KABARAK UNIVERSITY

FACULTY OF COMPUTER SCIENCE AND BIOINFORMATICS

DEPARTMENT OF INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY
CLOUD IMAGE PROCESSING AND STORAGE SYSTEM

JOE NDIRANGU DBIT/03/02/05/17

A RESEARCH PROPOSAL SUBMITTED TO DEPARTMENT OF COMPUTER SCIENCE

AND BIOINFORMATICS IN PARTIAL FUILMENT OF REQUIREMENTS FOR THE
AWARD OF THE DIPLOMA OF INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY KABARAK
UNIVERSITY
Declaration.
This proposal is my original work and has not been presented for the award of a degree in any
other university.
Name Signature Date
JOE NDIRANGU …………………… …………………

Supervisor
Sign ………………………… Date ……………………….
Mr. Denis Kyeng
Department of Computer Science and Bioinformatics.

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Abstract
Cloud system has revolutionized the accessibility and efficiency of data transfer and
manipulation and is now taking over the tech world. Many big tech companies like Google,
Amazon have invested billions of dollars in this revolutionizing technology. Other smaller
companies and institutions have already started transferring their data and restructuring systems
to achieve cloud standards.

The main purpose of this study is to find a way to provide cloud image processing and storage
platform which suits small institutions and individuals. Providing a platform with modern
features for sharing, compressed storage system which allows storing unlimited number of
images online and easy image manipulation.

The study will therefore cover cloud computing, image processing compression algorithm and
web programming. The limitations of this study is that image processing is a matter not very
prioritized in the modern world; compression algorithm implementation is complex and requires
a lot of precise calculations; the number of images taken in a day is high and therefore requiring
a lot of storage space.

A common cloud image hosting system will be useful in sharing image data with ease and reduce
the cost required to pay several cloud storage providers to provide the same service.

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Abbreviations and Acronyms.
IT – Information Technology.

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Definition of terms
Cloud Storage-Saving files on computers dedicated for storage purposes only.
Social impacts – the effect of an activity on the wellbeing on the individual family and
communal fabric.
Economic impacts-effect on overall financial and production activities in an area.
Exif details – Properties of a single file in a computer
Impact-are effects and consequences on people.
Uptime-The amount of time a system is on.
Resources-Amount of input used for establishing the system
Domain-The name identifying a website or any other online service
HTTP- Protocol used for transporting web services.
Web Server – A computer dedicated to hosting Websites.
Portability -

Table of Contents:

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Declaration. ii
Abstract iii
Abbreviations and Acronyms. iv
Definition of terms v
CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION 1
1.1: Background to the study 1
1.2: Statement of the Problem 1
1.3: Objective of the Study 1
1.3.1: Broad Objectives 1
1.3.2: Specific Objectives 1
1.4: Research Questions 2
1.5: Justification of the Study 2
1.6: Scope and Limitation of the Study 2
CHAPTER TWO: LITERATURE REVIEW AND THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK 3
2.1 Introduction 3
2.2 Factors that led to Cloud migration 3
2.2.1 Advantages of the Cloud Image Processing 3
2.2.2 Disadvantages of the Cloud Image Processing 3
2.3 Theoretical Framework 3
2.3.1 Cloud Computing 3
2.3.2 Compression Algorithm 4
2.3.3 Image Processing 4
2.4 Conceptual framework 4
2.4.1 Independent Variable 5
2.4.2 Dependent Variables 5
CHAPTER THREE: METHODOLOGY 6
3.1 Introduction 6
3.2 Research Design 6
3.3 Area of Study 6
3.4 Target Population, Sample and Sampling Procedure 6
3.5 Unit of Analysis 6
3.6 Data Collection 6
3.7 Data Analysis 7
3.8 Ethical Issues 7
REFERENCES. 8
APPENDICES 9
Appendix ӏ: Work plan. 9
Appendix ӏӏ: Budget. 9
Appendix ΙΙΙ: Questionnaire 10

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CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION
1.1: Background to the study
Cloud system has revolutionized the accessibility and efficiency of data transfer and
manipulation and is now taking over the tech world. Many companies example Google, Amazon
and many other more have invested billions of dollars in this revolutionizing technology. Many
other companies and institutions have already started transferring their data and restructuring
systems to satisfy cloud standards.

1.2: Statement of the Problem

Cloud service is efficient, and while this technology is being implemented, common people are
disadvantaged because of the economic standards required. Images are important in data
collection, processing and analysis. While this is true, images can also be easily lost and
destroyed. Images therefore need a secure and efficient processing and storage system which is
accessible from any place and that is where cloud storage system comes in.

1.3: Objective of the Study

1.3.1: Broad objectives
The main purpose of this study is to find a way to provide cloud image processing and storage
platform which suits small institutions and individuals.

1.3.2: Specific Objectives

i. To provide an easy way to share images online.
ii. To provide an efficient image processing and manipulation platform.
iii. To provide unlimited image storage platform through data compression algorithm.
iv. To provide a cheap cloud storage platform.

