Cloud Computing Explained to Your Grandparents

Cloud computing is just using somebody else computer. That is it.

Instead of running software on your machine, you run it on a server somewhere. You access it over the internet. The server handles the heavy work.

Netflix runs on the cloud. When you watch a movie, it streams from a server. Your phone just displays it. The processing happens somewhere else.

Google Docs runs on the cloud. Your document is saved on Google servers. You can access it from any device. If your laptop breaks, the document is still there.

The advantage is scale. Companies do not need to buy their own servers. They rent them from AWS or Google or Microsoft. They can start small and grow as needed.

The disadvantage is control. You are trusting somebody else with your data. That is why security matters.

Cloud computing is not magic. It is just remote access. The cloud is just somebody else computer.