Evans 2010 Cloud Developer Survey Reveals Top Requirements, Trends 
Developers looking for private or public cloud solutions have top two requirements -- security and reliability, according to the just-released 2010 Cloud Development Survey from Evans Data Corp. IDN speaks with Evans’ CEO Janel Garvin about other key survey findings.
Developers looking for private or public cloud solutions have top two requirements -- security and reliability, according to the just-released 2010 Cloud Development Survey from Evans Data Corp. 
“Security and reliability are often the reasons why developers choose a private cloud over a public one - we've been seeing this for over a year,” Evans Data CEO Janel Garvin said.
Other drivers in a cloud “buy” decision are: 100% backward compatibility as the cloud infrastructure matures (80%); and Government geographical restrictions on deploying into cloud (60%). Devs also want “better data encryption” for the public cloud.
Evan’s survey is based on responses from more than 400 enterprise devs with responsibility for or working on a cloud computing project The report, spanning 123 pages, examines a wide range of concerns, intentions and current adoption of developers for both public and private cloud projects aimed across the lifecycle – from developing to deployment.
The survey asked devs and architects their opinions on a wide-range of other cloud computing issues, including:
- Private vs. Public Clouds (appropriate and types of uses),
- Private cloud management and data centers,
- Standards and organizations,
- Security,
- Wireless cloud services,
- Availability of tools for cloud projects,
- Licensing,
- Languages used in and for the cloud, and
- Applications likely to move to the cloud first
The significant barriers, for developers [for new cloud projects], are twofold: security and their confidence in their own technology skills.
Janel Garvin
CEO
Evans Data Corp.
Evans CEO Garvin Shares More Insights
from Evans’ 2010 Cloud Development Survey
To explore these other trends that may drive developer cloud decisions into next year, IDN spoke in-depth with Evans CEO Janel Garvin.
On Future Cloud Deployment Targets
IDN: Can you summarize some of the top types of applications your survey found “most likely” to be deployed in a cloud (public, private, on-premise). Do any of these findings surprise you, based on other trends you see in your developer surveys?
Garvin: The applications that developers believe are most suited to public clouds are web applications games and mobile applications. Conversely, the most suited to private clouds are Enterprise Resource Management, Workflow and Finance. This seems to make sense in that the private cloud applications are closely knit into enterprise development whereas the apps suited for public cloud are more outward facing consumer type apps.
The exciting thing is the perceived strength of mobile apps on the public
cloud. Developers are excited about this not only because it potentially
uncouples apps from carrier restrictions but also allows for more sophisticated mobile apps that don't rely on the capabilities of the client device to run, thus expanding the market for robust apps to feature phones as well as smart phones, while also paving the way for more sophisticated mobile apps in the future. Cloud and mobile are a very exciting combination.
Most Important Factors that Determine Private Cloud Provider
IDN: What was most important factor here that is driving developer decisions? Can you share any insights or conclusions about what devs want most?
Garvin: First = Security
Second = Reliability / Uptime;
Third = Proven Expertise
It's not surprising that IBM was chosen as top private cloud provider
considering that they have a solid lock on developers' perceptions of these three values.
[The survey found devs IBM and Google ranked as the top 2 cloud providers in these categories to date. Google is the perceived leader for setup, infrastructure and application management in a Public Cloud. IBM is the top choice of developers for Private Clouds, the survey reported.]
Reasons for NOT Deploying in the Cloud
IDN: Despite the early rush to cloud by developers, I’d be interested in hearing if you found anything preventing even more cloud projects (such as budgets, lack of tools, lack of knowledge, etc.)?
Garvin: The significant barriers, for developers, are twofold: security and their confidence in their own technology skills. These are very likely related issues. For instance, we found:
- The primary inhibitor to deploying applications in the public cloud is security (39%), with all other concerns (such as lack of expertise, 10%) much more minor concerns.
- The top inhibitors to deploying in a private cloud are a lack of expertise (20%) and budget (18%). Another issue for public cloud is country governmental issues - 60% of developers say that geographical restrictions are an issue for cloud deployment.
Importance of Governance Technologies and Practices
IDN: Speaking of governance, did your developers say anything about that need before making a large commitment to a cloud provider?
Garvin: Eighty-four percent said governance technologies and practices were important (45.5 very important, 38.8 somewhat important).
In fact, Garvin added, the survey found most devs “expect to be in a hybrid situation going forward with respect to application deployment in the cloud." Consequently, devs also feel it is very important to be able to move applications between public and private clouds, and especially from the public to the private cloud, she added.
Evans Data provides regularly updated IT industry market intelligence based on in-depth surveys of the global developer population. Evans' syndicated research includes surveys focused on developers in a wide variety of subjects.
