OSU BA370 - Summer - Recently Updated Pages

Queen of Hearts - Database Market

morrisho — Tue, 05 Aug 2008 19:36:37 CDT

Here are a few topics that will be covered regarding DBMS providers in the current market:

- Most successful and largest DBMS providers

- Marketing strategies of theses companies and the customers they wish to entice

- Competition between database software companies

- Who owns them and what products they offer

- Installation, purchase, maintenance costs

And a few awesome readings:

Recent growth of Microsoft SQL and comparisons with its competitors
http://www.informationweek.com/news/software/database/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=208808724

Pros/Cons between Oracle vs. SQL Servers
http://searchoracle.techtarget.com/news/article/0,289142,sid41_gci953366,00.html

Some information about Oracle Database 11g
http://searchoracle.techtarget.com/news/article/0,289142,sid41_gci1263734,00.html

Top DBMS Sellers
http://news.cnet.com/2009-1001-1001340.html

Competition between Microsoft SQL and smaller vendors
http://www.computerworld.com/action/article.do?command=viewArticleBasic&articleId=9067979

View "Attachments" for Database Market PowerPoint Presentation

Open Source - Ace of Clubs

vueme — Mon, 04 Aug 2008 00:48:15 CDT

Research Topic: Open Source Business Models

What is Open Source

A program in which the source code is available to the general public for use and/or modification from its original design free of charge. In other words, open source guarantees anyone the rights to freely use, modify, and redistribute the software.

Required Readings

The Origins and Future of Open Source Software: http://www.netaction.org/opensrc/future/intro.html
Open Source - The Brave New World? : http://www.dmreview.com/issues/20050501/1026060-1.html
Top Five Open Source Business Models You Never Heard Of : http://itmanagement.earthweb.com/osrc/article.php/3686616

PowerPoint

Coming Soon...

Content Delivery Networks - Ace of Hearts

aanthonya — Sun, 03 Aug 2008 23:38:12 CDT

A content delivery network (CDN) is a system of computers networked together across the Internet that cooperate transparently to deliver content most often for the purpose of improving performance, scalability, and cost efficiency, to end users.

Questions to be addressed

Content Delivery Networks:

What are they?
Who needs them?
What’s the business model?
What are the costs?
Who are the leading CDN providers?

Posted Readings

Insight and Perspectives for Content Delivery Networks

please click "PDF Full Text" to view the entire article

CDNs Evolve into Application Services

You may obtain the CDN power point presentation from the Attachments section below.

Web 2.0 - Queen of Clubs

AlanCassinelli — Sun, 03 Aug 2008 18:49:41 CDT

Research Topic: Web 2.0

Web 2.0 is a concept that is associated with the so-called "second generation internet users." As technology and and the internet evolve, these second generation users now have tools that give them the ability to collaborate and share information online through wikis, blogs, social networking sites, and communication tools.

The three main ideas of Web 2.0 are:

The Web as a platform - building applications that only exist online
The Democratization of the Web - anybody can create content and share their knowledge and information
User participation - individual people participate in creating communities on the web and creating networks

Overall, Web 2.0 is a general shift in the way the Internet is used.

Required Readings:

1) The Basics of Web 2.0
http://computer.howstuffworks.com/web-20.htm
2) Informational Overview and Differences Between 1.0 and 2.0

http://www.oreillynet.com/pub/a/oreilly/tim/news/2005/09/30/what-is-web-20.html

3) Viral Marketing and Music

http://www.wired.com/entertainment/music/magazine/16-01/ff_args

4) Video - Social Media in Plain English
http://www.vimeo.com/1083838?pg=embed&sec=1083838

Powerpoint:
The file is too large to be uploaded to the wiki because of pictures, it can be downloaded here

Jack of Spades Info Security

Oceandiver — Wed, 30 Jul 2008 16:02:56 CDT

Information Security: The protection of data against unauthorized access. Programs and data can be secured by issuing passwords and digital certificates to authorized users. However, passwords only validate that a correct number has been entered, not that it is the actual person. Digital certificates and biometric techniques (fingerprints, eyes, voice, etc.) provide a more secure method. After a user has been authenticated, sensitive data can be encrypted to prevent eavesdropping. The terms information security, computer security and information assurance are frequently used interchangeably. These fields are interrelated and share the common goals of protecting the confidentiality, integrity and availability of information; however, there are some subtle differences between them. These differences lie primarily in the approach to the subject, the methodologies used, and the areas of concentration. Information security is concerned with the confidentiality, integrity and availability of data regardless of the form the data may take: electronic, print, or other forms. (http://www.techweb.com/encyclopedia/defineterm.jhtml?term=informationsecurity)

