Bible.