Google: Cloud Credits

What they are good for, and how you can get them

A UCSB CS major named Alex Funk is the “Google Student Innovator” for UCSB, which is the job title for the student representative that can help UCSB students get Google Cloud Credits.

This link provides $100 in credits for UCSB students enrolled in CS48.

• https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdG-vB17mtFTySToS7V04WGmAXS8lMWFSaWSuUeJEU7XCajCA/viewform?entry.1895469608=Alex%20Funk&entry.1421139163=UCSB%20Computer%20Science%20&entry.1901687729=UCSB%20Computer%20Science%20&entry.1607264656=UCSB%20Computer%20Science

Here is some information about what you can do with those credits:

• https://cloud.google.com/gcp/getting-started/#quick-starts

A few examples:

• Google App Engine, a “platform as a service”.
  • Here, you execute your code directly on the platform.
  • Pro: simplicity of getting started
  • Con: must use their API in one of their supported languages
• Google Compute Engine, “infrastructure as a service”
  • Here, you get essentially “root access on a linux virtual machine”
  • Pro: you can run any code you want, as long as you don’t violate terms of service (i.e. no evil stuff)
  • Cons: more complicated to set up. You need not only coding skills, but sys admin skills as well (what is sometimes called “devops” by the trendy silicon valley types).
  • Examples:
    • Google Compute Engine: Quickstart Linux
• Firebase, a bit of a hybrid between platform and infrastructure
  • Pro: Easy to work with
  • Con: Really targetted very much for mobile app (iOS and Android) development.
    If you are doing that, fine. If not, Firebase may be a poor fit. You may be fighting with the platform more than you’ll be benefitting.
• Google Buckets, Google Cloud Storage
  • Example: Getting Started with Google Cloud Storage