Posted Readings

* NOTE * After some people had trouble accessing our original posts from home we have updated the readings to all articles that you can access without OSU library rights. We apologize for this inconvenience and thank those who brought it to our attention. - Jack of Spades

1) The Six Dumbest Ideas in Computer Security
http://www.ranum.com/security/computer_security/editorials/dumb/

2) Tracing the Development of DOS
http://www.acm.org/crossroads/xrds10-1/tracingDOS.html

3) Old and New Threats to Information Security
http://www.csc.com/cscworld/012007/fa/fa004.shtml

Protecting IP - Joker Group

hunterde — Sun, 27 Jul 2008 22:54:08 CDT

Outcomes:
The goal of our project is to understand the many different ways that IP is used in the business world today. We hope to provide information of the patent process, and on how companies can combine their ideas to accomplish a greater good.

Definition:
Protect:The word protection refers to anything that helps ward off some threat; the preservation from injury or harm; money paid for a guarantee against threatened violence.

Intellectual:

An individual who is deeply involved in abstract erudite ideas and theories.
An individual whose profession solely involves the dissemination and/or production of ideas, as opposed to producing products (e.g. a steel worker) or services (e.g. an electrician). For example, these include engineers, lawyers, professors, politicians, entertainers, and scientists.[1]
Third, “cultural intellectuals” are those of notable expertise in culture and the arts, expertise which allows them some cultural authority, which they then use to speak in public on other matters.

Property:
Property means Right of Action for things that can be exchanged.

Intellectual Property:
Intellectual property (IP) is a legal field that refers to creations of the mind such as musical, literary, and artistic works; inventions; and symbols, names, images, and designs used in commerce, including copyrights, trademarks, patents, and related rights. Under intellectual property law, the holder of one of these abstract "properties" has certain exclusive rights to the creative work, commercial symbol, or invention by which it is covered.

Readings:

1. These are a few tips for someone trying to protect intellectual property.
http://www.allbusiness.com/legal/intellectual-property/11140-1.html

2. Defines: Patents, Trademarks, Trade Secrets, When you can go public with a patent, and much more information. (Read parts 1-6)
http://people.howstuffworks.com/patent.htm

3. An example of businesses using corss liscensing to improve the efficiency of their products.
http://www.betanews.com/article/Microsoft_JVC_agree_to_crosslicense_patents/1200511382
http://www.itworld.com/IDG010808sun-hitachi

4. This is a list of problems people can avoid when trying to protect their IP.
http://www.developerdotstar.com/mag/articles/mccrohon_7ipsins.html

5. This is a basic rundown of the costs associated with obtaining a patent.
http://home.netcom.com/~patents2/What%20Does%20It%20Cost%20Patent.htm

Presentation Files:

See Attachments Below!!!!

Authors:

Derek Hunter: hunterde@onid.orst.edu
Jessica Sandoval: sandovje@onid.orst.edu

Overseas Corporation Outsourcing - Queen of Diamonds

lbungo — Thu, 24 Jul 2008 14:08:49 CDT

Research Topic: Overseas Corporate Job Outsourcing

What is outsourcing?

Outsourcing is the procuring of services or products, such as the parts used in manufacturing a motor vehicle, from an outside supplier or manufacturer in order to cut costs. It is also defined as a practice used by different companies to reduce costs by transferring portions of work to outside suppliers rather than completing it internally.

Outsourcing is an effective cost-saving strategy when used properly. It is sometimes more affordable to purchase a good from companies with comparative advantages than it is to produce the good internally. An example of a manufacturing company outsourcing would be Dell buying some of its computer components from another manufacturer in order to save on production costs. Alternatively, businesses may decide to outsource book-keeping duties to independent accounting firms, as it may be cheaper than retaining an in-house accountant.

Questions to be addressed:
How big a phenomenon is this? Is it growing? Why? What IT technologies enable this? What trends can be observed? Where are jobs being outsourced to? What are the pros/cons associated with this trend?

