Explain · Like I'm five version
Cloud computing in terms of a self-storage unit
Cloud computing is just like renting a big shed for your digital toys instead of keeping them under your bed.
When you save a photo on the cloud, you are really sending it away to a giant metal box in a place far away. A company owns the building and keeps it safe for you. You do not need to worry about your things getting dusty or lost behind the radiator. You just pay a little bit of money so that the nice company people keep your pictures in their big, locked unit until you want to look at them again.
It is very clever because you can reach your unit from anywhere. You might be at Grandma's house or sitting on a bus, and you just tap your tablet to open your digital shed door. You do not have to carry the whole shed with you, which is very helpful because a building is far too heavy to fit into a backpack. You just need your special key, which is your password, to see your things.
The best part is that the company looks after the building for you. If a shelf breaks or if a storm comes, they fix it so your toys stay dry and tidy. You never have to lift a heavy box or sweep the floor yourself. You just keep adding more stuff to your unit, and the company finds a bigger space for it, which saves you a lot of bother.
Where the analogy breaks downThe cloud makes infinite copies of your files, whereas a real shed only has one of each item.