Search

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to explore the potential and growth of big data across several industries between 2016 and 2020. This study aims to analyze the behavior of interest in big data within the community and to identify areas with the greatest potential for future big data adoption. Design/methodology/approach: This research uses Google Trends to characterize the community's interest in big data. Community interest is measured on a scale of 0–100 from weekly observations over the past five years. A total of 16 industries were considered to explore the relative interest in big data for each industry. Findings: The findings revealed that big data has been of high interest to the community over the past five years, particularly in the manufacturing, computers and electronics industries. However, over the 2020s the interest in the theme decreased by more than 15%, especially in the areas where big data typically had the greatest potential interest. In contrast, areas with less potential interest in big data such as real estate, sport and travel have registered an average growth of less than 10%. Originality/value: To the best of the author's knowledge, this study is original in complementing the traditional survey approaches launched among the business communities to discover the potential of big data in specific industries. The knowledge of big data growth potential is relevant for players in the field to identify saturation and emerging opportunities for big data adoption. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose The purpose of this study is to show that the humidity levels for surface insulation resistance (SIR)-related failures are dependent on the type of activators used in no-clean flux systems and to demonstrate the possibility of simulating the effects of humidity and contamination on printed circuit board components and sensitive parts if typical SIR data connected to a particular climatic condition are available. This is shown on representative components and typical circuits.Design/methodology/approach A range of SIR values obtained on SIR patterns with 1,476 squares was used as input data for the circuit analysis. The SIR data were compared to the surface resistance values observable on a real device printed circuit board assembly. SIR issues at the component and circuit levels were analysed on the basis of parasitic circuit effects owing to the formation of a water layer as an electrical conduction medium.Findings This paper provides a summary of the effects of contamination with various weak organic acids representing the active components in no-clean solder flux residue, and demonstrates the effect of humidity and contamination on the possible malfunctions and errors in electronic circuits. The effect of contamination and humidity is expressed as drift from the nominal resistance values of the resistors, self-discharge of the capacitors and the errors in the circuits due to parasitic leakage currents (reduction of SIR).Practical/implications The methodology of the analysis of the circuits using a range of empirical leakage resistance values combined with the knowledge of the humidity and contamination profile of the electronics can be used for the robust design of a device, which is also important for electronic products relying on low current consumption for long battery lifetime.Originality/value Examples provide a basic link between the combined effect of humidity and contamination and the performance of electronic circuits. The methodology shown provides the possibility of addressing the climatic reliability of an electronic device at the early stage of device design by using typical SIR data representing the possible climate exposure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose — This paper aims to give the reader an insight into the evolution of a fast-growing and innovative Internet company by helping to understand the web portal business in Germany and to identify and assess strategies to transform an Internet portal to an Internet communications enterprise. Design/methodology/approach — The case is based on field research accomplished together with executives of the company. Findings — The case shows that implementing a professional management structure and a continuous strategic analysis of the competitive environment are crucial for being successful in a dynamic Internet business. Practical implications — Teachers can use this case study in advanced management courses for applying methodologies of strategic analysis, e.g. M. Porter's five-forces-model, value-chain analysis, concept of key success factors, SWOT-analysis. Students are expected to know basics about financial analysis, and information technologies. Managers can take the case as a best practice example for successful entrepreneurship in the Internet world. Originality/value — The paper provides insights into the strategies of an innovative Internet company. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose - This paper seeks to investigate how the concept of a trust level is used in the access control policy of a web services provider in conjunction with the attributes of users. Design/methodology/approach - A literature review is presented to provide background to the progressive role that trust plays in access control architectures. The web services access control architecture is defined. Findings - The architecture of an access control service of a web service provider consists of three components, namely an authorisation interface, an authorisation manager, and a trust manager. Access control and trust policies are selectively published according to the trust levels of web services requestors. A prototype highlights the incorporation of a trust level in the access control policy as a viable solution to the problem of web services access control, where decisions of an autonomous nature need to be made, based on information and evidence. Research limitations/implications - The WSACT architecture addresses the selective publication of policies. The implementation of sophisticated policy-processing points at each web service endpoint, to automatically negotiate about policies, is an important element needed to complement the architecture. Practical implications - The WSACT access control architecture illustrates how access control decisions can be made autonomously by including a trust level of web services requestors in an access control policy. Originality/value - The WSACT architecture incorporates the trust levels of web services requestors and the attributes of users into one model. This allows web services providers to grant advanced access to the users of trusted web services requestors, in contrast with the limited access that is given to users who make requests through web services requestors with whom a minimal level of trust has been established. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to describe new search methods based on semantic information structures to offer a personalised and interactive knowledge retrieval to the user. Design/methodology/approach - A careful look on existing "knowledge management projects" leads to a proposed approach of a "knowledge broker network" where transfer of knowledge is based on communication between humans. To enhance the quality of search results a new search algorithm ("Search Assistance Algorithm (SAA)") is described in a simplified manner. Findings - The paper provides information on the knowledge broker network and shows the advantages of this concept especially of the automated part. Research limitations/implications - The paper shows the proposed approach has not formally being tested yet Some pilot studies have been made and a study especially for the SAA is planned for the near future. Practical implications - This approach has the potential to change the way of transfer of knowledge using a knowledge broker network based on knowledge management systems, which could be improved by our SAA in practice. Originality/value - Using knowledge management systems in a "standard way" by feeding in information and using retrieval methods is not optimal for sharing knowledge between humans. To provide and update information is very cost-intensive. Using "meta-information" about "who is expert in which area" and bring information-seeker and experts together could be the optimal method. This knowledge broker network helps to bring this idea into reality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to propose a new taxonomy for intrusion detection systems as a way of generating further research topics focussed on improving intrusion system performance. Design/methodology/approach - The paper shows that intrusion systems are characterised by the type of output they are capable of producing, such as intrusion/non-intrusion declarations, through to intrusion plan determination. The output type is combined with the data scale used to undertake the intrusion determination, to produce a two-dimensional intrusion matrix. Findings - The paper finds that different approaches to intrusion detection can produce different footprints on the intrusion matrix. Qualitative comparison of systems can be undertaken by examining the area covered within the footprint and the footprint overlap between systems. Quantitative comparison can be achieved in the areas of overlap. Research limitations/implications - The paper shows that the comparison of systems based on their footprint on the intrusion matrix may allow a deeper understanding of the limits of performance to be developed. The separation of what was previously understood as "detection" into the three areas of Detection, Recognition and Identification may provide further impetus for the development of a theoretical framework for intrusion systems. Practical implications - The paper shows that the intrusion matrix can be divided into areas in which the achievement of arbitrarily high performance is relatively easily achievable. Other areas within the matrix, such as the Prosecution and Enterprise regions, present significant practical difficulties and therefore are opportunities for further research. Originality/value - The use of a taxonomy based on the type of output produced by an intrusion system is new to this paper, as is the combination with data scale to produce an intrusion matrix. The recognition that the network data scale should also be split to differentiate trusted and untrusted networks is new and presents challenging opportunities for further research topics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to discuss and amalgamate information security principles, and legal and ethical concerns that surround security testing and components of generic security testing methodologies that can be applied to Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP), in order to form an audit methodology that specifically addresses the needs of this technology. Design/methodology/approach - Information security principles, legal and ethical concerns are amalgamated that surround security testing and components of generic security testing methodologies that can be applied to VoIP. A simple model is created of a business infrastructure (core network) for the delivery of enterprise VoIP services and the selected tests are applied through a methodically structured action plan. Findings - The main output of this paper is a, documented in detail, testing plan (audit programme) for the security review of a core VoW enterprise network infrastructure. Also, a list of recommendations for good testing practice based on the testing experience and derived through the phase of the methodology evaluation stage. Research limitations/implications - The methodology in the paper does not extend at the moment to the testing of the business operation issues of VoIP telephony, such as revenue assurance or toll fraud detection. Practical implications - This approach facilitates the conduct or security reviews and auditing in a VoIP infrastructure. Originality/value - VoIP requires appropriate security testing before its deployment in a commercial environment. A key factor is the security of the underlying data network. If