Abstract
SUMMARY: Thinking about getting a degree from a foreign university? What are the benefits of getting a degree from a foreign university? Thinking about taking the plunge and studying for a degree in another country? Looking at Duke University that offers students the chance to study abroad and comparing it to the article in Oxford Review of Education's article called "Study Abroad: A Competitive Edge for Women," this paper will discuss whether obtaining a university degree from a foreign university would have advantages and what these advantages would be.

Tags:foreign, degree, country

Abstract
This paper presents an overview of the UNIX operating system, focusing on its basic structure and its advantages and disadvantages. The paper begins by giving a brief history of UNIX and how it was originally developed. It also describes how UNIX differed from contemporary operating systems at this time. Next, the paper points out the pros and cons of using a UNIX operating system. In particular, it notes the major advantage of UNIX is its multitasking and multiuser capability. A disadvantage of UNIX is its design is intended for highly trained programmers, not the lay user, such as in Windows. The paper concludes by stating that UNIX will be there in the succeeding generations and it will further evolve into other variants.

Outline:

Composition of UNIX
Advantages and Disadvantages of UNIX

From the Paper
"Like most endeavors in information technology, the development of the UNIX OS was not a one man effort but rather a collective one. Ken Thompson, Dennis Ritchie, Douglas McIlroy and others from Bell Labs were attributed to the development of the UNIX OS. The reason for the development of the UNIX OS is to allow several users to access the computer systems and use the resources concurrently. Thus, there is a sharing of resources without compromising the integrity and the performance of the system. The operating system coordinates the use of the computer's resources, allowing one person, for example, to run a spell check program while another creates a document, lets another edit a document while another creates graphics, and lets another user format a document -- all at the same time, with each user oblivious to the activities of the others. (Lucent Technologies, 2002) To this day UNIX is still prevalent because of its capacity for multiuser and multitasking role and as an open source software; it has evolved into several variants such as OpenBSD, Solaris, SuSE, Linux and others."

Tags:operating system, Bell Labs, multiuser, multitasking, kernel, menu-driven shells

Abstract
The following paper will briefly describe the advantages and disadvantages of being an African-American female slave in the nineteenth century. Specifically, the paper will look at such things as general occupational status and skill-set, the marital status of these women, and the position the law put these women into relative to their slave-owners. As will become evident, there were some modest advantages to being a slave women - but these were heavily outweighed by the disadvantages.

From the Paper
The Advantages and Disadvantages of Being an African-American Female Slave in the Nineteenth Century The following paper will briefly describe the advantages and disadvantages of being an African-American female slave in the nineteenth century. Specifically, the paper will look at such things as general occupational status and skill-set, the marital status of these women, and the position the law put these women into relative to their slave-owners. As will become evident, there were some modest advantages to being a slave women - but these were heavily outweighed by the disadvantages. There were some advantages to being a female slave in the nineteenth

Tags:female, nineteenth, century

Abstract
This paper discusses the early mover advantage within conventional business. It then focuses on the late mover advantage for business that are heavily involved with e-commerce and it focuses on the relationships between suppliers, buyers, channel partners and customers. The paper specifically presents hypotheses and a methodology for validating late mover advantages.

Table of Contents:
Summary
Hypotheses and Methodology Summary
Methodology
Empirical Evidence
Summary

From the Paper
"Compounding the best practices of late movers have in penetrating existing markets often many times dominated still by early movers, pricing and its integration across websites and across order workflows especially is critical. Pricing is in fact the most critical link in the entire systems synchronization and integration strategy that in effect forms a systems level of innovation diffusion across late movers. In fact the level of systems integration across both pricing, order capture, order management, and order fulfillment has a direct influence on the Return on Investment (ROI) that is attained by both fast followers and late movers (Askegar and Columbus 2002). The researchers found that late movers into electronics distribution who relied on the combination of enhanced functionality of applications for online customers that provided more information than competitors, only accessible from internal pricing, supply chain, order management, and fulfillment systems, was a major competitive advantage. An example of this is the use of order status throughout the late mover sites, and its emergence as the most popular online application in the research completed was that despite early movers adopting a transaction standard, RosettaNet, the majority of late movers still relied on Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) as the dominant trading protocol over and above the use of websites' applications. Integration then was found by (Askegar and Columbus 2002) to be a relative indicator of innovation diffusion of late movers who successfully challenged early movers and were able to gain market share."

Tags:suppliers buyers, channel partners, customers

Abstract
This paper discusses the concept of owner-specific advantages or OSAs within multinational corporations. The paper provides a number of illustrative examples of large multinational organizations that employ the concept of OSAs in their operations. The paper then discusses what happens if a multinational corporation goes out of its established network and provides examples of corporations that did this.

Table of Contents:
Overview
Citigroup
ING in the U.S.
Merrill-Lynch in Japan
MNC Risk in Going out of Network
Overview
LUKoil
Saudi Aramco

From the Paper
"The case of Saudi Aramco is an example of the risks that MNCs run when they enter new markets and build out critical infrastructure and industry such as Saudi Arabia's oil industry. As the case illustrates, Saudi Arabia's state owned oil company, Saudi Aramco as well as Saudi Arabia's oil industry infrastructure, since 1948 belonged to a conglomerate of U.S. international oil companies: Exxon, Mobile, SOCAL and Texaco. While Saudi Arabia incrementally demanded increasing influence in Aramco, as Saudi Aramco was initially known, it was not until 1975 that the Saudi Arabian government took full possession of the company and successfully nationalized it. The original founding U.S. MNCs were left to negotiate management and concessions but and found their former dominant position in the market completely reversed and controlled by the Saudi government. Yet, because of their significant investment in the market over the years, they could not afford to simply evacuate the market and instead were willing to accept lower profits and thinner margins to assist the Saudi government in both managing some aspects of the operations as well as buying petroleum."

