A Background to Firms in the ACE Market - Free Essay Example

Sample details Pages: 8 Words: 2396 Downloads: 4 Date added: 2017/06/26 Category Business Essay Type Descriptive essay Did you like this example? CHAPTER ONE BACKGROUND OF STUDY Introduction Rights issue is a universal and widespread approach used by firms in various countries to generate new capital. From the past evidence, for example in London, there was  £1 to  £1.5 billion has been raised through rights issues each year in London Stock Exchange (Marsh, 1979). Recently, the rights issue has also been used as a tool for a company to boost new capital. For instance, one of the Finnish Miner Taivivaaraà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s biggest companies was using rights issue to raise 260 million Euros capital in the largest city of Finland, Helsinki to keep its nickel mine running (Reuters, 2013). Similarly in Malaysia, statistically about RM14.9 billion equity capitals was raised via announcing rights issues in Bursa Malaysia (Shamsher and Annuar, 1993). Besides that, Malaysian Airline System Bhd (MAS) has also announced rights issue to raise new capital and finally brought a higher capital of RM 3.07 billion to the company (The star, 2013). As a result, rights issue is one of the important considerations for a company to be competitive in the investment markets. Furthermore, the firms in ACE market are normally small and medium-sized enterprises. Thus they require an avenue to raise new capital so that they can survive and continue to grow. Instead of raising new capital through loans from financial institutions or commercial banks that will boost their liability, issuing rights issues announcement has become their ultimate choices. For instance, EA Holdings Bhd (EAH), which is one of the firms in ACE market, was proposed to issue rights to raise a new capital total RM63.6 million with RM30 million to finance suitable and viable profitable investment, RM28.3 million for working capital and RM4.5million for reducing liability (Free Malaysia Today, 2014). Therefore, there is a need to investigate stock price reaction on rights issues in ACE market due to concerning of firms in generating new capital. Don’t waste time! Our writers will create an original "A Background to Firms in the ACE Market" essay for you Create order Definition of ACE Market ACE Market is a secondary stock market in Kuala Lumpur Stock Exchange (KLSE) which is also known as Bursa Malaysia. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"ACEà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ is standing for à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"Access, Certainty and Efficiencyà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢, a revamp of the older Mesdaq Market that was launched in year 1997. This evolution of secondary stock market approach was made in August 2009. Although ACE Market is define as a new version of Mesdaq Market, ACE market is different from Mesdaq Market as it involves sponsor-driven and open to companies of all sectors and item emphasises disclosure and efficiency compared with Mesdaq (The Star, 2009). According to Bursa Malaysia, mode of listing for companies in ACE market got no minimum operating track record or profit requirement. However, companies with smaller scale of capital that is less than RM6 million profits after tax for the most recent three to five full financial years are not qualified to be listed in the main market and so will be lis ted in secondary market. Nowadays, according to Bursa Malaysia, there are a total number of 109 companies were listed in ACE Market from year 2006 to the beginning of current year 2014. ACE Marketà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s main objective is to allow local and foreign corporations of all sectors to access the capital market under a sponsor-driven framework. This evolution framework will increase efficiency and competitiveness in the stock market while protecting investors concurrently. Definition of Stock Price In general, stock price is referred to the price of stock as quoted on an exchange in stock market. Stock price can be quoted as bid and ask price and last traded or terminal price. Any information in stock price is publicity. Everyone can search for the latest stock price through online or other path without any disturbance. In financial aspect, stock price is the cost for the single share in the company. Since the abnormal return or gain cannot be observed directly, the market stock prices will be use as a component to calculate abnormal return gain or lose in the market around the period of announcing rights issues. 1.4Rights Issues 1.4.1Definition of Rights Issues Rights issue is an offer of new shares by a listed firm to its existing shareholders at a discount price and with the pre-emptive rights to subscribe to new shares in a pro-rata basis (Malhotra et al., 2007). The term à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"rightsà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ is refers to the fact that existing shareholder h as the rights of first refusal before the new shares are offered to the public. The subscription price for the new shares based on the rights is below the market prices of the existing shares or the price offered to the public (Shahid et al., 2010). The pre-emptive right is given to the existing shareholders the entitlement to subscribe a new share issued by a firm at the announcement date. The shareholder who holds the pre-emptive rights can decide to subscribe or sell their rights to the public if they forgo the chance to own the new share. However, they are encouraged only to subscribe the new shares in proportion to the number of shares they already owned (Annuar and Shamsher, 1993). In this study, the focus is on rights issues as the impact of rights issues on stock prices is important for most of the listed firms in ACE market. 