the business value of adopting VoIP is considered then the potential impact of a related security incident becomes clear. This highlights the need for a coherent security framework that includes means for security reviews, risk assessments, and influencing design and deployment. In this respect, this approach can meet this requirement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to examine the marketing and sales implications of page ranking techniques, in terms of how companies may use knowledge of their operation to increase the chances of attracting custom. Design/methodology/approach - Explaining the calculation, implementation and impact of the PageRank and Topic Sensitive Page Ranking is the prerequisite to recapitulating existing search engine optimization strategies and to identifying new methods for leveraging the Internet for sales and marketing purposes. Findings - Different strategies have to be adapted to effectively attract potential customers. Originality/value - This paper aligns the complex calculations of the two concepts to enable a comparison. The changing technology of search engines means that they are getting ever more complex - this article offers a snapshot of major developments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to identify the most popular techniques used to rank a web page highly in Google. Design/methodology/approach - The paper presents the results of a study into 50 highly optimized web pages that were created as part of a Search Engine Optimization competition. The study focuses on the most popular techniques that were used to rank highest in this competition, and includes an analysis on the use of PageRank, number of pages, number of in-links, domain age and the use of third party sites such as directories and social bookmarking sites. A separate study was made into 50 non-optimized web pages for comparison. Findings - The paper provides insight into the techniques that successful Search Engine Optimizers use to ensure a page ranks highly in Google. Recognizes the importance of PageRank and links as well as directories and social bookmarking sites. Research limitations/implications - Only the top 50 web sites for a specific query were analyzed. Analysing more web sites and comparing with similar studies in different competition would provide more concrete results. Practical implications - The paper offers a revealing insight into the techniques used by industry experts to rank highly in Google, and the success or otherwise of those techniques. Originality/value - This paper fulfils an identified need for web sites and e-commerce sites keen to attract a wider web audience. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to propose a model for sharing network capacity on demand among different underloaded and overloaded P2P ROME-enabled networks. The paper aims to target networks of nodes with highly dynamic workload fluctuations that may experience a burst of traffic andlor massive nodes' failure rates. Design/methodology/approach - The paper shows that when locally available network capacity is not adequate for the workload requirements, the excessive capacity needs to be sought into other networks with more availability. A random flat P2P overlay of the ROME servers is used for the discovery and movement of nodes between two networks. Centralised or decentralised DHT-based directories of available nodes cannot cope with high workload fluctuations and frequent join/leave actions of nodes. The paper also introduces semantics to refine the answers to the ones with the most appropriate nodes for the requesting network and to find the requested capacity faster and more efficiently. The behaviour of the model is simulated to evaluate with several experiments the model based on some metrics. Findings - The paper finds that all the user queries of an overloaded underlying network are dropped if G-ROME is not used but as G.ROME overlay satisfies the requested capacity of a ROME server, its Chord ring size increases. In case of uniformly distributed and/or plentiful capacity over the overlay, shallow searches may give very good results. On the contrary, deeper searches are required for scarce capacity but the number of messages increases almost exponentially. Originality/value - This paper provides a model for moving the required resources to the requesting job environment rather than the job and its context to the resource. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose — The goal of this research is to demonstrate how web-based applications improve the effectiveness of a very important human resource (HR) function. It proposes a framework of a web-based training needs assessment system for HR professionals to effectively assess employee needs for competency-based training. Design/methodology/approach — A conceptual framework of a survey-based training needs assessment using the Internet was developed. A use case detailing a walkthrough of a prototype system developed under this proposed framework was created to illustrate how this system works. A two-phased operation test of the prototype system was then conducted to assess how well human resource (HR) managers would accept and adopt this technology to develop organizational competencies. The first phase involved demonstrating the use case to a group of experienced HR managers and polling their opinion toward the system. The second phase involved one-on-one interviews with three select HR managers who were asked to experience the prototype system hands-on. Findings - HR managers from both phases of validation demonstrated positive acceptance of both the needs assessment model and the process improvement generated from the web-based prototype system. Research limitations/implications — The qualitative validation test was conducted to a small sample of Taiwan's HR managers. Caution is advised when generalizing the positive results to other regions or countries with more advanced IT applications in HR practices. Practical implications — This study contributes to the HR practice in several ways. First, it qualitatively confirms