Favorite Cloud Computing Apps

[echnaton]

I am just beginning to explore "Cloud" computing and have found some cool apps. There are some really neat apps and websites that solve some problems that were otherwise impractical without cloud computing. But as this is an emerging area, there is always new apps to try. So for those of you that use the cloud, what have you found to do and what are your favorite apps and services?

So far mine are:

Logmein.com - lets me remotely control my computers from any internet connection.

Dropbox.com Shares files on my computer with selected people or as web links. Great for small personal web sites.

A new service I found the other day

spoon.net - lets you run dozens of programs off the cloud without installing them on your computer. I think this will particularly useful on my netbook where HD space is fairly limited.

[LunarOrbit]

I use Google Docs quite a bit. It's not quite as capable as MS Office, but the ability to access files pretty much anywhere without needing to carry a thumbdrive is handy. I also use Box.net (same idea as Dropbox).

[echnaton]

I use Google docs for things like storing lists that I want to read from home and work or recipes where I want to pick up ingredients on the way home. After my children got lost the revision twilight zone working on group homework projects, I started them on Google docs. I also encourage them to use it for all homework because they are not conscientious about backing up their laptop.

Over the weekend, I set up our company with a copy of our file server on Dropbox. We are small and keep the files trimmed so Dropbox offers plenty of room. Now if we can't get into our office or the computer and back up drive crash, I can still have our files back in a few hours on our backup server. My goal is to create full virtual office capabilities for us. The absences of a budget forces me to rely on free cloud services and my learn as you go computer skills makes the progress rather slow.

The really cool thing about setting all this up is that I did it from home. I have to do it during off hours because the network must stay up. I wake up early most mornings anyway, so why not spend a hour or two working on the server.