Whether you're a fervent supporter of the emergent technology, or watch it with a wary eye, there's no denying cloud computing has changed the way we look at our IT departments in recent years - a change that will probably be sustained for years to come.

And, at least one tech giant agrees.

Big Blue - or IBM - has just released results from its Tech Trends survey, and the findings have been cloudy. Not that they're unclear - it's merely that more businesses have been turning to the cloud for IT solutions than ever before, and IBM expects adoption rates to continue climbing in coming years.

The survey found some 91 per cent of respondents felt that by 2015, companies would be using more programmes offered online or through the cloud than software bound to desktops in the traditional manner.

In addition, more than half of the 2,000 individuals surveyed felt that, in five years' time, more business software would be released for smart phones and tablet computers in a given year than for traditional office systems and networked computers.

IBM vice president of alliances Mark Hanny told the AFP news service the "social implications" of the projected trends "are going to be huge."

"It is important for people to embrace technology," he contended. "It is a key determent in all kinds of professions.

"We are going to see a major change in how software is developed and by whom," Hanny continued. "If you were a young kid in college right now you might want to start thinking about knowing how to do software for mobile devices."

Written by Jason Morton

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