1.4: Research Questions

i. How can images be shared through the internet and social media with ease?
ii. What tools can be used to process and manipulate images through the internet?
iii. How can compression algorithm be implemented in image storage?

1.5: Justification of the Study

The purpose of this study will be to highlight the efficiency of cloud computing in image
processing and storage, to reduce the cost of implementing cloud migration in the modern world
of technology. This will achieve cheap and secure image hosting platform.

1.6: Scope and Limitation of the Study

The study will cover cloud computing, image processing, compression algorithm and web
programming. The limitations of this study is that image processing is a matter not very
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prioritized in the modern world; compression algorithm implementation is complex and requires
a lot of precise calculations; the number of images taken in a day is high and therefore requires a
lot of storage space.

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CHAPTER TWO: LITERATURE REVIEW AND THEORETICAL
FRAMEWORK
2.1 Introduction
This chapter seeks to enumerate literature regarding image processing, cloud computing and web
programming. The relationship between them matters as it is what will provide the world with a
suitable cloud image processing and storage system.

2.2 Factors that led to Cloud migration

Several years ago, companies invested a lot of money to set up and maintain individual servers.
This was very expensive as it required a lot of resources for maintenance and professional
concern.
A lot of data could get lost as the backups were made on the same area and was exposed to a lot
of uncertainties. Data integrity could be easily lost in this situation.
The rise of cloud computing introduced a means to cover up for these limitations attracting a lot
of users.

2.2.1 Advantages of the Cloud Image Processing

i. Usage of less resources therefore increasing profit and reducing production cost
ii. Portability and easy administration as data can be accessed from any place.
iii. Data security through constantly backing up data.
iv. Availability of vast management tools for the server e.g. C-panel and images e.g. Imgur
v. Constant accessibility as computer uptime is constant. Server computers are always
online.
vi. Faster than using individual servers.

2.2.2 Disadvantages of the Cloud Image Processing

i. High Cost of migrating system to cloud computing.
ii. Cloud computing is complex and requires complex programming to set up.
iii. Cloud computing requires highly trained professionals who are expensive to hire.

2.3 Theoretical Framework

The study will employ three theories that will form the theoretical framework. These theories
are;
Cloud Computing, Compression Algorithm, Image processing.

2.3.1 Cloud Computing

Cloud computing is the on-demand availability of computer system resources, especially data
storage and computing power, without direct active management by the user. The term is
generally used to describe data centers available to many users over the Internet. Large clouds,

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predominant today, often have functions distributed over multiple locations from central servers.
If the connection to the user is relatively close, it may be designated an edge server.
Clouds may be limited to a single organization (enterprise clouds), be available to many
organizations (public cloud), or a combination of both (hybrid cloud).
Cloud computing relies on sharing of resources to achieve coherence and economies of scale.

2.3.2 Compression Algorithm

In signal processing, data compression, source coding, or bit-rate reduction involves
encoding information using fewer bits than the original representation. Compression can be
either lossy or lossless. Lossless compression reduces bits by identifying and
eliminating statistical redundancy. No information is lost in lossless compression. Lossy
compression reduces bits by removing unnecessary or less important information

The process of reducing the size of a data file is often referred to as data compression. In the
context of data transmission, it is called source coding; encoding done at the source of the data
before it is stored or transmitted. Source coding should not be confused with channel coding, for
error detection and correction or line coding, the means for mapping data onto a signal.

Compression is useful because it reduces resources required to store and transmit data. 

2.3.3 Image Processing

In computer science, digital image processing is the use of computer algorithms to perform
image processing on digital images. As a subcategory or field of digital signal processing, digital
image processing has many advantages over analog image processing. It allows a much wider
range of algorithms to be applied to the input data and can avoid problems such as the build-up
of noise and signal distortion during processing. Since images are defined over two dimensions
(perhaps more) digital image processing may be modeled in the form of multidimensional
systems.

2.4 Conceptual framework

In this study, the conceptual framework has been constructed with independent variables effect
on the dependent variable. Further it will illustrate how cloud computing has impacted the social
and economic conditions of individuals and institutions in Kenya.

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2.4.1 Independent Variable
Processing power
Random access memory
Read only memory

2.4.2 Dependent Variables

Cloud service

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CHAPTER THREE: METHODOLOGY
3.1 Introduction
This chapter describes the research design, area of study, study population, target population,
sample size and sampling procedures, data collection instruments, data presentation, data
analysis and research ethical issues.

3.2 Research Design

The study will adopt a case study research design. Case study is an efficient method of collecting
descriptive data regarding the characteristics of the sample as well as their current behavior and
needs. Case study can also gather information from relatively large cases using samples which
reduces the cost of the study. Therefore, case study will be adopted in the study so as to obtain
descriptive data from the selected sample. The study will also utilize the use of questionnaires, as
well as interview schedules as data collection instruments.

3.3 Area of Study

This research will be carried out in Kabarak University, Jomo Kenyatta University and Egerton
University using an estimate of 300 respondents.