that HR professionals accept a competence-based approach to build company's training curriculum. Second, it observes a lack of effective tools to help HR professionals in the task of training needs assessment. Third, it shows that HR professionals do recognize the power of web technology in helping them become more efficient. Originality/value — Formal competency-based training programs are rarely implemented in the real world because the process required is both tedious and time-consuming. This paper adopts Internet technologies in a conceptual model for effective competency-based training needs assessment, and presents an efficient web-based tool to assist HR professionals in the needed analysis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose - To present a new methodology for incorporating privacy requirements into the system design process called PriS, and describe its applicability in the e-VOTE system for presenting methodology's way-of-working. Design/methodology/approach - PriS is a requirement engineering methodology focused on privacy issues. It provides a set of concepts for modelling privacy requirements (anonymity, pseudonymity, unlinkability and unobservability) in the organisation domain and a systematic way-of-working for translating these requirements into system models. The conceptual model used in PriS is based on the Enterprise Knowledge Development (EKD) framework. PriS models privacy requirements as a special type of goal. Findings - Based on the analysis of a number of well-known privacy-enhancing technologies as well as of existing security requirement engineering methodologies, this paper pinpoints the gap between system design methodologies and technological solutions. To this end, PriS is suggested, with a view to providing a methodological framework for matching privacy-related requirements with the proper implementation techniques. Originality/value - This paper proposes a new methodology for addressing privacy requirements during the design process. It guides developers to choose the most appropriate implementation techniques for realising the identified privacy issues. PriS methodology has a high degree of applicability on Internet systems that wish to provide services that ensure users privacy, such as anonymous browsing, untraceable transactions, etc. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose - To provide mutual anonymity over traditionally un-anonymous Distributed Hash Tables (DHT) based Peer-to-Peer overlay networks, while maintaining the desired scalability and guaranteed lookup properties of the DHTs. Design/methodology/approach - Agyaat uses a novel hybrid-overlay design, a fully decentralized topology without any trusted proxies. It anonymizes both the querying and responding peers through the use of unstructured topologies, called clouds, which are added onto the structured overlays. In addition, it regulates the cloud topologies to ensure the guaranteed location of data and scalability of routing. A unique characteristic of the design is the ability of users to tradeoff between desired anonymity and performance. The paper presents a thorough performance and anonymity analysis of the system, and also analyzes few anonymity compromising attacks and countermeasures. Findings - The results indicate that Agyaat is able to provide mutual anonymity while maintaining the scalability of lookups, affecting the costs only by a constant factor. Research limitations/implications - While Agyaat is able to meet its mutual anonymity and performance goals, there exist other security vulnerabilities like possible Denial-of-Service (DOS) attacks, both due to its design and the underlying DHT overlay. This is fertile ground for future work. Originality/value - Agyaat uses a novel topology architecture and associated protocols that are conducive to providing mutually anonymous services. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose - To enhance security and privacy of e-cash systems that apply revocable anonymity by presenting a statistical attack that reveals the hidden ID and suitable protection means against this kind of attack. Design/methodology/approach - The feasibility of a statistical attack that reveals the ID of user of e-cash schemes with revocable anonymity is shown. To avoid such attacks the application of modulo operations while constructing e-cash coins is proposed. Measurement results are used to back up the suitability of this approach. Findings - Revocable anonymity systems can successfully be attacked. Applying modulo operations can prevent such attacks. Practical implications - The recommendations given in this paper should be applied whenever an e-cash scheme or similar system with revocable anonymity is designed. Otherwise the promised feature may be compromised very easily. Originality/value - The paper identifies a formerly unknown attack against systems with revocable identities, and presents a mathematical solution to protect such systems against the attack presented. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose - The (n-1) attack is the most powerful attack against mix which is the basic building block of many modern anonymous systems. This paper aims to present a strategy that can be implemented in mix networks to detect and counter the active attacks, especially the (n-1) attack and its variants. Design/methodology/approach - Based on the analysis of the preconditions of a successful (n-l) attack and the limitations of previous countermeasures, this paper presents Regroup-And-Go mix (RG mix) for detecting and foiling the (n-l) attack. Messages are divided into groups by the sender, regrouped and forwarded at the intermediate mixes, and reordered and sent to the receiver at the last mix. The grouping information for each mix is encrypted with the public key of the corresponding mix. The messages are forwarded only when all the messages in the same group have arrived. When the regrouping of messages triggers a timeout alert, the mix detects the ongoing attack and takes countermeasures. Findings - RG mix can help foil and detect the (n-l) attacks