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Group Project 1

Topics

1 Amazon v Google Shopping

Amazon is best known for its e-commerce, while Google is best known for its search services. Read the descriptions of each company in Rainer (orange book) pages 4-5 and pages 26-7. Investigate both shopping services and answer these questions in your presentation:
  1. Compare and contrast the user interface of each shopping service.
  2. How does each company position shopping with respect its other businesses?
  3. Which company has been more successful with its shopping service, and why?
  2Amazon v Google
Business models 		Both Amazon and Google have a core business and a number of extensions. Investigate both companies and answer these questions in your presentation:
  1. What is the core business of each?
  2. What are the major extensions to their business?
  3. In what areas are they in competition with each other?
  4. How successful financially is each area of business in the last year for which full financial information is available?
  3 Yahoo v Google Groups Half the members of this group should, together, join Yahoo Groups, and the other half join Google Groups. Each should actively investigate the features available to group members. Some of your investigations will involve trying some features with other members of your half of the group; others will involve comparing features with members of the other half. Answer these questions in your presentation:
  1. What are the major features offered by each service?
  2. What did you find most useful? Least useful?
  3. Who would most benefit from each type of group service?
  4. Which group found their service more useful? Easier to use? Best over all?
  4 Google Docs v Microsoft Office v OpenOffice Both Google.com and OpenOffice.org offer free software that does essentially the same things as Microsoft Office. Investigate each one by doing two Excel "Independent Challanges" from the green book, one from Unit B, one from Unit C. Some group members should do two in Google Docs and others should do two in OpenOffice. Try exchanging documents between systems. Create your presentation in either Google Docs or OpenOffice.
  1. How similar are the menu systems?
  2. What kinds of trouble did you run into trying to do the exercises, if any?
  3. How do you get and/or use each of the free alternatives?
  4. Based on your experience with all three software suites, which would you recommend?
  5 UPS vs FedEx vs USPS

Assign group members to UPS, FedEx, and the U.S. Postal Service. Have each member study the e-commerce strategies of each organization. Then get together to compare and contrast each strategy and produce a presentation answering these questions and any others you think are interesting:

  1. What are the similarities and differences between the Web sites?
  2. What do you consider to be most and least successful aspects of each site?
  3. Do the Web site differences indicate differences of corporate strategy?
  4. Each company specializes in one or two aspects of delivery service: package, bulk, personal communication, speed, international, etc. Which aspect does each organization do best at, and how much market share does each capture in each area?
  5. Which company would you recommend for each aspect of delivery service?

Outcomes

 Class presentation Each group will make a presentation during class 6. Use presentation software such as PowerPoint, Google Docs, or OpenOffice presentations to create a presentation document which can be shown to the class. It should include:
  • One title slide showing the topic and the names of all the group members
  • At least eight slides presenting the information outline
  • Screen captures of windows, Web pages, or other illustrative user interfaces
  • One slide at the end listing Web sites and other information sources used (such as magazines, journals, and books).

Each member of the group is expected to present some of the material aloud to the class.
Group Project 2

Topics

 1 RFID

Examine how new data capture devices such as RFID tags help organizations accurately identify and segment their customers for activities such as targeted marketing. Browse the Web and develop five potential new applications for RFID technology not listed in Chapter 7 of Rainer & Turban. What issues would arise if a country's laws mandated that such devices be embedded in everyone's body as a national identification system?
  2 Voice Portals

Investigate commercial applications of voice portals. Visit several vendors, including www.tellme.com, www.nuance.com, and a third vendor which you (the group) find for yourselves. What capabilities and applications are offered by the various vendors?
  3 Wireless e-business

All team members: view the talk presented by David Burgstahler and Wayne Perry on Research Channel, discussing how executives decide which technologies warrant their investment dollars, when to jump on board with a particular technology or when to steer clear, and how to capture maximum value for their wireless spending.
One team member: summarize the practical suggestions made in the talk.
Another team member: go to IBM's Web site and search for "wireless e-business". Research the resulting stories about wireless technology. (Note that many search results will not be about wireless, so byspass them.) Describe some ways these applications have helped specific businesses and industries.
Another team member: go to AT&T's wireless business site and investigate the wireless business solutions offered to small businesses. Describe some ways these applications have helped specific businesses and industries.
All team members: use the principles presented in the talk to recommend wireless technologies for two small businesses, such as a vegetable greenhouse, a night club or café, and/or some other businesses you might be interested in participating in.
  4 Cellular service types

Research cellular service at sites like the International Telecommunications Union, Your 4G Resource, and 3GNewsroom. Describe services offered by each of the four generations of cellular service (1G, 2G, 2.5G, 3G, and 4G). What is the current status of each? (Obsolete? Widely used? Leading-edige? Experimental?) Where in the world is each used, and by which major service providers? What are the advantages and disadvantages of each?

  5 Wireless threats

Investigate the major threats to wireless communication. Research rogue access points, war driving, evesdropping, RF jamming, and other threats you learn about on the Web. What are the dangers each presents to wireless users? What measures can you take to protect yourself? How effective are the protective measures?

  6 Embedded microprocessors

Investigate how embedded microprocessors are currently being used and will be used in the future to support consumer-centric services. Each team member should choose one area to report on, such as homes, cars, appliances, or consumer goods like clothing.

 

Outcomes

 Detailed outline

Each group will email a detailed outline to the instructor before class 13. It should include:

  • A listing of each slide and its topic
  • Which team member is responsible for preparing it
  • Any questions, uncertainties, or problems with the investigation
  • Problems communicating with any team members
Class presentation Each group will make a presentation during class 14. Use presentation software such as PowerPoint to create a presentation document which can be shown to the class. It should include:
  • One title slide showing the topic and the names of all the group members
  • At least twelve slides presenting the information outline
  • Be sure to go beyond the discussion in the book, to be both up-to-date and more in-depth
  • One slide at the end listing Web sites and other information sources used (such as magazines, journals, and books).

Each member of the group is expected to prepare a section of the report and to present some of the material aloud to the class.

The final slide presentation is to be emailed to the instructor at the time of the presentation.