1.4.2Importance of Rights Issues Besides from aiding the firm to raise new capital, rights issues can benefit the shareholders in three way s. First is to enhance the future stock prices, second is to provide alert shareholdersà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ or investorsà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ chances to gain abnormal returns and lastly is to avoid dilution of ownership. Rights issues play a vital role in determining the future stock prices based on shareholderà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s assessment. According to Annuar and Shamsher (1993), existing shareholder have the potential to evaluate the future stock price as they have the rights to decide either to buy or sell the rights. If they are firmly convinced that the firmà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s prospect is bright and benefit is guaranteed from the share, they will invest more in the firm via purchasing all of the pro-rata offerings. This will upgrade the firmà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s goodwill and thus bid up the share prices. In contrast, if they perceived the firmà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s prospect is undesirable such as expected return is not achieved, majority of them will let off their pre-emptive rights to purchase the new shares. Hence, this will bring negative impact to the firmà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s share price. Furthermore, rights issue announcement provide alert investor an opportunity to earn abnormal return when the market is not efficient. The inefficient market provide a means of market prices do not reflects all available information and knowledge of historical prices cannot be used to predict future prices. Thus, if rights issue is perceived as favourable news, investor can use the privately-owned information to outperform the market. This can be proved from the statement of Dawson (1985) which stated that an investor can produce excess return if they have identified information that is not reflected in security prices. Besides from the benefits of gaining abnormal returns, shareholders can prevent the dilution of their ownership towards the firmà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s capital when issuing new stocks. The company will offers existing shareholder the pre-emptive rights to subscribe a given number of shares based on pro-rata basis and at a specified subscription price that is less than the offered price in market. Thus, the existing shareholders proportionate ownership of the company will remain fixed and unchanged by purchasing the new stocks via discounted prices. This can be proved by the statement of Shahid, Xia, Mahmood, and Usman (2010), which stated that rights issues enables existing shareholders to safeguard their proportionate ownership in the company. 1.4.3The Issue of Pre-emptive Rights to be Concern Minority shareholder is the firmà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s equity holder who own below fifty percent ownership of the firmà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s equity capital. Thus they do not have the authority to control the votes. However, they can rely on the pre-emptive right given by the firm to protect them from possible abuse by controlling shareholders through subsequent issuance of voting and sharing stock to the public. Some of the existing shareholde r would forgo the rights to subscribe new shares and give outsiders the chances to invest in the firm equity. This would thus change the voting percentage own by equity holders. This is because the chance for each shareholder to monopoly the firmà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s capital would be lesser if there is more equity holder to share one piece of pie. Although issuing rights can protect minority shareholders, such subsequent stock issuance could impair the position of older shareholders. According to Dolley (1934), the voting control of each old shareholder would be diminishing proportionately if the new stock issued were voting stock. The firm may have variety classes of common share and the share with superior voting power is classified as voting stock. If the older shareholders holding a lower voting class of common stocks, their ownership percentage will be reduced via subsequent issuance of voting stock to outsiders. Therefore, existing shareholders should make a deep consideratio n on deciding whether to subscribe or sell the new shares to public. 1.4.4The Regulatory Framework of Announcing Rights Issues in Malaysia According to Sukor and Bacha (2010), every firm that wants to undertake a rights issue must meet some basic requirements steps. Firstly, the firm must get approval from it firmà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s existing shareholders through an Extraordinary General Meeting (EGM) before seeking approval from Securities Commission (SC). Secondly, all the issues must be underwritten by a merchant banker. Therefore the firm should appoint a highly reliable banker to act as advisor to carry on the regulated activity of advising corporate finance and prepare prospectus. Besides documented preparation, the responsibility of an underwriter is to take up any issues not fully subscribed by existing shareholders and publics if announced. According to Salamudin, Ariff, and Annuar (1999), an underwritten is responsible in advising the firms the appropriate number o f share to be issued, suggested offer prices by considering the net tangible assets of the firm, proceed from the projected; and lastly determining the time to issue rights by considering the prevailing market conditions. The following step is to inform Bursa Malaysia the four important dates, thatà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s the intended date of public announcement, the ex-date, the Book Closing Date( BCD) and the closing date for receipt of applications for and acceptance of the rights. Meanwhile, the firm must ensure that the interval between these dates is conforming to Bursaà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s requirements which state the maximum and minimum of each interval. As a conclusion, a firm that decides to undertake a rights issue should always refer to this formal framework as a proper guidance. 