Reflections on Session 8

Wow, the discussion thread on instituting an Internet sales tax generated quited heated exchanges! I really like these controversies because they force students to think and argue. I just hope students don't get carried away and start a fight in our virtual parking lot!

I realized that a handful of students found the Session 8 mini-project assignment (come up with a unique e-business) to be very frustrating. Unfortunately, some folks did not even attempt an idea. In a way, this challenging assignment was like a midterm exam. As mentioned before, imagination is more important than knowledge.

Here is a summary of ideas on possible e-businesses:

Satellite lawn service
Robotic adventures
Online gas station account
GPS with restaurant wait times
Custom build-it-yourself computer kit
Online make-up simulator
Independent local news correspondents
Remote energy control of appliances
Pre-purchase preview
Paid standees
Online parking payments
Custom baby bottles and sippers
Organ donor business
Pranksters, Inc.
Food price comparison site
Fragrance USB device
Custom gum
PickAFight.com
Personal online fashion consultant
Stinky jersey rental business
On-the-go music and try-it-on clothing service

Here are student e-business ideas from earlier semesters:

Virtual acupuncture
Virtual Worldwide Vacations
A New You
An Internet music marketing site
Online to-do manager
A real-time auto mechanic assistant
Personalized health care
My Couch Potato
Design My Radio Control car
"See-a-Pet"
Onstar Restaurant Locator
Dr. Everything custom instruction
Audio-visual beach simulation headphones
Miniature puffball pals
An online personal conflict manager
Charity Bridge Play Bidding System
Offer Finder web crawler
An online race management system
Design your own lighting fixtures
An online gas pre-payment system
Junk mail eliminator
Personalized online time management service
3-D modeling tool for an environmentally aware home
Online sports card inventory tracker
Auction site which matches sound equipment with performer
Small-town French restaurant selection guide
Organized weekend camping trips for gamers
College book rental
Family taxi for parents
Grocery price comparison site
Making jealous mates
College transcript clearinghouse
Home improvement contractor online bidding service
e-Closet - hotel storage for travelers
Gifted kids competition
SlingBox feed exchange
Customized beer delivered to your home
Online calorie counter for a broad range of restaurants
Nonalcoholic activity planner
An online hostage negotiator
Team picker based on behavioral survey results
Homepainting recommendation service
Anonymous shopper service
An e-business search service
Personal security-check web service
A one-stop pet resource
Virtual vacations which uses VR helmets
Guild builder for games
An advertiser-customer target marketer
A Mac and PC cross-platform software supplier
A pet food labeling service (has picture of their pet on the can!)
An unbiased fantasy football selector (disregards user's loyalties)
An MP3 music tagging service
Recordings of daughters' comedy routines
Custom cross-stitching service
Virtual DJ services

I wonder if any of my students will become billionaires because of their ideas. Hey, look at a Maryland student named Sergey Brin. He was born in Moscow, Russia, to a Jewish family, the son of a mathematician and economist. In 1979, when Sergey was six, his family emigrated to the United States. Brin attended grade school at Paint Branch Montessori School in Adelphi, Maryland, but he received further education at home; his father Michael Brin, a professor in the department of mathematics at the University of Maryland, nurtured his interest in mathematics and his family helped him retain his Russian language skills. In September 1990, after having attended Eleanor Roosevelt High School, Sergey enrolled in the University of Maryland, College Park to study Computer Science and Mathematics, where he received his Bachelors of Science in May 1993 with high honors. After graduating from Maryland, Sergey received a graduate fellowship from the National Science Foundation, which allowed him to study for his masters degree in Computer Science at Stanford University.

Brin is the American entrepreneur who co-founded Google with Larry Page. He is currently the President of Technology at Google and has a net worth estimated at $16.6 billion as of March 9, 2007, making him the 26th richest person in the world together with Larry Page and the 9th richest person in the United States. He is also the 4th youngest billionaire in the world.

Reflections on Session 7

Before I get into Session 7, I found most of the mid-semester feedback to be useful. As a result, I will "adjust my course" and execute the following:

1. Require that all postings and blogs be APA compliant with references.
2. Require a 150-word threshold.
3. Add a midterm to THIS semester.
4. Change this f2f class to a hybrid in order that I can torture students in person.
5. Bring back Miss Rambo!

Only kidding! These are what I plan to do (at least try!)...

1. I will provide more postings during the course of the week so you get an idea on my "take" on things (and give some positive feedback).
2. Encourage podcasts for current events postings (I'm actually doing that by you reading this right now!)
3. In future classes, look into reducing the weekly assignments.
4. In future classes, add an introductory lecturette.
5. Update the textbook (we will do this in the Fall.)

Hope I didn't miss anything. If I did, please provide a comment to this posting.

Thank you again for your useful feedback! Remember "no stick in the eye" in the semester-ending course eval!

Okay, back to the show....

Session 7 involved enterprise integration which is one of the greatest challenges in any organization. I hope students now understand the tools for integration such as ERPs, CRM, data warehouses, data marts and so on. Just as important, I hope that they understand the issues and challenges associated with with implementing and maintaining them. Incidentally many of these tools are being used for homeland security to help organizations to talk to one another and connect the dots.

Last semester, I have experienced a major failure of an ERP. It had an not-so-friendly interface, a cryptic navigation system, poor performances (long response times times) and poorly written documentation. What was ironic was that the university had classes on ERP implementation, designing effective user interfaces, optimizing system performance and preparing quality documentation! Goes to show that we in academia often don't do what we preach!

Hi, I'm Frek, the Wonder Frog -- Your New TA!

Reflections on Session 6

Oops! Three students did not get credit for their posting because they were unable to meet the 100-word threshold. The reason for the threshold is to ensure that students submit a substantial, value-added and meaningful information. No, it does not guarantee that but through my teaching experience I found that it certainly helps. Incidentally, when I find an exactly 100-word submission, I tend to look at the posting more critically since I suspect that the student added fluff to bring it up to the threshold.

I am glad students are taking a global perspective in this class. It was interesting to read how Europeans and Asians do things differently from a commercial standpoint. Hey let's face it....we live in a global village. (But the question arises...now who is the village idiot? Sorry 'bout that.) We get our cars from Japan and Germany, our coats from Poland and the Czech Republic, our fruits and coffee from Costa Rica and Colombia, and our TV shows from Great Britain (Office, Weakest Link, BBC shows, etc.).

One of the threads in Session 7 provides for a means for you to give me mid-semester feedback. Hopefully, I can try to fix things before the end of the semester. If not, at least your fellow students who take this class next semester will benefit. I would appreciate hearing from you!!!! Thanks!!!

Identity theft is a frightening thought. I've had my credit card stolen once which I guess is a type of identity theft. Fortunately, my credit card company forgave me for all of the false credit card charges (it amounted to thousands of dollars of clothing after my card disappeared from a local restaurant). However, I hear about these horror stories where the bad guys get into your checking and savings account and take all of the funds. The victims are unable to buy things on credit because their credit rating is shot. Let's face it, much of this evil wrongdoing is due to technology. Yes, technology can be a two-edge sword.

Students need to know about the risks surrounding technology. This is a major consideration when implementing a new technology application in an organization. They need to know how to address this risk (countermeasures and controls) and understand that they assume a certain level of risk when it is finally installed. They need to know how to reduce risks on a continuing basis. Threats cannot be totally eliminated unfortunately. I guess you could transfer the risk such as buying identity theft insurance, but that is the not the total solution.