Why the confidence? Because many of the reasons people embraced open source apply to cloud computing, and many of the benefits of open source are also associated with cloud computing. Let's look at the reasons and benefits more closely.

1. Cloud Computing Provides Ease of Access.

It's hard to remember, but before open source hit its stride, it was really hard to get access to software. Vendors didn't make products available for download; even "developer" copies required payment and couldn't be accessed without a discussion with a sales rep. Open source changed all that. You could download the software at any time and, critically, get started immediately. It seems obvious in retrospect, but this created a preference for open source among programmers. Immediate availability became the norm and the standard operating procedure.

Cloud computing delivers the same kind of easy access and provides the same kind of benefits vis-a-vis the existing modus operandi. In many organizations, it can take weeks to obtain compute resources; cloud providers offer resources in minutes. If you're a developer, don't you think the is going to become what you expect?

2. Cloud Computing Costs Less.