1.5Problem Statement There were numerous previous researches had been conducted to examine the price reaction to announcement of rights issues in foreign country such as U.K (March, 1979), U.S (Kothare, 1991), Korea (Kim et al, 1990) and so on. However, there was only one previous similar research reported so far in Malaysia were conducted by Salamudin, Ariff and Annuar, (1999) to examine the price behaviour of seasoned equity issues on a sample of firms in main market, KLSE. Besides that, ACE Market is a new framework for listing and equity fund raising launched by KLSE in the year 2009, which has not been tested by any researcher to explore further knowledge on rights issue announcement. Thus, this study adds value to the literature by understanding the price reaction on rights issues announcement in ACE Market and to further investigation. 1.6Objectives of Study The main objective of this study is to identify the relationship between stock price and rights issue announcement. Thus this study is to examine whether there is positive or negative market reaction towards rights issue announcement in ACE Market. 1.7Hypothesis Most of the previous research tha t has been done in foreign country documents a significant relationship between rights issues and market stock prices. The earliest study made by Marsden (2000) in New Zealand verified that there was a significant negative relationship between rights issues and market stock prices in New Zealand capital market. However, the finding was disproved by the further researcher Marisetty et al., (2008) examined a positive price reaction to rights issues announcement in India market. Hence, the hypothesis is proposed as below: H1: There is a significant relationship between rights issue and market stock prices. 1.8Significance of Study This study has delivered a few of important implications to shareholders and investors in ACE Market. Firstly, shareholders can benefit from the rights issues via incremental dividend payment by understanding the uses of rights issues and its effects on the stock market prices. According to Malhotra et al. (2012), rights issues can be decoded as posi tive information about a firmà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s business prospects due to a signal of the firm profitable projects has encountered. Thus, the firmà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s stock price will react positively to the rights issue announcement and so increase the shareholders dividend to be received. Besides that, shareholders can also learn about perception of potential investor on rights issues through the result of positive or negative stock prices in the market in order to effectively protect their wealth. According to Salamudin et al. (1999), negative stock price reaction was due to the overvalued stock price in the market where the prevailing market stock price is higher than its intrinsic value. When investor think that the firm is overvalued which conveyed a means of issuing rights to raise cheaper funds, they will lower their assessment on market value and then causing price drop. In contrast, the positive stock price reaction was due to the market respond on the rights issue whic h conveyed an anticipated valuable investment opportunities (Cooney and Kalay,1993). Lastly, investor can earn interest from the rights issues by identifying the proper time to earn an abnormal return, whether is the time prior to, at or after the post announcement date. Based on the result found by Shamsher and Annuar (1993), investor can earn abnormal return if they sell share a month before the announcement and buy back the shares 10 days after the announcement in KLSE. The result showed provides investor a guidance to anticipate abnormal return in the future by understanding the stock price circulation in stock market. 1.9The Organization of Study Chapter One discusses about the background of stock price reaction to rights issue announcement in ACE Market and general knowledge in this field. Chapter Two reviews the previous literature review in this field. Chapter Three describes the data and sample used to conduct an empirical testing. Chapter Four discusses the result s and findings of the research and Chapter Five concludes the study.

Suffering in Shakespeares Plays - 1910 Words

Suffering In Shakespeares Plays How does suffering affect ones actions? Do different types of suffering affect one in different ways? This paper seeks to determine how William Shakespeares characters respond to various types of suffering. Suffering can be defined in two ways; physical suffering, in which the character is inflicted with physical pain and trauma, and emotional suffering, where the character suffers an emotional trauma or loss. In The Tempest, the physically traumatized characters, are Trinculo and Stephano. They are chased by dogs but their physical trauma has not induced any sign of remorse or guilt. Ferdinand, on the other hand, is overcome by emotional suffering at the loss of his son. In King†¦show more content†¦King Lear is the epitomy of suffering. His suffering includes a sense of guilt for misusing his past powers. (Bloom, 80). He endures a parents worst nightmare. First, he is outraged by his daughters lack of love for him. Love and be silent (I, i, 69). I am sure my loves more ponderous than my tongue. (King Lear, I, i, 78-79). Because of this, he ends up banishing her from his kingdom and cutting her from the inheritance. He splits the land in two leaving her with nothing. to his dismay, Lear discovers that life with his two other daughters is no joy. He is outraged by their cruel behavior, a Sharp-toothd unkindness (King Lear, II, iv). Lear is thrown out by his two daughters to rage against natures harsh elements. To be thrown from being king of Brittain to a fugitive in the open, pelted by merciless weather, and betrayed by ungrateful daughters is indeed an unpleasant fate. (Bloom, 1). Lear has now completely gone mad from exposure to the storm and the anguish he has suffered at the hands of his daughters. Gloucester must go through intense suffering before he can identify with the deprived. (Bloom, 74). He is convinced that his son is secretly planning to kill him. 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Modern and stylish with colourful patterns Essay Example For Students