Required Readings:

1. Pros and Cons of Overseas Corporation Outsourcing

http://news.thomasnet.com/IMT/archives/2002/10/the_pros_cons_o.html

2. What is Overseas Corporation Outsourcing?

http://www.cio.com/article/40380/ABC_An_Introduction_to_Outsourcing/1

3. Outsourcing Trends

http://news.cnet.com/Five-outsourcing-trends-to-watch/2100-1022_3-6195142.html

Powerpoint at the bottom page, under attachments

Disaster Prevention & Recovery-Ace of Spades

vandykem — Wed, 23 Jul 2008 11:08:00 CDT

Research Topic:
Our research topic is Disaster Prevention & Recovery. DPR is an important aspect of business in that it is seen as the number one priority for businesses in order to ensure that their data is safe.

DPR is essential in all organization as almost all organization exhibit some sort of technology in order to run their operations. Due to this fact alone it is important to have some sort of prevention and recovery plan in order to avoid possible negative implications.

Required Readings:
Below is a short list of readings that will help you become more familiar with our topic prior to our presentation.

1. Windows IT PRO
http://windowsitpro.com/article/articleid/92692/disaster-prevention-and-recovery.html

2. Introduction to Disaster Recovery Planning
http://www.intranetjournal.com/articles/200503/ij_03_24_05a.html

3. University of Missouri Disaster Recovery and Prevention Information
http://www.umsystem.edu/ums/departments/fa/management/records/disaster/

Presentation File:
Here is the presentation you just saw on Disaster Recovery & Prevention (In attachment below).

Electronic Payment Systems - King of Spades

m.j.oconnor — Tue, 22 Jul 2008 23:31:09 CDT

Expected Outcomes:

We will explore the role of electronic payment processors and payment gateway systems (ex. PayPal).
We will also be going over how the electronic credit card payments flow thru the banking system.
Our report will extend to talk about the role of PCI DSS, especially how they ensure security for credit card payments?

Definitions:

Electronic Payment System

shall mean a payment system operating with electronic money.

Definition provided by Alpari.org

e·lec·tron·ic

of or pertaining to electronics or to devices, circuits, or systems developed through electronics.
of or pertaining to electrons or to an electron.
of, pertaining to, or controlled by computers, or computer products and services.

pay·ment

something that is paid; an amount paid; compensation; recompense.
the act of paying.
reward or punishment; requital.

sys·tem

an assemblage or combination of things or parts forming a complex or unitary whole: a mountain system; a railroad system.
any assemblage or set of correlated members: a system of currency; a system of shorthand characters.
a coordinated body of methods or a scheme or plan of procedure; organizational scheme: a system of government.
any formulated, regular, or special method or plan of procedure: a system of marking, numbering, or measuring; a winning system at bridge.
Computers. a working combination of hardware, software, and data communications devices.
due method or orderly manner of arrangement or procedure: There is no system in his work.

Definitions Supplied By Dictionary.com

Suggested Readings:

PCI DSS (.pdf)
Suggested time: 20 minutes
"This document describes the 12 Payment Card Industry (PCI) Data Security Standard (DSS)
requirements. These PCI DSS requirements are organized in 6 logically related groups, which are
“control objectives.” " Review the 12 requirements of the security standards
How Stuff Works: Electronic Payment
Suggested time: 15 minutes
"In this article, we'll look at the types of electronic payment, discuss its benefits and limitations
and explain how to add e-payment capability to your Web site" Read part 1 - 6 of the article
Future of Electronic Payments
Suggested time: 15 minutes
A brief overview of the past, present, and future of the Electronic Payment System

Presenters / Researchers:

Jenny Albrecht	albrechj@onid.orst.edu
Brenden McNulty	bmcnut@gmail.com
Michael O'Connor	oconnorm@onid.orst.edu

Optional Files :

Presentation Powerpoint (.ppt) Located under Attachments below (King of Spades.pptx)
Presentation Note Sheet (.pdf) *coming soon*

King of Diamonds - Digital Rights Management (DRM)

schilled — Mon, 21 Jul 2008 19:09:21 CDT

Presented by : Daniel Schiller and Ben Bullock

Our presentation will focus on the combined attempts by different key music and software companies to ensure copyright enforcement for online music downloads.

Digital Rights Management is an attempt to limit access and prevent the copying of protected files. DRM is supposed to ensure that owners of IP do not have people accessing their work for free.

