I personally kept hearing about The Cloud but felt too intimidated to ask what this cloud was and why I needed it. I felt embarrassed that everyone else was in The Cloud and I was seemingly the only one not with it. It sounds technical and it can be a rather abstract concept, but once I understood, I realized I had been doing cloud computing for a long time. You probably have been too.

Have you ever sent yourself something via email just so you could access the document or file later at another computer? Do you use Google Products like Google Docs, Google Reader, or Google Calendar? Have you uploaded photos to a photo storing site like Flickr to be able to share with friends and family, as well as to be able to access anytime? If so, you’ve used cloud computing.

Cloud computing is simply the act of utilizing a network, usually the Internet, to store information that you want to access from multiple network devices. No longer do you have to worry that the file you need can only be opened from the hard drive of a single computer. By utilizing “The Cloud,” you can get to any of your uploaded information anywhere you have access to the Internet.

Through network devices like laptops, desktops, tablets and smartphones, you can utilize cloud computing to access blogs, documents, chat, email, photos, presentations, calendars, to-do lists, spreadsheets, address books, music, games, bookmarks, and much more.

What is even cooler is that eventually, as you continue to create and add to your personal cloud, your devices will learn about you and will be able to better cater to your needs and wants. This might all sound a bit like science fiction, but this is exactly where we’re headed with cloud computing.

So that is cloud computing. In the future it will play a larger part in our daily lives as it will become a helpful tool in accessing needed resources no matter where we are in the world.

Did you have questions about The Cloud, but were too afraid to ask? Have you been using cloud computing and didn’t know it? Let us know in the comments below.

Take a video tour of the Desktop Themes to see what Windows 7 has to offer.

What’s Cool About Windows 7? The New Desktop Themes

Go to our Windows 7 Desktop Features lesson to learn how to personalize your own desktop with a Windows 7 theme that appeals to you. Have fun!

Check out the video below to see how to use gadgets.

Enhance Your Windows Desktop With Gadgets

Adding gadgets is easy. To get to the Gadget Gallery in Windows 7*, right-click on the desktop and click “Gadgets.” Try dragging some of them to your desktop. Here are a few of the built-in gadgets that you might like to try:

• Clock – A customizable clock that can be set to any time zone
• Weather – Gives up-to-date weather information for your area
• Slide show – Plays a slide show of your images
• Feed Headlines – Displays the latest news headlines

Best of all, you can download more gadgets online for free. There are literally thousands of gadgets to choose from. To be honest, some are better than others, but luckily you can see other users’ ratings to see if a gadget is worth downloading.

Is there a limit to how many gadgets you can put on your desktop? Well, like any program, a gadget uses some of your computer’s processing power, so if you put too many on your desktop, your computer might slow down significantly. But a few gadgets probably won’t cause a noticeable difference, and you can always take some of them off if needed.

* To get to the Gadget Gallery in Vista, click the plus sign (+) at the top of the Sidebar. To add a gadget, double-click it. Then you can drag it from the Sidebar onto the desktop.

The new lessons include:

• Security and Maintenance with the Action Center – learn how to manage your security notifications and resolve maintenance issues with your computer.
• Managing User Accounts and Parental Controls – learn how to add user accounts in addition to setting up parental controls to manage your child’s access to computer use, games and programs.

We have also updated and added to our how-to videos for the topic and made a few updates to the lesson content.  Check out the new and improved Windows 7 tutorial and if you have any more comments we would be happy to hear from you.

Libraries are collections of your stored files that can be easily accessed through the Desktop Search.  Libraries do not replace the tiered folder system you are accustomed to, but they do house content selected by you in a single collection.  When files are placed in a Library, their properties are indexed by the Search function.  This indexing makes accessing your files in the Desktop Search quick and easy.  There are four default Libraries for Documents, Music, Pictures and Videos, but you can also customize and create your own Libraries.

Microsoft is attempting to make Search and Libraries the new “entry point” for accessing your files.  For example, when you save items, Windows 7 will direct you to Libraries.  Your files will be automatically saved in the default folder of the Library it matches unless you specify another location.  By setting up the Save function in this way, Microsoft is encouraging users to store their content in Libraries.

The new Search and Libraries has the potential to make finding your items quite convenient.  Imagine opening files in a single click by typing in a keyword and having the matching files automatically appear.  It would eliminate navigating through long lists of tiered folders and would be especially helpful to those who can’t remember where they filed an item.  However, only time will tell how effective the indexing and Search function will actually be at finding your items.  It may also take buy in from the user, as they will have to take the time to move and organize their files into Libraries in order for the Search to work.

To learn more, go to our Windows 7 Topic Page.

[poll id="16"]

Please take a minute to answer our poll.  As soon as you’re done, you can view the results.

If the poll doesn’t  address your interests, leave us a comment.  We will continue to update our Windows 7 topic page based on interest and need.

Will you be upgrading from XP or Vista? Windows 7 was designed to be upgraded from Vista and Microsoft is subtly suggesting that XP users should consider getting a new PC for Windows 7.  If you are an XP user, the process of upgrading will be more complicated and may require the help of a computer service professional.  At the minimum, it will require backing up your current files, programs and settings and doing a custom (clean) installation.

Are the digital media features important to you? Streaming TV on Windows Media Player, experiencing high quality gaming graphics and interacting with a Touch Screen are all cool Windows 7 features that have been marketed by Microsoft.  However, these digital media features may require additional hardware and a computer with higher performance standards.  If you are interested in these features, then it would be wise to research their additional requirements before buying.

How well will Windows 7 perform on your computer? If your Windows Experience Index rating is less than 3, then the graphics and Aero features of Windows 7 will not work.  In addition, you may have less performance if you have a 32-bit processor rather than a 64-bit processor.  To see how well Windows 7 will perform on your computer, you can download and run the Windows Upgrade Advisor.  It will assess your system and offer any possible trouble-shooting advice.

To find out more, visit our Windows 7 Topic Page.

With these questions in mind, we have spent a great deal of time using and exploring the Windows 7 Beta release in order to provide you with the advice and information you need to determine if Windows 7 is right for you.   We have begun a Windows 7 topic and over the coming weeks we will continue to add videos and lessons for those who are curious and/or interested in upgrading.  Basically, we want to share with you our experiences so that you have a better idea of what Windows 7 is all about and how it might suit your needs.

We have reviewed the features, performance improvements and made comparisons to the XP and Vista operating systems.  Next up, we will check out the system requirements, versions and upgrade experience.  Of course, we have been working with the early release beta version and are expecting a few things to change as we go along.

Visit our Windows 7 Topic Page for updates regarding our experience.