Home Tips & Tricks Technology revolutionizes every aspect of our lives. And education is no exception to this trend. The advancement of cloud storage services is one of the innovations that are beneficial for educators, researchers, and students. In this article, you’ll find all the ways students can use it to their advantage. What's Inside ToggleWhat is Cloud Storage?How Students Can Take Advantage of Cloud StorageSave Money on Physical StorageBackup InformationEnjoy Easy AccessibilityShare and Collaborate with OthersBenefit from ScalabilityAccess Cheaper TextbooksEnhance Organization and SynchronizationIn Summary What is Cloud Storage? Cloud storage is a model of storing data across different services and locations. A user gets access to data through an internet connection. Nowadays, it is pretty commonly used by almost anyone, whether they realize it or not. For instance, platforms like YouTube, Netflix, and Google Docs are cloud-based. There are already even laptops that are completely cloud-based, like Samsung Chromebook, for instance. This makes the device more affordable, light, and portable. One of the many reasons this technology is so widespread is that it is very convenient and secure. For example, if a student decides to write my research paper by WritePaper writers, they can easily send a link to all the necessary documents in the cloud. This professional academic writing service helps with all types of college papers, from an essay to thesis. And to deliver top-notch writing, editing, or proofreading, writers need all the assignment-related information. Using Google Docs for that is fast, convenient, and secure. Students can set permissions for who can open, view, or edit documents. They also do not need to upload anything manually. This way, students get access to professional writing help with almost no effort from their side. Cloud storage offers several major advantages for EdTech and learners, such as: Accessibility in terms of price and flexibility; Opportunity to easily and safely store a large amount of data; Ability to access data at any time or place as long as you have internet; Access to various cloud-based learning tools and software solutions that make education more effective; Time-saving due to automation of processes; Constant backups of information; Many collaboration opportunities. That’s why a lot of educational institutions use this technology in their workflow. But it is also very useful for individual users – students. How Students Can Take Advantage of Cloud Storage There are three types of clouds: Public; Private; Hybrid. Individual users mostly have access to the first type, so this article will focus on that. Private clouds are used by organizations and businesses. They are much more expensive and require an IT team to manage servers. Hybrid clouds are also commonly used by different enterprises and institutions, and they combine the features of two previous types. A part of the data can be accessed publicly, and another part of it is only available to separate professionals. Here is how students might use this technology to become better learners or make their life easier. Save Money on Physical Storage Students have a lot of files to protect, from coursework and textbooks to movies or personal photos. All of that has to be stored somewhere – on a laptop, USB drive, or external hard drive. Those devices cost money. At the same time, cloud services are cheaper and accessible at any time. The majority of them offer free individual plans with limited space. And you only get to pay if you need more of it. Of course, one might store a lot of data on their laptop. But the more you store there, the slower the device will work. Which is frustrating when you are trying to be productive. Backup Information It is a much more effective way to protect any important or sensitive files. Unfortunately, hardware can crash, and it tends to do it at the worst moment possible. For example, your laptop might have a critical error the night before you need to submit an essay. If it is only stored there – you cannot access it. But if it is available online, you can work on it on another device, print it out, or send it before the deadline. Ideally, one would have cloud and physical backups to eliminate all the risks. But it might not be available to anyone, so the cloud wins here. It is more secure as the data is constantly backed up by the provider and stored in several different servers in different locations. So even if one data center crashes, there are others. Enjoy Easy Accessibility Students tend to travel a lot, which is great. But it is impossible to always take all your devices or hard drives with you. But when you have your files online, you can always access them. This is a perfect life hack for student travel with minimal luggage. For example, you might be heading to your parents for a week but do not want to miss on studies. You can just access all the textbooks, materials, or papers from the phone or computer at your parent’s home. And the majority of smartphones and laptops come with the feature to start such storage with no issues. The interface is user-friendly and comfortable. Share and Collaborate with Others Another great feature is that the cloud makes collaboration much easier. You can create a file, give access to another person, and you can work on it together. Moreover, it is possible to see what changes every user makes. This is ideal for group projects, whether they have to do with education or with work. Students can work on the same project when it is convenient for them from the comfort of their homes. It is also easy to share any files – just send a link to it, and a person with granted access can view, download, or redact it. Another beneficial example is sharing large files – like complex illustrations, pictures, or videos. Students are not limited by how many megabytes they can send, like in an email. Benefit from Scalability What makes it even better is that you can scale up or down at any moment. One month you might need 10GB of storage, and another – 1GB. One can usually update their service plan on a monthly basis, which helps reduce costs. You only pay for what you use and when you need it. Access Cheaper Textbooks Textbooks can be expensive when they are printed. But the digital option is much more affordable. Saving money is something that any student will appreciate. Digital materials can be provided by a college or university to make them more accessible to all categories of learners. Or one can buy them online. Of course, it is also more sustainable than using paper copies. Enhance Organization and Synchronization This technology allows the synchronization of multiple devices. So you can work on your tablet, then switch to a laptop and have all your progress saves and available. This ensures better organization of your information. Instead of having multiple versions of the same file, you’ll have one that is constantly and automatically updated. In Summary Cloud storage is convenient, accessible, and flexible. It gives students and educators a lot of opportunities, from secure backups to collaboration and access to the newest learning software solutions.