Modern and stylish with colourful patterns Essay The costumes were all very well picked out to suit the different characters. Lucys outfit was very modern and stylish with colourful patterns and high heels which suited her quite proud character. Her outfit was also quite tight fitting and provocative. Mac wore a suit which showed his superiority in his gang. The gangs costumes also helped separate their different characters-e.g. Snape wore a black suit with shades, which indicated that he was the cool guy in the gang and another member wore torn jeans and covered his face showing that he was the tough guy- the real gangster amongst the others. The lighting didnt change very much throughout the play- it was a bright flood across the stage and it was switched off only at the end of each scene. The transitions, in my opinion were not very well thought out and too slow which made the play drag. The use of props and furniture was somewhat conservative, where the same furniture on-stage was used for various different tasks and purposes-for example the door frames and chairs acted as part of Mr Phiris office and as the prison cell where Mac was held captive. I think that this was an area that could have been worked on as it didnt help in giving any effect to the play- I feel that the lights could have been dimmed at certain points, perhaps in the transitions, and also that they could have been focused on the areas on stage where the action was taking place, so that it could be easier for the audience to concentrate on that particular area. A good part where the lighting could have been focused on one area was in the beginning where Mr Phiri was talking to the audience- I think it would have been better if the lighting was focused on him while he was speaking, rather than the rest of the stage. The music used was very modern and energetic and really helped to lift the performance. The music was quite lively and fast. One noticeable beat was at the start of the performance where there was an upbeat song with energetic dance moves as all the actors flooded on stage, which made it entertaining to watch. Another part where the music was very effective in engaging the audience was the duologue where Polly was fighting with Lucy (one of Macs other girlfriends). Here the music was very fast again and the singing brought out the different characteristics of the women as Pollys voice was jazzy in style and controlled in contrast to Lucy who had a rougher, more modern voice and style of dance. At parts singers were stood singing backstage or during the transition changes which added a different effect to the play and made it more interesting to follow. However not all of the music was relevant to the scenes which I think could have been thought out more clearly and the lyrics were also hard to listen to at times. Overall, I feel that Makwacha Hip Hopera was a satisfactory play. I think that it needed some development in certain areas, especially in the scene transitions which I thought needed speeding up. Also at times the actors were blocking the projector and it was very clear that the light irritated them. One last point is that the music didnt always start and stop at the right time as in one case the music stopped before the actors had finished their dance but they managed to cover it up and continued dancing. Moreover I felt that the songs placement was poorly thought out- as was their length and this seemed to bore the audience. .u8901544fcd217cf0c833842a2e7afc22 , .u8901544fcd217cf0c833842a2e7afc22 .postImageUrl , .u8901544fcd217cf0c833842a2e7afc22 .centered-text-area { min-height: 80px; position: relative; } .u8901544fcd217cf0c833842a2e7afc22 , .u8901544fcd217cf0c833842a2e7afc22:hover , .u8901544fcd217cf0c833842a2e7afc22:visited , .u8901544fcd217cf0c833842a2e7afc22:active { border:0!important; } .u8901544fcd217cf0c833842a2e7afc22 .clearfix:after { content: ""; display: table; clear: both; } .u8901544fcd217cf0c833842a2e7afc22 { display: block; transition: background-color 250ms; webkit-transition: background-color 250ms; width: 100%; opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #95A5A6; } .u8901544fcd217cf0c833842a2e7afc22:active , .u8901544fcd217cf0c833842a2e7afc22:hover { opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #2C3E50; } .u8901544fcd217cf0c833842a2e7afc22 .centered-text-area { width: 100%; position: relative ; } .u8901544fcd217cf0c833842a2e7afc22 .ctaText { border-bottom: 0 solid #fff; color: #2980B9; font-size: 16px; font-weight: bold; margin: 0; padding: 0; text-decoration: underline; } .u8901544fcd217cf0c833842a2e7afc22 .postTitle { color: #FFFFFF; font-size: 16px; font-weight: 600; margin: 0; padding: 0; width: 100%; } .u8901544fcd217cf0c833842a2e7afc22 .ctaButton { background-color: #7F8C8D!important; color: #2980B9; border: none; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: none; font-size: 14px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 26px; moz-border-radius: 3px; text-align: center; text-decoration: none; text-shadow: none; width: 80px; min-height: 80px; background: url(https://artscolumbia.org/wp-content/plugins/intelly-related-posts/assets/images/simple-arrow.png)no-repeat; position: absolute; right: 0; top: 0; } .u8901544fcd217cf0c833842a2e7afc22:hover .ctaButton { background-color: #34495E!important; } .u8901544fcd217cf0c833842a2e7afc22 .centered-text { display: table; height: 80px; padding-left : 18px; top: 0; } .u8901544fcd217cf0c833842a2e7afc22 .u8901544fcd217cf0c833842a2e7afc22-content { display: table-cell; margin: 0; padding: 0; padding-right: 108px; position: relative; vertical-align: middle; width: 100%; } .u8901544fcd217cf0c833842a2e7afc22:after { content: ""; display: block; clear: both; } READ: Alexander The Great EssayHowever I do have some good opinions of the play- I thought that it was a very enjoyable piece especially as it was based in Malawi and I thought the local references were very clear and amusing. I remember some references being made about how Escom has blackout all day everyday instead, (which was delivered on posters) of their original slogan-Escom, power all day everyday and how they were mocking the fact that the country didnt have petrol or diesel, which are daily issues in our lives expressed in a different , humorous way. All in all with a bit of improvement in the areas mentioned and more practice, I think that this could definitely be a pl ay worth watching.

