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Chapter 8 Exercises

Chapter 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14

Principles of MIS

© 2005 by Jerry Post
McGraw-Hill/Irwin
  1. Find firms in three different industries that have used the Internet to disintermediate at least one level of the production chain. Were they successful? What problems did they encounter?
  2. Identify the current state-of-the-art in mobile commerce networks and handsets. What transmissions speeds exist? What is the resolution on the video screens? What display languages do the leading devices support?
  3. Find a firm that is providing an XML-based service. Describe the service and try to identify the costs.
  4. Select a website and identify the prepurchase, purchase, and postpurchase elements.
  5. Check with a Web advertising site and identify the cost to run an ad on the site. Specify the type of ad and the number of times to run.
  6. Find a tool that you can use to analyze website traffic. If you can download a copy and have access to a server log, analyze the file and identify any trends.
  7. Find a B2C product for sale on three websites: one based on simply HTML pages, one hosted on a commerce server, and one based on an auction of Marketplace site. Briefly compare the descriptions, prices, and ease-of-use.

    8. Technology Toolbox

  8. Select one of the major Web server tools and identify how it handles multiple languages.
  9. Find a reference that identifies the percentage of sites based on Microsoft Web servers.
  10. Briefly explain how Java connects to a DBMS.
  11. Find a content management system and describe its major features. What file formats does it support; that is, how do users create the content?
  12. Find and compare at least two catalog management software packages. Which one seems easier to use? How many products can each one handle? Do they work with all websites, or only some commerce software packages?

    13. Teamwork

  13. Choose one common product available for purchase on the Internet and from local retailers (for example, a specific book, CD, or toy). Have each person find at least one website and one retail store that sells the product. Compare the prices of the item. Where is it easiest to purchase the product?
  14. Choose a B2C industry in which you might start a business. Identify the primary website features that you would want to implement. Have each team member find a company that could host your website. Identify the features, tools, and costs of each firm. Which one would you recommend?
  15. Have each person check with a different search engine to determine how to register your website and how much the site charges to list your site at the top of searches.
  16. Have each team member select a dot-com firm that failed. Identify the amount of capital raised, the revenue generated, and the number of employees. Briefly describe the cause of the failure. Combine the results and identify any common patterns.
  17. Have each person select an industry and research the use of the Internet in that industry. Focus on the production chain and identify any disintermediation that is being supported by Internet transactions. Combine the results and explain any differences across industries.

    18. Rolling Thunder Database

  18. Identify at least three areas in which Rolling Thunder Bicycles could profit from e-business? Be specific, and explain what technologies would have to be added (for instance, Web hosting).
  19. Find at least five sites on which it would make sense to advertise Rolling Thunder Bicycles. As much as possible, identify the advertising costs and the demographics of the site visitors.
  20. Develop a plan for expanding Rolling Thunder Bicycles into international sales. Be sure to identify any potential problems, and how you will deal with them.
  21. Develop a plan for creating a Web-based system for connecting to suppliers. What software would you need? How can you convince the suppliers to cooperate?
  22. The management of Rolling Thunder Bicycles cannot decide on a Web strategy. For the three main approaches (simple HTML, auctions, and commerce server), list the primary strengths, weaknesses, and costs as they apply to this company. Make a recommendation and briefly explain your choice.