Education is one arena that stands to benefit most from recent developments in cloud computing. The term cloud computing has come to mean a number of on-demand services requiring only a network connection, ultimately resulting in a user's ability to access data and applications anytime, and anyplace from any internet connected computer. From providing cost-effective alternatives to purchasing servers, to offering scalable, up-to-date software applications based on an institution's changing needs, cloud computing can be a cost-effective way to stay competitive in education while saving institutional funds. 
One of the initial benefits of the cloud has been the ability to store and maintain materials online. We've seen social networking, internet shopping and online search companies benefit from this capability by offering customers virtual storage free or at minimal premiums. Education has already benefited substantially from this early manifestation of cloud computing. Offering students a virtual repository for materials allows for easy accessibility and transferability withing the community. Students can collaborate even with divergent schedules. Efficiency and flexibility is thus achieved, as projects can be shared and later submitted within the cloud.

However, as cloud computing becomes more sophisticated, an increasing scope of benefits is becoming apparent for education. The struggle of educational institutions to stay current in the rapidly changing field of technology has long been a challenge, but with cloud-computing solutions, institutions benefit from updated versions of current software applications at the expense of the cloud provider. In a Software as a Service (SaaS) model, applications made available on the cloud's initial tier can be accessed by any device and used to manipulate data on subsequent data storage tiers. Ultimately this pay-as-you-go plan could do away with an institution's obligation to purchase software. Complicated software licensing issues would fundamentally disappear, as would the cost of licensing multiple computers that have only limited need.

Along with data storage and software availability, content management systems are easily implemented and managed in a cloud computing environment. The possibility of storing data on individual devices is discouraged, or impossible, requiring that all data be stored in a managed, institution-wide repository. That repository is, in turn, efficiently overseen by administrators using shared management resources implemented across the infrastructure. 

The advantage of cloud computing to education extends well beyond the ease and convenience of social media inspired file-sharing. These scalable advantages represent only the beginning of the cost-effective advantages cloud computing will someday likely provide.