Mean Creek Movie Essay Example For Students

Mean Creek Movie Essay Describe an important idea in the text. Explain how visual and/or verbal features showed you that this idea was important An important idea in the film Mena Creek, directed by Jacob Aaron Estes in the Loss of innocence/Coming of age because when within the film almost every character where they don’t change a lot and think about it up until George’s death they’re changed a lot and they think about like a mature and adult person of how to treat this new situation in front of them. We can see this in the Aftermath Scene. The verbal and visual features that helped me understand is which is an important idea in the used are tracking, close-up, dialogue and low/high angle. Firstly, the director has used the dialogue technique in this film to show that how the characters are feeling about it. For example we can see that when Rocky tell Sam that â€Å"What are you trying to say, Sam? You have to trust me on this Sam. I’m your brother. † Then Sam tell his brother that â€Å"But I don’t trust you. We can see this that now Sam has loosen the trust on Rocky and they now don’t trust each other which is the huge loss of innocence/coming of age between Sam and Rocky. This was important because it tell us that how people lose trust of each other when they are in this situation in their real life so that characters in the film has also loosen their trust with each other. Secondly, the director has used close-up technique to show us that emotions or feeling of the characters. There are a lot of examples for this but the main two examples for this are first the George’s watch and second Millie stabbing the snail. First example was important because this symbolises us that the time is gonna change and we can also say that the time has stopped. Second example was important because this reflects us that something has been snapped inside herself. This close-up technique was important in the film because this show us that George has died and she thinks that she is a killer and she will be reminded of this in her whole life which was the loss of innocence/coming of age to her. Thirdly, the director has used the low/high angle technique used in this to tell us how scary, powerful or weaker, nicer, horror the person is. We can see this by an example from the film which is a fight between Clyde and Marty with Rocky intervening which show us the moment that how the relationship has been changed between Rocky, Clyde and Marty but mostly about Clyde and Marty. This is a key moment because Clyde was always good with Marty now he is very bad. They are also close together. This was important to the film because it tells us that Clyde is a nice person and he thinks good for other people when coming into the worst situation so like him there are also people in the world who are good but they become bad when coming into this situation. Overall the director has used these three important techniques to tell us about each character feelings and who is the mature person of all. He has also used lots of things which symbolises to us in our day – to – day life’s for example in close – up he has used George’s watch which symbolises us that the time is gonna change or the time has stopped for a minute.

Publishing Guide - Defining the Terms and People Found in Publishing - The Writers For Hire

PUBLISHING GUIDE DEFINING THE TERMS AND PEOPLE FOUND IN PUBLISHING Publishing has a long and romantic history, filled with names and figures that we all know. For example, most aspiring writers can tell you not only who it was that invented the printing press, but also what is often considered to be the first book ever printed on it (if you’re not sure what the answer is, click here). A lot has changed since then. There’s no longer just one man with a printing press in Europe. It’s grown into an industry that’s worth $143 billion (USD). As you can imagine, with that kind of money floating around the industry, there are more than a few more people involved in the process and, best of all, no shortage of acronyms and terms for writers to keep in their heads (heads that are already full to the brim with ideas and books). In order to help new writers cut through the clutter, we’ve put together this handy list of people and terms that are often found in the industry. The People This is a partial list of some of the major players that you’re going encounter as you work your way through the publishing world. These are the folks who help your get your book on the market and make sure that it’s seen by people worldwide (at least that’s what they try to make happen). You will likely encounter a few who aren’t on this list, but these are the main ones. The Publisher This is the person, or company, who publishes your book. They’re the ones who pay you for your work, and put your book on shelves (or amazon, etc.). They employ the teams of people that help you get your book ready for publication, and they handle all the printing. Without a publisher, there would be no publishing industry. Self-publisher The heroic soul who decides they want to do it all themselves. Self-publishers are writers who take on all the responsibilities of publishing a book. They put their own money on the line, arranging printing, editing, d istribution, book tours- anything and everything that is involved with publishing a book. It wasn’t that long ago that self-publishing was a hard road to travel, but in recent years, the rise of things like ebooks have made self-publishing not only easy, but potentially very lucrative (think 50 Shades of Grey). Distributor The person, or company, responsible for shipping books to retailers. They receive the books from the printers and fulfill orders, as needed. In today’s market, distributors can be responsible for the distribution of both physical books to actual bookstores or for the distribution of digital books (a market largely held by Amazon). Agent An agent is a person (or company) whose main goal to is help an author sell their book to a publisher. And because publishing companies will often only work with authors who are represented by agents, they are very frequently the first point of contact for an author once they are ready to try and publish their book. Agents help authors get their books ready for publication, help them refine their pitches, and target the correct publishing houses. It’s not unusual for one writer to work with the same agent for most of their career. Editor Here’s where things can get a little tricky. In most circles, an editor is someone who works on the words. They worry about commas, headings, verb tense, and all that stuff. It’s different in the book world. In the book world, those tasks are largely taken care of by a proofreader (the ones who comb through a manuscript line-by-line after it’s been written to make sure that 99.9999% of typos and errors have been caught). In the publishing world, an editor (or book editor) first