Cloud Computing

Cloud computing is a metaphor used by Technology or IT Services companies for the delivery of computing requirements as a service to a homogeneous community of end-recipients. The term cloud theoretically signifies abstraction of technology, resources and its location that are very vital in building integrated computing infrastructure(including networks, systems & applications). All Cloud computing models rely heavily on sharing of resources to achieve coherance and economies of scale similar to a utility (like the electricity grid) over a network (typically the Internet).^[1]
Cloud computing entrusts services (typically centralized) with a user's data, software and computation on a published application programming interface (API) over a network. It has considerable overlap with software as a service (SaaS).
End users access cloud based applications through a web browser or a light weight desktop or mobile app while the business software and data are stored on servers at a remote location. Cloud application providers strive to give the same or better service and performance than if the software programs were installed locally on end-user computers. source: wikipedia