from both internal and external attackers because the grouping information for the other mixes is unavailable for them. They can only guess which messages can constitute a group and randomly select some messages to have a try. Analysis and experiments show that the probability of successful attack is low. Originality/value - RG mix uses the hidden correlations between messages for active attack prevention and detection. RG mix does not have unpractical requirements and can be used in the real-world implementations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to propose the use of priority-based incentives for collaborative hiding of confidential information in dynamic environments, such as self-organized networks, peer-to-peer systems, pervasive and grid computing applications. Design/methodology/approach - The paper documents the necessity of ISSON (Incentives for Secret-sharing in Self-Organised Networks); it provides functional and technical details on the proposed architecture; and, it assesses its feasibility in mobile ad-hoc networks through real experiments. The paper elaborates on the availability of the hidden information through an analytical framework. Findings - Through the real experiments, ISSON was found to be efficient in terms of communication and processing costs. Additionally, it avoids collusions for unauthorized revealing of the hidden information, and ensures the unlinkability and availability of the secret when it is divided and stored to peers. Originality/value - The proposed, incentive-based, privacy enforcement architecture is novel and applies to distributed, dynamic, and self-configured computing environments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose - To provide a cryptographic protocol for anonymously accessing services offered on the web. Such anonymous accesses can be disclosed or traced under certain conditions. Design/methodology/approach - The ‘traceable signature’ scheme was used in conjunction with the ‘privilege management infrastructure’. Findings - The cryptographic primitive provides a suitable tool for anonymous and unlinkable access to web resources based on the privileges that users hold. Moreover, the scheme allows for anonymity revocation and tracing of unlinkable accesses. Research limitations/implications - The power of the attribute authority should be divided into several entities, one of them being a trusted third party, to avoid illicit disclosing of information. Practical implications - New systems with support for anonymous access to web resources can be developed. Originality/value - This paper adds the unlinkability property to anonymous accesses together with a tracing facility to existing proposals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Both China and Taiwan have pursued aggressive investments in the computer industry over the last five years. Using Michael Porter's Determinants of National Competitive Advantage, the potential of both countries can be analyzed not only separately, but also in terms of the combined resources based on the possibility that Taiwan and China join forces in pursuing a stronger position in the global computer industry. The critical factor in determining the synergies will be the policies of the governments of China and Taiwan. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Third-generation mobile networks will be characterized by the convergence of the wireless, the fixed Internet and the media industries. Expectations on agents' ability to generate revenues (and profits) within this technological intersection are high and will be further geared up by the future broadband capacity. Previous experience from the fixed side points to problems for content providers to charge for their products. The easy reproducibility of content has often forced its providers to offer it free of charge. It has therefore generated little revenue. The question, however, is whether this pricing problem will continue on the wireless side with the introduction of mobile Internet. This paper examines the revenues of I-mode for an answer and uses the theory of the experimentally organized economy and innovative pricing to arrive at an answer. The conclusions are supported by 650 interviews, 450 of which are I-mode users and 200 potential users of the service. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Mission statements are considered to be one of the most popular management tools in the world – and also one of the most frustrating. To secure their success, it has been recommended that mission statements be communicated and disseminated to as many internal and external stakeholders as possible. One means for doing this is through the Internet and the posting of an organization's mission statement on its company Web site. But who is doing this? What types of organizations are using the World Wide Web to advertise their missions? Where is a mission statement typically located in a corporate Web site? And what are some of the motivations that an organization has for posting or not posting its mission? These are questions which have not yet been addressed by previous research and which this preliminary study sought to answer. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Interviews, questionnaires and focus groups were conducted to determine the training needs of small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in relation to the Internet, e-commerce and electronic data interchange (EDI) in the UK, Poland, Slovak Republic, Germany and Portugal. The main findings indicated that there is a lack of skills and knowledge regarding use and implementation of these information and communication technologies (ICTs), and managers require training in both the business and technical issues associated with these ICTs. As a result of these studies, a Web-based intelligent training system (WITS) has been developed. The aim of the system is to provide awareness in how to implement the Internet, e-commerce and EDI into business processes. The WITS system aims to address the needs of SMEs by providing computer-assisted instruction on the main elements identified for e-commerce success. This paper describes the rationale for the structure of the WITS system, the means by which the content was classified into modules in the training system, the level of information provided, and the type of interface guidelines used to improve usability of the system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In e-commerce, trust becomes an essential prerequisite for customer relationship building. Drawn from established theoretical work on trust and relationship marketing, a model is proposed aiming to help in highlighting the differences between traditional and e-commerce and to facilitate thinking as to how trust can be built in virtual environments. Conceptualized in the context of an electronic servicescape, the model helps to demonstrate how agent and virtual reality technologies can facilitate the expressiveness required for the formation of trust through iterative interaction with promises being made, enabled and fulfilled. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Successful Web-based information systems (WIS) are critical for electronic retailers to attract and retain consumers and deliver business functions and strategy. However, the design and development of a WIS may include many business, technology and user challenges. Understanding and fulfilling the critical requirements of these challenges will determine the success of a WIS commercial application. In this paper, we present an abstract model for WIS design in e-retailing. Unlike previous WIS research, this model offers an integrated and overall view, where four interconnected layers are investigated: business determinants; WIS; business interface; and users/customers. Through our discussion of this model, we provide researchers with a better understanding of WIS issues requiring further investigation, and provide practitioners with a foundation to understand WIS requirements and features for success. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores the influence of an organization's information ecology, or internal information environment, on a firm's electronic commerce initiatives and plans. To investigate this problem area, results are reported from a recent case study investigation on the adoption and use of a specific e-commerce initiative – namely a corporate portal – by 20 participants at a large Canadian company. Data collection involved semi-structured interviews and field observations, while analysis comprised a variant form of grounded theory. Factors of the information ecology influencing portal utilization are identified. From these, implications are drawn to e-commerce solutions in general. Specific recommendations include the need to create a democratic steering committee to oversee the development of e-commerce solutions, gain support of upper management, and market and train organizational workers on the functionality and strategic importance of a company's e-commerce initiatives and plans. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

New venture "startups" are financed via three standard methods: self-funding, "friends and family" or possibly "angel" investors; seed capital from venture capitalists; and large corporations' venture funds. Each of these financial structures has its own set of risk and reward trade-offs. Corporate venture funding has been seen as the least risky funding method, but also the least likely to be available for the entrepreneur. Each of these funding methods is likely to engender a different kind of corporate culture that could impact the e-commerce venture's long-term development. The self- or privately-funded company must continuously scramble for scarce funds and may not be able to develop internally the necessary culture of knowledge creation. Companies supported primarily by venture capitalists may develop a culture that over-focuses on quick return of capital to investors. Alternatively, the slow decision-making processes of large corporations are often antithetical to Internet time. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Inter-organizational-systems such as EDI have been the main form of business to business e-commerce application in the automotive industry for the last two decades. However, previous studies in EDI adoption mostly examined environmental, organizational and technological factors. This study examines behavioral dimensions of trading partner trust in EDI adoption via a qualitative interpretative case study conducted between an automotive manufacturer and their first tier supplier. While trading partner trust was observed to be an implicit factor embedded in pre-arranged contractual agreements, the findings of this study suggests that trading partner trust is important for cooperative long term trading relationships and contributes to increased awareness on the importance of trading partner trust in EDI adoption. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Describes an approach automatically to classify and evaluate publicly accessible World Wide Web sites. The suggested methodology is equally valuable for analyzing content and hypertext structures of commercial, educational and non-profit organizations. Outlines a research methodology for model building and validation and defines the most relevant attributes of such a process. A set of operational criteria for classifying Web sites is developed. The introduced software tool supports the automated gathering of these parameters, and thereby assures the necessary "critical mass" of empirical data. Based on the preprocessed information, a multi-methodological approach is chosen that comprises statistical clustering, textual analysis, supervised and non-supervised neural networks and manual classification for validation purposes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Discusses the role of the North American Free Trade Agreement on the computer industry of the United States. Assessment of Mexico and Canada as an expansion opportunity; Provision by Canada of markets for US companies; Emergence of large software markets in the world.