decides what books are going to be published (they buy the books) and then they help make them better. Their goal isn’t to change the book that you’ve written, but to help punch it up. They find any plot holes and things that just don’t make sense, they help you realize which characters could need a bit more work and which are fine just the way they are, and sometimes they even help you understand where the soul of your book lies (because it’s easy to lose sight of things like that when you’re so heavily invested in a project). Promoter This is the person who is responsible for promoting your book across all the various channels. These days, more and more of the job of promoting a book falls to the author. Publishing houses often do have promotions departments, but authors are often expected to do a lot of the heavy lifting. If you’re friends with any authors or follow them on social media, you’ve probably noticed that most of them talk about their books, both published and upcoming, pretty regularly in an effort to drives sales. Publishers usually put their marketing and promotion efforts behind a handful of titles each year that they know are going be huge books (like the newest JK Ro wling book or Stephen King’s latest). Printer The person who puts the book on paper. These are the folks with all the printing gear who take the finished manuscript and turn it into the finished product. It wasn’t that long ago that printing was hard to do for someone who wanted to self-publish. You often had to print way more books than you could ever reasonably hope to sell in order to get a decent price on books. However, in the last couple of decades, the rise of things like Print on Demand (see below) companies has made it easier for self-publishers to jump into the game. The Terms and Acronyms Now that you’ve had a chance to process the people in the publishing world, let’s look at the terms and acronyms. Like the list above, these are just some of the terms and acronyms that you’re going to come across. By the end, you should be able to talk to any industry professional without getting completely lost (although there’s always going to be some phrase that they’ve just started using that you’re not going to know. It’s just the way language works). ISBN This stands for International Standard Book Number. It’s the unique 10 digit number that you see on the backs of books. It’s largely used as a way to track books through the sales process. You can use these numbers to learn how many books have been sold, to order books from book sellers, and things like that. ISBNs are typically handled by the publisher, unless you’re going the self-publishing route. These numbers are also usually embedded into the bar code of a book, although they can also be found on the inside cover. POD (Print On Demand) Print on Demand. This a method of printing books as needed. This setup is typically used by self-publishers because it’s cheaper and means you don’t have to have a warehouse full of books lying around. POD is helpful in situations where you’re using online booksellers to move physical copies of your books. Once a book is sold through this channel, it’s printed by the POD company and shipped out to the purchaser. ARC (Advanced Reading Copy) This is a finished copy of a book that is sent out in advance of the publication date, usually for the sake of getting reviews. They are often sent out about three to six months ahead of the publishing date. Sometimes ARCs are totally complete, but often they will lack things like dust covers or proper binding, or will have ARC printed over the cover in an obvious way. Advance A sum of money given to an author before a book is published. This money is often used to help the author have funds to get through the writing phase of the book, as it can often take months of hard work to get a book from the purchase stage to the published stage. Advances are looked at as a loan of sorts and are deducted from royalties (see below) until the advance has been paid out. It’s not unusual for an advance to be paid out in stages, like 1/3 at time of purchase (or signing of the contract), 1/3 when the book is done, and 1/3 when the book is published. Royalties The percentage of each sale that an author receives. Authors receive different percentages depending on what stage of the publishing cycle they’re at. Hardcovers usually start around 10%, for example, while softcover books bring in 8%. Royalties are paid out to authors after they’ve earned back their advances (see above). They’re often paid out on a schedule specific to the publisher (I have one publisher who pays out royalties once a year, and another who pays them out twice a year). Rights (foreign language, movie, etc.) Rights are permissions granted by publishers (or whoever owns a book) to publish and distribute a book, both in different formats and in different countries around the world. Rights allow books to become movies or TV shows, to be published in French, and things like that. Authors receive additional money each time a new set of rights is sold, even if the property is never used for the intended purpose (think books where movie rights have been sold, but a movie never comes out). Book Proposal A proposal is basically a pitch that is sent out to editors or agents, with the intention of selling a book. This is often the first stage of a nonfiction book because nonfiction books take longer to write and research, and it often doesn’t make sense for an author to put the time into something that may never be published. These are often quite detailed and, in some cases, can include sample chapters, full outlines, and even a table of contents. Their goal is to provide whoever is reading it with as much detail about the finished product as possible. Query Letter A query letter is similar to a book proposal, only way less detailed. More often than not, a query letter is a simple, one page letter that briefly outlines the book, the author’s experiences, and any other relevant information that might catch a reader’s attention. Slush Pile The thing most writers dread, the slush pile is where unsolicited submissions go. These submissions usually take the form of book proposals or query letters and come directly from authors themselves. This is the battle ground for new authors where they hope to be noticed in a pile that can often contain somewhere in the neighbourhood of 10,000 other books. This is why it’s important to have a stellar query letter or proposal, because you’re trying to stand out in that very crowded room. Go Forth and Make Words! By no means is this list meant to be a complete list. This is just a starting point for those who are looking to get into the world of publishing. It can be a lot to take in, but that’s true of most industries. Heck, you can’t even fry up a hamburger without learning some industry specific terms, such as Heated Landing Zone, Grill Slip, or HOT (which stands for Handheld Order Taker).

