Cloud Gov

Microsoft may still consider Google a less-than-serious competitor, but Google Apps is making huge inroads in both the enterprise and government markets. And it's giving Microsoft Office 365 and Office 2013 a real run for its money. But it's not the only competitor scoring wins in those markets.

At the state and local level, the City of Los Angeles has migrated more than 15,000 employees to Google Apps. The move is part of a larger effort to replace the city’s e-mail and applications with the cloud-based collaboration suite.

Salesforce is including its own gallery of apps with the announcement of its government cloud. The AppExchange for Government, built on Force.com and patterned after the firm's AppExchange for the private sector, will launch with more than 60 applications specifically geared for government entities. Salesforce has allowed some 30 trusted providers to showcase their products on the marketplace, which will offer public-sector clients a mix of free and fee-based applications.

A separate project will test Microsoft Office alternatives.

A six-month study led by Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab) with funding from Google has found that moving common software applications used by 86 million U.S. workers to the cloud could save enough electricity annually to power Los Angeles for a year.

Cloud adoption is saving governments time and money. Here are the numbers to prove it.

Government IT leaders have many options for updating their computing facilities, including converged infrastructures, cloud and colocation.

Software for hosting RFPs

Document outlining best practices for acquiring SAAS for government solutions.

Guide for Federal offices on requirements and best practices regarding cloud software.