3.4 Target Population, Sample and Sampling Procedure

The three universities comprises of an estimated 137,000 students. Out of this population, a large
number of students are computer literate. A sample size of 300 respondents will be chosen from
the accessible population by use of systematic sampling procedure. The study will pick an
estimate of 100 respondents (5 of which will be staff of the IT Departments of the respective
institutions) from each location and who will be above 18 years old based on the level of
computer literacy. The study will include both genders.

3.5 Unit of Analysis

The unit of analysis will be University students from Kabarak University, Egerton University
and Jomo Kenyatta University.

3.6 Data Collection

Their study will utilize questionnaires and interviews schedules as the data collection methods.
Questionnaires will be preferred because it will enable the researchers to collect data from a
large number of respondents as well as minimizing the time and cost of data collection. A
combination of open-ended and close-ended type of questionnaires will be designed to seek
information from the respondents regarding the usage of cloud image hosting providers, what
factors contribute to the usage, and the socio-economic impacts on the cloud migration. It will
further seek to explain the extent of socio-economic impacts on the migration. The
questionnaires further make it easy for respondents to give more information that the researcher
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can code and analyze effectively. Sampling procedures of the respondents will ensure validity
and reliability of the entire study.

3.7 Data Analysis

Data analysis for this study will employ the use of SPSS version 22 software since it is effective
for analysis of coded data collected using questionnaires and interview schedules. SPSS software
version 22 will therefore be effective for the analysis of the data collected.

3.8 Ethical Issues

The study will observe the ethical issues in research. Consent forms will state the overall
purpose, risks or any benefits of participating in the study. The study will also consider
confidentiality of respondents and ensure that high standards of moral values and dignity of
respondents are observed. Further, the study will ensure no victimization of respondents
whatsoever and that children will be excluded from the study. The research will also ensure full
compliance to the law by obtaining a permit for the study.

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REFERENCES.
1. Lectures on Image Processing, by Alan Peters. Vanderbilt University. Updated 7 January
2016.
2. IPRG Open group related to image processing research resources
3. Processing digital images with computer algorithms
4. IPOL Open research journal on image processing with software and web demos.
5. Introduction to Data Compression by Guy E Blelloch from CMU
6. HD Greetings – 1080p Uncompressed source material for compression testing and research
7. Explanation of lossless signal compression method used by most codecs
8. Interactive blind listening tests of audio codecs over the internet
9. TestVid – 2,000+ HD and other uncompressed source video clips for compression testing
10. Videsignline – Intro to Video Compression
11. Data Footprint Reduction Technology
12. Millard, Christopher (2013). Cloud Computing Law. Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-
19-967168-7.
13. Singh, Jatinder; Powles, Julia; Pasquier, Thomas; Bacon, Jean (July 2015). "Data Flow
Management and Compliance in Cloud Computing". IEEE Cloud Computing. 2 (4): 24–
32. doi:10.1109/MCC.2015.69.
14. Armbrust, Michael; Stoica, Ion; Zaharia, Matei; Fox, Armando; Griffith, Rean; Joseph,
Anthony D.; Katz, Randy; Konwinski, Andy; Lee, Gunho; Patterson, David; Rabkin, Ariel (1
April 2010). "A view of cloud computing". Communications of the ACM. 53 (4):
50. doi:10.1145/1721654.1721672.
15. Hu, Tung-Hui (2015). A Prehistory of the Cloud. MIT Press. ISBN 978-0-262-02951-3.

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APPENDICES:
Appendix ӏ: Work plan.
ACTIVITY DURATION

Development of Proposal 1month

Development and Plotting of Instruments 1 month
Data collection 1 month
Data analysis and Computation 2months
Reporting writing 1month
Data Presentation 1month
Total Time 7months

Appendix ӏӏ: Budget.

ACTIVITY ITEMS COST

Stationery 5000
Writing materials 2000
Computer expenses 4000
Transport 6000
Server 5000
TOTAL AMOUNT 23000

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Appendix ΙΙΙ: Questionnaire
Hello I am an Information Technology student from Kabarak University and I wish to ask you
the following questions for my School project concerning Cloud Image processing and Storage.
Your sincerity is highly valued.
Part 1: Personal Information

1. What is your gender? Male Female

2. Which age bracket do you belong to?
18-25 26- 35 36- 45

46- 55 above 55

Part 2: Individual Technical Information

3. What is your favorite cloud provider?

AWS Azure

Google Other
4. a. How often do you back up your data on a cloud provider?

Quarterly Semi-annually

Annually Never
b. What influences your choice above?

5. a. Which image sharing service do you usually use?

Imgur Google Drive Other

Pinterest Pexels
b. In a few words, what influences your choice above?

6. a. Which image quality do you prefer?

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 Low High

b. Which image editing tool/s do you use and why?

7. a. Which social media platforms do you use and why?

b. Concerning your privacy, do you share your photos on social media?

8. a. Would you prefer a free image hosting platform?

Yes NO
b. Why?

Thank you for your co-operation.

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