Do You Trust the Cloud?

While web-based applications promise gigabytes of storage, anywhere-access, easy backup, and no software requirements beyond your browser to use them, becoming dependent on webapps can leave you high and dry when those services go out. Whether or not you were one of the countless Gmail users unable to access your email yesterday, an individual Google user locked out of your account for no discernible reason, a MobileMe customer whose me isn’t very mobile, or an Amazon S3 customer whose data’s trapped on a big old inaccessible disk in the sky—you know that using online services comes with its risks.

Has the rash of recent outages by big name companies shaken your trust in the cloud, or is the convenience worth dealing with occasional downtime? Does a few hours without Gmail completely disrupt your workday or can you just switch gears and wait till it’s up again? Tell us whether or not you trust the cloud with your important data, and what kinds of syncing and backup systems you’ve got in place to keep on rolling even when the sky falls in the comments.