Here is a short outline of the topics we will cover:

History of DRM development
Current players in DRM as well as past failures
Different uses in entertainment (movies, mp3 files, etc.)
Disruptive problems with DRM usage
Attempts to govern DRM development

Required readings:

The Digital Rights Management Dictionary
http://www.info-mech.com/drm_dictionary.html#eBook

The Technology of Rights: Digital Rights Management
http://www.kcoyle.net/drm_basics.pdf

Frequently Asked Questions Guru: search results for DRM
http://faq-guru.blogspot.com/search?q=DRM

Indicare Project - Consumer Issues on Digital Rights Management (DRM)
http://www.indicare.org/tiki-read_article.php?articleId=27

PowerPoint Presentation file:
***Coming soon!***
***The Wait Is Over***
***DRM PowerPoint Presentation***

Project Team info

bobmmiller — Tue, 15 Jul 2008 19:30:45 CDT

Project Team Topic and Due Dates

Team Name	Team Research Topic	Reading List Posted By	Presentation to Class	Postmortem Due
King of Spades	Electronic Payment Systems	Weds. 7/2/08	Mon. 7/7/08	Mon. 7/14/08
Jack of Hearts	Knowledge Management	Weds. 7/2/08	Mon. 7/7/08	Mon. 7/14/08
Jack of Diamonds	ERP Systems	Fri. 7/4/08	Weds. 7/9/08	Weds. 7/16/08
King of Clubs	Virtual Collaboration	Fri. 7/4/08	Weds. 7/9/08	Weds. 7/16/08
Jack of Clubs	Web Services	Mon. 7/7/08	Mon. 7/14/08	Mon. 7/21/08
King of Diamonds	Digital Rights Mgmt	Mon. 7/14/08	Mon. 7/21/08	Mon. 7/28/08
King of Hearts	XML	Weds. 7/16/08	Weds. 7/23/08	Weds. 7/30/08
Ace of Spades	Disaster Prevention & Recovery	Weds. 7/16/08	Weds. 7/23/08	Weds. 7/30/08
Queen of Spades	Business Intelligence	Mon. 7/21/08	Mon. 7/28/08	Mon. 8/4/08
Joker	Protecting IP	Mon. 7/21/08	Mon. 7/28/08	Mon. 8/4/08
Queen of Diamonds	Overseas Corp. Outsourcing	Weds. 7/23/08	Weds. 7/30/08	Weds. 8/6/08
Jack of Spades	Information Security	Weds. 7/23/08	Weds. 7/30/08	Weds. 8/6/08
Queen of Clubs	Web 2.0	Mon. 7/28/08	Mon. 8/4/08	Mon. 8/11/08
Ace of Hearts	Content Delivery Networks	Mon. 7/28/08	Mon. 8/4/08	Mon. 8/11/08
Ace of Clubs	Open Source Business Models	Weds. 7/30/08	Weds. 8/6/08	Weds. 8/13/08
Queen of Hearts	Database Market	Weds. 7/30/08	Weds. 8/6/08	Weds. 8/13/08

King of Hearts on XML

Tristan_James — Mon, 14 Jul 2008 20:58:05 CDT

Overview and Suggested Readings

Please Join us for our Presentation on XML on Wednesday July 23rd

XML Defined: eXtensible Markup Language: a simplified version of SGML that can be used, esp. on the World Wide Web, to create a tagging scheme that allows elements of a document to be marked according to their content rather than their format.

[Origin: 1995–2000 ]

Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1)
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.

Readings:

SEE ATTACHMENTS AT THE BOTTOM OF THE PAGE!

Upon Completion of the Readings and our Presentation the answers to the following questions should be clear:

What are problems with HTML?
How does XML address these problems?
What role is XML playing in the information systems world?
How does XML open up in the way of new web applications?
Why are companies bothering to deal with XML?

