Predicts the directions in which information technology will moveand its impact on building design over the next ten years.
Abstract
Predicts the directions in which information technology will move and its impact on building design over the next ten years.
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A local area network (LAN) is an information system for data transfer among office system terminals, cluster controllers or host systems, via an interconnecting medium, within the…
Abstract
A local area network (LAN) is an information system for data transfer among office system terminals, cluster controllers or host systems, via an interconnecting medium, within the bounds of a single office building, building complex or campus. During the late seventies it seemed likely to become the answer to a data manager's prayers—but hardware deficiencies allowed it to disappear from view. As interconnection protocols improve‐that is, as the rules governing information flow become standardised—and prices drop, LANs will become a universal element in the office.
The purpose of this paper is to examine the nexus between the digital divide and development and discusses attempts being made at continental, regional and country levels to…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to examine the nexus between the digital divide and development and discusses attempts being made at continental, regional and country levels to bridge the digital divide in sub‐Saharan Africa.
Design/methodology/approach
An analytical and comparative approach of global e‐readiness, digital opportunity, and information society indices is applied to infer the status of the digital divide in sub‐Saharan Africa.
Findings
The paper finds that there is a link between bridging the digital divide and economic development. However, there is as yet no unanimity as to whether the digital divide is narrowing or widening in developing countries including those in sub‐Saharan Africa. Nevertheless, countries in sub‐Saharan Africa are making tremendous strides, especially in infrastructure development and mobile phone connectivity, to bridge the digital divide.
Research limitations/implications
An empirical study is needed to determine the impact of the surge in infrastructure and policy development in sub‐Saharan Africa with regard to bridging the digital divide.
Practical implications
Hitherto, attempts to measure the extent of the digital divide between and within countries have largely relied on e‐readiness rankings and have rarely used other relevant indices that are available, such as e‐government, information society, and digital opportunity indices. The use of a wide range of indices to infer the breadth and depth of the digital divide between sub‐Saharan Africa and the developed world would provide a clearer picture of the extent of the divide.
Originality/value
The paper demonstrates that several tools other than e‐readiness ranking can be used to measure the breadth and depth of the digital divide. The paper brings to the fore the importance of addressing sub‐Saharan Africa's digital divide peculiarities using extraordinary interventions.
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This article examines the relationships among two types of strategy (defender and prospector), two types of evaluation systems (output‐oriented and behavior‐oriented), and one…
Abstract
This article examines the relationships among two types of strategy (defender and prospector), two types of evaluation systems (output‐oriented and behavior‐oriented), and one dimension of organizational structure (centralization) and their interactive effects on the job performance of marketing managers. Findings from an empirical study indicate that marketing strategies must be matched with the appropriate types of evaluation systems and structure to affect job performance positively. More specifically, the results suggest that an output‐oriented evaluation system combined with a high level of centralization is associated with higher managerial performance for organizations pursuing a defender strategy, whereas a behavior‐oriented evaluation system combined with a low degree of centralization is associated with higher managerial performance for a prospector strategy. Implications for the successful implementation of marketing strategies are discussed. Finally, study limitations and directions for future research are noted.
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This article concerns the preparation and delivery of a part of an existing postgraduate records management course to a sample of records management practitioners at a distance…
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This article concerns the preparation and delivery of a part of an existing postgraduate records management course to a sample of records management practitioners at a distance. The project was a pilot study for the subsequent development of a distance learning course in records management in the Department of Information and Library Management at the University of Northumbria at Newcastle. The objectives were to investigate the practitioners' learning experience by analysing their thoughts and feelings recorded in a diary, to assess the suitability of existing learning materials and to identify appropriate delivery methods for different types of materials. Models of both learning and writing distance learning materials were adopted from the literature. Paper, audio and electronic materials were developed. The results will be used to make recommendations for developing the entire course.
Peter Shears, Fran Zollers and Sandy Hurd
An in‐depth examination of the evolution of legislation, practice and thinking in food safety in the UK and Europe in general. Explores the reduced levels of confidence exhibited…
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An in‐depth examination of the evolution of legislation, practice and thinking in food safety in the UK and Europe in general. Explores the reduced levels of confidence exhibited by consumers.
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WE MAKE NO apologies for taking Thomas Paine's classic title for our leader this month. Written all but 200 years ago, it was brought vividly to mind when we read letters in a…
Abstract
WE MAKE NO apologies for taking Thomas Paine's classic title for our leader this month. Written all but 200 years ago, it was brought vividly to mind when we read letters in a contemporary journal. From two well‐qualified men in their early fifties, they regretted they could obtain no replies to many applications for employment. They were, all too evidently, considered “too old at 50'.
Stephen M. Mutula and Pieter van Brakel
The paper aims to present the e‐readiness status of small and medium‐sized enterprises (SMEs) in the information and communication technologies (ICT) sector in Botswana and make…
Abstract
Purpose
The paper aims to present the e‐readiness status of small and medium‐sized enterprises (SMEs) in the information and communication technologies (ICT) sector in Botswana and make comparisons with global trends.