Developing price policy

Developing price policy Introduction Pricing of products and services is of fundamental importance in the four elements of marketing mix that generates profit for business enterprises. According to Boone and Kurtz (2011), the factors that influence the price of commodities and services can be categorized as external and internal.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Developing price policy specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Pricing thus, is more than just simple calculations of the cost of production and setting up a markup (Giddens, Parcell Brees 2005). Consequently, pricing policy becomes a major component of enterprise marketing plan, which is part of the whole business plan (Boone Kurtz 2011). Moreover, pricing policy ultimately affects the other marketing mix elements of the product which in turn, impact on how the product is viewed by consumers and purchase decisions (Giddens, Parcell Brees 2005). Target market segment The target segment is a part of consumers that can be optimally served by the company’s projected and existing capacities at a profit. The introduction of more efficient technologies has enabled construction of lighter, less expensive, and more powerful radio and aircraft systems (Doyle 2002). As a result, there has been a global rise in the hobby of flying RC airplanes and the application of such airplanes in the military and scientific research organizations. The target market for the new RC airplane will be individual users, research stations, governments, and military units. However, it is worth noting that each of the target users mentioned is unique and requires different marketing and pricing strategies that can be adjusted in accordance to prevailing market conditions (Kotler 1997). Channel of distribution The sole objective of every business enterprise is to make profit by selling their commodities and services to consumers or ultimate users. In order for the producer of the commoditie s to achieve this objective, they must ensure that the goods they produce reach the consumer. The goods must follow a defined distribution network to reach the consumers via what is commonly referred to as trade channel or distribution channel (Kotler 1997). In fact, the trade channel acts as the link between the producer and the consumers; therefore, any channel of distribution comprises the producer, middlemen, and final buyers (Anderson James 1990). Selling the new RC airplanes will be done using the indirect method distribution channel; however, caution will be taken to ensure that middlemen are minimized. Minimizing the middlemen (Kotler 2003) is essential in ensuring profit maximization and that consumers are not overcharged since every middleman charges extra profit or commission for the goods they sell.Advertising Looking for essay on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More In fact, according to Anderson and James (1990), goods that are produced in large quantity cannot reach the final users or consumers at the right time and place without the input of middlemen. Consequently, they will be sold via two middlemen as depicted in figure 1.1 below. Fig: 1.1: Distribution Channel for the new RC airplanes Source: (Anderson James 1990) Prior research to adoption of pricing policy According to Aaker (1999), good policies are vital for the attainment of progress in both economic and social spheres. Price policy formulation; thus, is central to success of any business enterprise and more often the quality of price policies formed is depended on the capacity of the marketing team in the business and the strategies employed by the team (Frank 1998; Boone Kurtz 2011). Before making any price policies, it is important for the firm to carry out research on the factors affecting pricing; both internal and external. Furthermore, the pricing policy should compare all the available prici ng options and result in an acceptable price level range for the product (Uva 2001). Anderson and James (1990), note that performing prior research to determine most appropriate pricing strategies is important as the knowledge acquired can be used in assigning the best price markups for the products. To achieve an acceptable pricing policy, it is important for the marketing team to carry out prior research in the following areas;Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Developing price policy specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More on the mix of products they intend to offer in the market, this is important because it limits or broadens the pricing strategies options available for the business to exploit; market research to be able to determine the target market and the best possible pricing goals and strategies for the targeted market demographics; the best method of distribution or channel of distributions of products ultimatel y impacts on the pricing strategies, for example, direct sales grants the producer more control over the product in terms of pricing, or displays as opposed to wholesale; research should be done on the approximate life cycle of each product since the life cycle of the product determines the quantity to produce at a particular time. For example, goods with estimated short life cycles require that they are produced in massive quantities to be able to generate bigger profit margins, while those with estimated long life cycles gives the producer time to attain their pricing objectives; policies such as government regulatory policies that may impose price regulations on your product by limiting the maximum prices that can be charged for the product; finally, the company ought to carry out prior research on the anticipated product demand. For example, projected high demands means that the consumers will highly unlikely be concerned with price of the product thus the producer has more