Web Services - Jack of Clubs

jodiehee — Fri, 11 Jul 2008 16:08:03 CDT

Questions we will answer:

1. What are Web Services?

2. What are the key underlying technologies that make web services possible?

3. What's the business model that supports them?

4. Why are businesses utilizing web services?

Definitions:

Web Services
Web services are self-contained, modular business process applications that are based on the industry standard technologies of WSDL (to describe), UDDI (to advertise and syndicate), and SOAP (to communicate). Web services provide a means for different organizations to connect their applications with one another to conduct business across a network in a platform and language independent manner. (definition provided by ibm.com)

web (definition provided by dictionary.com)

something formed by or as if by weaving or interweaving.
something resembling woven material, esp. something having an interlaced or latticelike appearance.
an intricate set or pattern of circumstances, facts, etc.
a network of interlinked stations, services, communications, etc., covering a region or country.
Informal. a network of radio or television broadcasting stations.
(usually initial capital letter ) Computers. World Wide Web.

service (definition provided by dictionary.com)

an act of helpful activity; help; aid:
the supplying or supplier of utilities or commodities, as water, electricity, or gas, required or demanded by the public.
the providing or a provider of accommodation and activities required by the public, as maintenance, repair, etc.
the organized system of apparatus, appliances, employees, etc., for supplying some accommodation required by the public
the supplying or a supplier of public communication and transportation

Suggested Readings:

http://www.w3schools.com/webservices/default.asp

Web Services Tutorial

http://www.amazon.com/gp/browse.html?node=3435361

Overview of Amazon.com's web services.

Automating business processes and transactions in Web services

Article on how web services work.

Team Members:

Jodie G. Hee- jodiehee@gmail.com
Jack Wong- wongj@onid.orst.edu

Virtual Collaboration - King of Clubs

Cutterd — Wed, 09 Jul 2008 00:11:06 CDT

Research Topic: Virtual Collaboration

Virtual Collaboration: The use of IT tools to allow for the sharing of information among others to produce a shared outcome.

Virtual definition:

Computing - not physically existing as such but made by software to appear to do so.

Collaboration definition:

1) the action of working with someone to produce or create something

2) traitorous cooperation with an enemy

Outcomes:

We will explore the common and most likely used tools used in daily virtual collaboration in modern business environments. Our concentration will be on the 'topical' tools, representing the broad sector of specific application areas with emphasis on class leader examples. There by all means are not the only forms of VC - but represent the most commonly used applications of day-to-day virtual collaboration.

-------------------

Readings:

These are some suggested reading to get further information about what we will be discussing in our presentation. There is a lot of information here; we suggest glancing through some of the basic product information and not reading every complex detail. It would be better to read a little of everything than to get stuck on one topic - but be sure you are comfortable with the idea and examples of each topic however, as each represents a class of collaborative tool widely (and likely) used in your future industry.

1) Email - There are dozens of email clients, and just as mail mail servers and portals. We will discuss the industry leader MS Exchange, and collaborative issues regarding email.

Knowledge Management- Jack of Hearts

amabellemanuel — Mon, 07 Jul 2008 11:47:15 CDT

Research Topic

Our group will explore and focus on Knowledge Management.
What technologies and processes are large corporations using to actively manage and leverage the gestalt knowledge of their corporations?
What are the economic drivers and what technologies facilitate the expansion and evolution of KM? Does KM work?

Definition

A concerted effort to improve how knowledge is created, delivered and used

(refer to articles below)

Article Readings

Business Insight (A Special Report): Organization; Putting Ideas to Work: Knowledge management can make a difference -- but it needs to be more pragmatic

Technology (A Special Report) -- Balancing Act --- What Do You Know? Getting employees to share their knowledge isn't as simple as installing new software; Just ask Buckman Labs

Business Insight (A Special Report); The Curse of Success: Knowledge-management projects often look good in the beginning; But then problems arise

Powerpoint Presentation

Powerpoint slide is attached towards the end of the page

Team Members

Amabelle Manuel
Ashley Kennel
Danielle Briggs

ERP systems- Jack of Diamonds

Sjful — Thu, 03 Jul 2008 18:56:14 CDT

Research Topic
Our group will present information regarding Enterprise Resource Planning.

Required Readings

What is ERP? http://www.tech-faq.com/erp.shtml
Implementing an ERP System http://logistics.about.com/od/implementinganerpsystem/a/erp_implement.htm
Critical Successful Factors of ERP Implementation http://www.sysoptima.com/erp/csf_of_erp_implementation.php

Group Projects

bobmmiller — Tue, 17 Jun 2008 21:45:28 CDT

Overview

In order to be a successful professional in modern business (whether in IT, Accounting, Marketing, etc.) you need to be able to work effectively as part of a team. And because of the relentless pace of technology evolution and its effect on ‘how work gets done’, you also need to be able to quickly research and master new technologies and new concepts. Finally, and perhaps most importantly, you need to be able to clearly communicate the results of your work to your colleagues and management.

