This week in BPOS news is a recurring segment on the Microsoft Online Services Blog that covers news from all sectors of Cloud Computing and the Microsoft Online Services business suite known as the Business Productivity Online Suite (BPOS). You can read all past This Week in BPOS News segments here.

This week we cover three stories that touch on the Where, How and What of Microsoft BPOS.

1. Microsoft's Chicago datacenter shows huge investment in cloud computing

Chicago is home to one of Microsoft’s few global hubs of cloud computing servers. Greg Burns, from the Chicago Tribune, focuses on Microsoft’s commitment to the cloud and takes a closer look at the new $500 million building that houses Microsoft’s cloud. Greg looks at the physical structure and more importantly the software structure of Microsoft’s commitment to the cloud.

This article walks us through how and why the facility was built in Chicago. This is a really interesting look at the thought process of housing servers and moving into the cloud.

“Microsoft runs its operation with just 45 workers, including security guards and janitors. Only three work directly for the company.”

This commitment also comes with lower costs for Microsoft, which leads to lower costs for users.

"When you build data centers this large, you are absolutely the lowest-cost provider of computing power," noted Toan Tran, an equity research analyst at Chicago's Morningstar Inc. "I think the cloud definitely happens. This is a big trend that gets adopted. The cost savings is just tremendous."

Do you think Microsoft is making the right investment in the cloud? Leave a comment below.

*Image taken from Inside Microsoft’s Chicago Data Center from Datacenterknowledge.com

2. A Tale of Two Cities – “Gone Google” and Microsoft Office 2010 twelve months later…

Andrew Kisslo from the Why Microsoft blog strikes the heart of Google again with a piece that compares Microsoft and Google and their progress in the productivity software field over the past year. This article walks us through the birth and twelve month growth of both company’s software. There is a plethora of factual information that compares the successes and failures of both companies in this space. I highly recommend this article for anyone interested in the current state of collaboration and productivity tools from Microsoft and Google.

Here is a video excerpt from the blog.

What do you think has changed in the last twelve months of Microsoft and Google productivity software? Who has the edge? Where will we be in another 12 months? We want to hear your comments below.

3. Meet Some of the People of BPOS – From our Summer Intern

This summer the community team has been lucky enough to have our own intern. Kaitlin is a video specialist who helped us capture stories about Microsoft Online Services throughout her time here at Microsoft. I want to share with you a special blog post from our summer intern that includes one of the best Microsoft BPOS videos I’ve seen to date. Watch the video below and let us know what you think.

Can you tell us what BPOS means to you? Have an idea for a BPOS video? Post your thoughts below.

Did you see a story you want to share with us? Let us know what other topics you’d like to see. You can comment on this blog post or send an email to our community mailbox. Follow us on Twitter and like our Facebook page.