Cloud-based file-sharing services like Dropbox and iCloud are popular; however, organizations with sensitive data say they're reluctant to turn it over to cloud services. Instead, they're buying file-sharing products they manage on their own for bulk file transfers among business partners, reports "Infoworld" (http://macte.ch/da579).

Said businesses are setting up their own large-file transfer services using products from Biscom and Accellion, among others, to allow password-protected access to upload or download large amounts of data, the article adds. Among the advantages to these products, according to enterprise IT managers using them, is they can be integrated with Active Directory or LDAP for role-based end-user authentication privileges.

I'm an iCloud user and fan. However, I don't trust all my back-ups to the cloud. Local storage offers me 100% control over my data. Cloud storage is extremely convenient, but requires a fast Internet connection -- something that, despite what Apple would have you believe, isn't available everywhere.

Currently, I use iCloud and local storage. But it would be great if I could run iCloud-type services on a Mac mini server -- or perhaps an Apple product designed especially for such a job -- from my home.

So how about it Apple? Any way to give us a hardware Cloud as well as an online iCloud?

-- Dennis Sellers