For our purposes this quarter, we will use research topics in IT/MIS to practice and build skills in all of the above. To that end we will divide the class into 3-4 person teams and each team will be responsible for researching a specific topic (see list below) and then presenting their findings to the class as a whole.

Deliverables

1. Each team will create a Team Project page which is accessible from the wetpaint BA370 wiki page. This page will hold your reading list as well as your final presentation. See the “Sample Team Project Team” page on our wiki under “Group Projects” to get more details on requirements for this deliverable.

2. The minutes of each team’s meetings/discussions should be sent to all team members and to me at: bob.miller@bus.oregonstate.edu Minutes should detail who was present, who was absent. What were the key topics discussed. Who is "owning" various parts of the project. This will give me visibility into how your team work / planning is going.

3. Each team needs to prepare / compile a list of required readings for the rest of the class about your research topic. At most these readings (internet articles) should take no longer than 60 minutes. I will require that the class read these articles before your team does it’s final report. The articles should give a sense of the salient points of your topic.

4. A powerpoint presentation to the class on your research topic. The presentation should take no more than 25 minutes and then we will have a Q&A with the class. You should structure the presentation so that all or most members of the team have some time to present. Dress requirements are “business casual”.

5. A “post-mortem” from your team members—a word document that recaps what you think went well or badly with both your team project work and your presentation—note, our greatest leaps forward as leaders and individuals usually comes from a frank analysis of what we didn’t do so well in particular circumstances. The post-mortem needs to be sent to me via email no later than 1 week after your presentation to the class.

OSU BA370 - Summer 2008
Team Research Topics

Note that in all of the topics below, I am interested not only in the team examining the technology implications of a topic, but also the business imperatives—specifically, who are the key competitors, how big is the market, what are the leading trends, why are corporations paying attention in these spaces, …. IT and MIS trends/ changes are “always” in support of getting/maintaining a competitive edge, increasing profitability, reducing costs/overhead, etc. It is “never” about how cool or interesting new technologies are.

