The name cloud computing was inspired by the cloud symbol that's often used to represent the internet in flowcharts and diagrams.

Geeta,

You pose an interesting question and although I have been around the cloud for a number of years, I am not sure what the best answer is (and there may not be one!). 

For teaching and research in the last 12+ years, I have collected a bunch of cloud related textbooks, and many of them have their own 'cloud history' sections which often adds an interesting perspective.

Knowing history is helpful but so is knowing the what something is.  When people ask me about the cloud, if they want to learn more about the definition, I refer then to the US National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) who published their Definition of Cloud Computing.

The date on the document is September 2011 so it has been around for a while, but it is a good starting point to understand some basic concepts!

--Bob

#IWork4Dell

I agree Bob, having a gist of the NIST, is one of the best definitions to enlist, and that I insist.

Sorry, I couldn't resist.

#NeedlessVxRailVerbosity