Tags:infrastructure, network, strategy, oil

Abstract
This paper defines experts as individuals who have developed expertise in problem solving, reasoning and creativity and are able to think in an effective manner about issues in their areas of expertise. The paper then discusses six key principles that experts use that novices do not and looks at several advantages to becoming an expert, while pointing s out that it can be a disadvantage in certain situations. The paper concludes that while becoming an expert is highly worthwhile, those who do so should be aware of possible limitations and learn ways to avoid such pitfalls.

From the Paper
"There are six key principles that experts use that novices do not. First, experts are able to notice features and patters of information. Secondly, experts use their vast amount of acquired knowledge, which is organized in a way that shows a deep understanding of a subject. Third, expert knowledge cannot be reduced to isolated facts, but reflects knowledge in context. Fourth, experts can retrieve knowledge with little attention. Fifth, while experts may know their subject, they may not be able to teach others. Finally, experts vary in their ability to approach new situations (Bransford, 2000)."

Tags:novice, knowledge, expertise, understanding, solution, abilities

Abstract
Summary: This paper will discuss the advantages and disadvantages of the Chinese entering the World Trade Organization. By understanding the different elements of this type of major deal in trade, we can see how this might affect the lives of the Chinese on a world basis. The effects of internationalization of this country has been an issue in recent times, and this deal would have significant affects on China.

Tags:china, entering, wto

Abstract
In today?s age of information, the move toward establishing an Internet presence is becoming more and more popular as companies move to position themselves to compete more efficiently on a national and international basis. The paper explains that this trend towards a global marketplace was demonstrated recently by the merger between America Online and Time Life, as well as the unbelievably rapid growth in global Internet sales. This paper provides an overview of electronic commerce and some of the advantages and disadvantages associated with the various types of online forms today. Several case studies and examples of companies that have been successful, as well as those which have not, are also provided. A summary of the research is provided in the conclusion.

From the Paper
"Forms of E-Commerce on the Internet. The literature notes that the term "Internet" is almost never used in its proper context. The Internet, simply put, "is a whole bunch of computers connected together" (Jardin 4). However, the Internet has become much more than just a network. "What makes the Internet different is the number of computers connected to it, as well as its immense geographic span. The Internet wasn't always that way; it used to consist of a few big, ugly computers. What happened" It often seems as if the Internet appeared out of the clear blue sky and materialized as a massive technological explosion. In fact, it did? (Jardin 11). Even though the "Net" may have appeared virtually overnight, certain aspects of marketing have not. It has been said that the dimensions of electronic commerce revolve around pure electronic commerce and traditional electronic commerce. According to Cecil C. Hoge, Sr., ?Electronic buying and selling started by telegraph in the nineteen century. With the advent and mass acceptance of the telephone, radio, TV, and then cable, electronic media have become the dominant marketing forces."

Tags:business, globalization, internet, marketing, mix, strategy, web, wide, world

Abstract
This paper explains that, although early mover advantage is often seen as the preferred method of market entry, in e-commerce, late movers can outperform and gain a higher level of trust with customers, by synchronizing all relevant systems through the use of the late mover process framework defined in this dissertation. This research is based on seven major hypotheses relating to a late mover e-commerce strategy. The author describes a multi-phased approach to the research design, based on qualitative research completed through the case study method in addition to the use of statistical analysis on a late mover company's relevant data in terms of transaction volumes and velocities of order management systems specifically. Several figures, tables, and graphs are included with the paper.

Table of Contents:
Introduction
The Use of PIMS in Evaluating New Market Entrants
Apple's iPod: Sustainable First Mover Advantage based on Process Efficiency
Contributions to Research
Statement of Research Question and/or Hypotheses
Research Design
Methodology
Research Objectives
Secondary Data Collection
Primary Data Collection
Research Strategies for the Literature Study
Procedure
Quantitative Research
Results
Table: Late Mover Advantage in Mass Customization
Late Mover Trust Infrastructure Components
Late Mover Factors in Velocity
Late Mover Displacement Strategies
Early Mover Mistakes that Lead to Late Mover Wins
Late Mover Processes that Lead to Trusted Advisor Status
Late Mover Failed Processes
Discussion
Figure: Proposed Late Mover Process Framework
Defining the Late Mover Maturity Model
Late Mover Maturity Model Assumptions
Late Mover Maturity Model Implications for Manufacturing and E-Commerce
Qualitative Research Using Interviews
Discussion
Abstract
Appendices
Appendix: PIMS Variables Analyzed
Timescale

From the Paper
"Despite much of the secondary research showing that aggressive pricing is ineffective, this is the most common late market entrant strategy, according to industry experts this is because late movers assume that markets they are entering are much more price elastic than they really are. While in high tech this practice of entering new markets by aggressive pricing strategies sometimes is responded to with bundling (which is a strategic error in the part of early movers protecting market share) the most common defensive strategy is to create more opportunities for customers to participate in the product development process."

Tags:competitive, pims, delphi, ipod, efficiencies, velocity

From the Paper
"This research examines the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC). The overall objective of this examination is to assess the advantages and disadvantages of the EITC as a way of reducing income inequality within the United States. In this research, this overall objective is addressed through focusing on the effects of the EITC on (1) the levels of disposable money income of beneficiary families and (2) the incentives of beneficiary families to work.

EITC: Description and Objectives
The EITC was enacted in 1975 to "offset the impact of Social Security and Medicare taxes on low-income individuals and to encourage them to work instead of relying on welfare benefits"