Information Security: What are the key challenges that companies and governments are facing with respect to information and network security? What is the scale of the financial impact of viruses, spam, spyware? How are businesses responding to the threats caused by network attacks like DDoS (Distributed Denial of Service)? What are the leading products/technologies (and market size) of S/W and H/W meant to protect against security breaches and what kind of policies/procedures are companies putting in place to guard their assets and employees?
Business Intelligence (BI): Business Intelligence is the structured exploration or mining of business data in search of meaningful patterns. Provide an overview of the technologies that are used and their relevance in business and government settings. Who are the leading BI S/W solution providers? How large is the market? What are the long term trends? In your presentation, make sure that you discuss the concepts of a data warehouse and data marts.
ERP systems: What is ERP? Who are the major ERP suppliers? How much does their software cost to purchase and implement? What benefits does this kind of software provide ... what pitfalls might it have? If you can, speak to both initial implementation costs as well as ongoing maintenance, support, etc.
Overseas Corporate Job Outsourcing: Provide an overview of corporate overseas job 'outsourcing'. How big a phenomenon is this? Is it growing? Why? What IT technologies enable this? What trends can be observed? Where are jobs being outsourced to? What are the pros/cons associated with this trend?
XML: Provide an overview of the concepts, uses, and impacts of eXtensible Markup Language. What are problems with HTML, and how does XML address these problems? What role is XML playing in the information systems world? How does XML open up in the way of new web applications? Why are companies bothering to deal with XML?
DataBase Market: Who are the major players in the database market? At which sectors of the database market are their products targeted? Who is competing with whom? How big are these companies? Who owns them? What products do they offer? What role does database software play in their product portfolio? What are the typical installation and ongoing costs?
Open Source Business Models: Provide an overview of the various business models that have been developed around Open Source Software. How do companies create businesses based on something that is free and open? Are these business models sustainable? Do they falsify business models based on exclusion; e.g., businesses based on patents? Why would a corporation turn to unsupported, “free” S/W for any part of their business?
Protecting IP (intellectual property): How do trade secrets, trademarks, copyrights, and patents work? Discuss timing of when you can go public with new technology vs. when you have filed a patent disclosure. How much does it cost to prosecute a WW patent on any technology and how many “years” does it take to ‘get a patent’? What do companies do with respect to cross licensing IP? Have there been any “major” mistakes in cross licensing of IP?
Digital Rights Management (DRM): Who has the key IP in this space? What is the industry “story” on music over the web? What have movie studios done / reacted to with respect to DRM? What kind of industry bodies have been assembled to “control” the evolution of DRM? (hint: check out the CSS and the DVD CCA industry standard body) What role does Microsoft and Apple play in this area?
Web Services: What are they? Why are businesses utilizing them? What’s the business model that supports them? What are the key underlying technologies that make web services possible?
Disaster Prevention and Recovery: What is it? Who needs it? Who provides it and how much does it cost? Case studies would be good for this one. What's the difference between "Business Continuity Planning" and DRP?
Auto Archiving S/W: Give some insight into the companies that create/sell S/W that automatically creates copies / backups of corporate data (like email or the entire contents of employee’s PC’s). How big are these businesses (revenue, growth rates, …), what are the factors motivating corporations to purchase this s/w? What other characteristics are there that define this market (e.g., stickiness).
Content Delivery Networks: What are they, who needs them, what’s the business model, costs, etc.? Who are the leading CDN providers?
Web 2.0: What is it--exactly? What impact is it having/will it have on business? What are the business/economic drivers for adoption? Give examples of web 2.0 technology, solutions, business models.
Electronic Payment Systems: What is the role of electronic payment processors and payment gateway systems like CyberSource, or PayPal, etc. How do electronic credit card payments flow thru the banking system. What is the role of PCI DSS in ensuring security for credit card payments?
Virtual Collaboration: What are companies, universities doing to actively use or explore using virtual collaboration and co-location tools. What trends do you see in this space? What are some of the economics that are driving this?
Knowledge Management: What is KM? And what technologies and processes are large corporations using to actively manage and leverage the gestalt knowledge of their corporations. What are the economic drivers and what technologies facilitate the expansion and evolution of KM? Does KM work? If so, give examples, if not, why not?
Software Licensing and Compliance: What issues are both the creators of S/W and the corporate consumers of S/W facing. How do each deal with the challenges of licensing S/W? Talk about license servers. What is the typical “support” costs associated with major s/w purchases like Oracle? Contrast that with ‘almost’ freeware like Eclipse. What are the tensions between S/W corporations and their corporate customers? What are the tensions between S/W corporations and other countries? (e.g, like between Microsoft and China?)

Classroom

bobmmiller — Tue, 17 Jun 2008 21:43:55 CDT

Welcome to the BA370 Summer 2008 Class wiki!

This wiki will be used for the Group Project. Each team will post their assigned reading list and presentation under the Group Projects page. Your group project team will need to add pages to this wiki to document your project and to provide access to your classmates primarily for our class projects.

I will also use the Wiki to allow students to sign up for office hour time (see Office Hours).

Group FAQ

bobmmiller — Mon, 26 May 2008 13:13:59 CDT

Suggestions:

Post your questions (and answers) about the database assignments or group project to this page.

Sample Team Project Page

bobmmiller — Wed, 21 May 2008 09:59:25 CDT

Research Topic

Provide a clear and concise explanation of the topic your team is researching. Feel free to tweak this explanation as your research progresses and your understanding of the topic increases.

Required Readings

Each project team will need to provide links to a set of required readings (from articles available on the internet). The purpose of these articles are to give insight to your classmates on your research topic and to highlight areas you feel are particularly on point or of interest. In some cases you may want to only assign a portion of an article (depending on its length).

For example, the following link will take you to an article on eDocuments in Information Week:

http://www.informationweek.com/news/internet/showArticle.jhtml;jsessionid=TSG55DFXZ2Y1GQSNDLRSKHSCJUNN2JVN?articleID=201500056&_requestid=40697

In general the total time required to complete the reading assignment should take no more than an hour to be completed. And the class will be required to finish the readings before a team delivers its final report.

Final Report

Each team should upload a copy of a powerpoint presentation slide set that they will use to deliver the final report on their topic. The presentation should take about 25 minutes to go through and, in addition, the team will be expected to field questions from the class after their presentation.

NOTE: In this class, as in the rest of your career, technology failures do occur! Be sure you have appropriate backups of ALL materials and deliverables. "My files disappeared" is not an acceptable reason for missing a deliverable.