Design/methodology/approach
The paper is based on a doctoral project that was carried out at the University of Johannesburg from 2002 to 2005. A qualitative approach was employed using both focus group discussions and in‐depth interviews to collect data.
Findings
The findings revealed that SMEs in Botswana, like their counterparts in most developing countries, had not achieved a reasonable measure of e‐readiness status compared to the developed world.
Research limitations/implications
There is paucity of research on the e‐readiness of SMEs in developing countries, especially with respect to information access. Furthermore e‐readiness, being a new phenomenon, does not yet have an established theoretical basis and a universally acknowledged definition.
Practical implications
This study presents a framework that has the potential to assist governments, especially in the developing world, to make informed ICT investment decisions that will enable SMEs to penetrate the international electronic business environment. Moreover, the findings provide a lens through which SMEs, especially in developing world, would benchmark their e‐readiness status against the best in the world and effectively undertake corrective measures.
Originality/value
The existing e‐readiness measurement tools are largely quantitative and only address the qualitative dimension of the phenomenon in a limited way. In addition, the tools focus more on ICT, business, policy and legislative framework and underplay the information access factor. Furthermore, whereas e‐readiness research is increasingly populating development, IT and business literature, little is happening within the information science discipline. Finally, most e‐readiness studies have confined to macro (national) assessments and ignored sectoral‐level environments.
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It is undoubtedly the case that advertising plays a significant part in modern economic life in most societies and many view it as an essential part of the operation of a free…
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It is undoubtedly the case that advertising plays a significant part in modern economic life in most societies and many view it as an essential part of the operation of a free market system. Yet it is also the case that our knowledge of how exactly it works and whether the vast amounts spent on it are justified is still uncertain. Lord Leverhulme, the founder of Lever Brothers, is credited with the famous aphorism — ‘one half of advertising does not work but nobody knows which half’ and that perhaps sums up the situation very well. One thing that is generally accepted is that some protection must be provided both to consumers and trade competitors from false or misleading advertising which can lead to market distortions and economic loss to purchasers. Increasingly controversial, however, is the scope and extent of legal and voluntary controls on advertising. In the advertising industry fears are rising about the volume of both national and EEC proposals to restrict or limit advertising and as we move from the '80s, a decade of conspicuous consumption in which advertising flourished, to the caring '90s where environmental issues are to the fore, the advertising industry faces major challenges. Advertising as a whole is facing severe economic and legal challenges after the massive expansion of the 1980's — it is estimated that there was a 4% fall in real terms in UK advertising expenditure in the first quarter of 1990 and an estimated 5% fall in the second quarter. Clients are becoming more demanding and the cosy cartel arrangement whereby advertising agencies made a 15% standard commission on a client's expenditure has gone — commissions are down to 12%‐13% or being replaced by fixed fees. It has been estimated by the Advertising Association that proposed legal restrictions could lead to a loss of £1 bn in revenue for the industry. Multi‐farious pressure groups are campaigning against drink advertising, cigarette advertising and sexism in adverts. The advertising industry's concerns are reflected in a recent report by the Advertising Association — ‘A Freedom Under Threat — Advertising in the EC’. The report indicates a number of areas where legislative controls have been introduced or are proposed to be introduced over the next few years and expresses the fear that controls may be going too far in limiting freedom of ‘commercial speech’. Martin Boase, chairman of the Advertising Association writes in his introduction to the report:
“WHAT Manchester thinks to‐day, London will think tomorrow,” was a current saying a century or less ago. It may be current today in political matters; it may be so even in library…
Abstract
“WHAT Manchester thinks to‐day, London will think tomorrow,” was a current saying a century or less ago. It may be current today in political matters; it may be so even in library matters. Before his lamented death, Charles Nowell drew up a long, careful memorandum for his committee on the desirability of Government grants in aid for libraries such as his own which acted in a very definite way as national libraries, in that their services were drawn upon by thousands outside Manchester who contributed nothing to the rates. In smaller measure the case could be made for every library authority which maintains a reference library, because there are no qualifications or introductions or fees required of any reader whencesoever he may come. To that quite substantial degree every good public library does national service. It could of course be contended that libraries receive services of a like kind for their own readers from all other towns and counties. In any case, the burden on Birmingham, Leeds, Liverpool, Manchester, Glasgow, Bristol—to name only a few important examples—is perhaps unfairly heavy. The case seems a good one. Opposition to the suggestion of tax‐aid which is by no means new, came formerly from the Authority associations, not because of their concern for the taxpayer's pocket, although we do not accuse them of lack of such concern, but because such grants imply a possible, indeed a likely, further interference with local autonomy. It is quite understandable; little by little local authorities have been shorn of their most productive enterprises. School and police in some towns, transport in others, and in all the gas and electricity industries have been appropriated by Government. On terms, it is true, but on capital payments which meant the loss of the recurrent income and, what was worse, loosened the local influence over the services concerned. Perhaps the local authorities can be persuaded that grants, without unreasonable interference and without loss of local control, are desirable. Librarians will watch with practical interest the progress of this proposal which, it should have been mentioned, has been approved by the Manchester City Council.