While StarterTech isn’t mainly meant for news, sometimes a story comes along that is so odd that I just can’t resist. Case in point would be the idea that Dell is trying to trademark the term “cloud computing”.

As we told you about the definition of cloud computing a while back, it is any computer service that resides solely on the Internet, and not on your actual computer.  It seems that Dell, the popular computer maker, has somehow made themselves believe they should own the trademark to this term.

The problem with this concept is that the term has already been adopted by numerous companies such as Apple with their MobileMe application, Google with GMail, Microsoft with their Mesh service and so on.  As this application for a trademark moves forward, companies will be allowed to register complaints aginast the trademark being allowed.  Seeing as this term was already denied back in 1998, it is highly doubtful this one will be allowed.

This certainly belongs in the “what are they thinking?” file, but it is a good example of how computer companies don’t always seem to have the firmest grasp on reality.