Reviews for Cloud Computing for Dummies

1. Best in its price range,

   Rated 4 out of 5 stars, January 12th, 2010

   but for a few extra dollars you can get much better bang for the buck. Hurwitz has made a great improvement over her SOA book. Cloud Computing for Dummies is well organized and keeps to the mainstream of current thought on the subject. All the same it is superficial and padded with questionable and obsolescent details such as pricing structures that were copied from vendor sites.
   
   You'll find Cloud Computing Explained (Rhoton) is easier to read and describes what cloud computing involves more thoroughly. Cloud Computing and SOA Convergence (Linthicum) presents SOA and how it relates to cloud computing very well. That's important because architecture is key to cloud computing. Cloud Application Architectures (Reese) has a narrow Amazon focus but some of his discussion of resilience applies generally. You'll also want to look at Cloud Security and Privacy (Mather). There is no way you can implement cloud services without a careful look at data security issues.
   
   The bottom line is that cloud computing is a vast subject. If you are serious about it and want to understand every aspect of it then you have to dish out a handsome sum and get at least four books. On top of that there are special focus books on each of the service providers that could be pertinent depending on which services you choose. You can get detailed information online and in the blogosphere but it's not as easy as reading it in a book.
   
   If you are on a tight budget and just want to skim the headlines this book may be just right for you. Elseways I advise further research.