flex ibility in choosing an appropriate pricing strategy (Uva 2001; NetMBA 2005). Pricing objective The pricing objective to be adopted by the company for the new RC airplanes will be quantity maximization since the company’s main mission is to become a leader in terms of market share amongst companies producing RC aircrafts. Consequently, the pricing objective of the company seeks to maximize the number of the new models of RC airplanes sold (Giddens, Parcell Brees 2005). Pricing strategies According to Kotler (2003), several pricing strategies exist for companies to choose from, however, some of these pricing strategies only work well with certain pricing objectives. Uva (2001) advises that a careful selection ought to be done by business managers when choosing a pricing objective as the choice of appropriate pricing strategies depends on the selected pricing objective. Moreover, each pricing objective works well with a particular set of pricing strategies (Figure 2.2). Finall y, it has been noted (Doyle 2000) that different pricing strategies can be successfully applied at different times to fit the changing market strategies, product life cycles, and market conditions. Figure 2.2: Pricing objective and strategies From figure 2.2 above, it can be noted that owing to the pricing objective of the company; quantity maximization, the best marketing strategies would be as follows: (1)Multiple pricing; (2) Good, better, best pricing; (3) Loss leader pricing; (4) penetration pricing; and (5) product bundle pricing (Uva 2001; Doyle 2002). Multiple pricing: aims at luring customers to make large purchases by offering slight discounts to customers who buy goods in large quantities. The prices of single items are slightly higher to those that purchased in bulk (Boone Kurtz 2011). For example, buying one new RC airplane will cost the customer approximately $ 85; the customer will be required to pay $ 165 for two RC airplanes. As a result, the customers will feel that they are getting discount for buying two items since $ 82.5 (165à ·2) is $ 2.5 less than $ 85.Advertising Looking for essay on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More However, $ 82.5 is the price that the company would be charging for each new RC airplane if the company was not employing the multiple pricing strategies. The strategy will be able to generate more profit for the company by increasing the quantity of items sold, as well as through increasing prices for customers who purchase one item. Practically, the strategy penalizes the customer for purchasing one item since the price is typically set higher than it will cost; that is at $ 85 instead of $ 82.5. Good, better, best pricing: this is a pricing strategy in which the price of the same item increases with slight changes that are made to the product, for example, changes in packaging. The price can be offered in a series of three formats with the price of each series rising above the price of the previous series (Doyle 2002). The goods that are priced at ‘better† price and those that are priced at â€Å"best† price require more attention from the producer than those w ithâ€Å"good† price; however, the higher prices charged for them are worth the extra effort (Achrol 1997; Day Liam 1988). For example, the new RC can be categorized into those that are very heavy, slow, and noisy as being â€Å"good† price, while those that are less heavy, fast, and produce relatively low noise as â€Å"better† price and those that are light, faster, and have noise minimization capabilities as being priced at â€Å"best† prices. Loss leader pricing: in this strategy, the customers are enticed into visiting the shop that deals with different product or parts by reducing the price of one item. This is done with the hope that when customers visit the shop to make purchase of the cheaper item they may also buy other items (Alderson 1937). For example, in applying this strategy to the pricing of the new RC airplanes, the company will use other accessories such as the RC airplane battery as the loss leader product, thus customers who come to buy the RC airplane batteries may end up buying other accessories or even purchase a new model of the RC airplane. Penetration pricing: this is a strategy that is employed by business enterprises that want to break into a new market or segment of the market that is not previously served by the business. The main objective of the penetration pricing strategy is to attract and increase the market share of the product (Day Liam 1988). Therefore, applying the penetration pricing strategy requires that the business reduces the prices to a certain minimum in order to attract customers; however, this price must be increased once the management is satisfied that the objective has been attained as this strategy initially reduces profit margins significantly (Urbany 2001). For example, if the market research indicated that the competitors sold their RC aircrafts for $ 83 to $ 99, then the company will have to sell the new RC airplane models for about $ 80 in order to attract customers since there are already several other RC airplane sellers in the market and the company is new. This will be done for six months after which there will be a price review upwards as the price of $ 80 covers the production cost but it is the lowest of the market range. This pricing strategy achieves the objective of the quantity maximization by increasing number of items sold at low prices. At the same, the strategy can help in revenue maximization that results from the large numbers of purchases made (Whitefield, 1994). Product bundle pricing: this pricing strategy is applied when the producer wants to get rid of overstock or sell complementary products. The products are bundled together and the customer who buys the new item can get an older or complimentary good for less (Day Liam 1988; Doyle 2002). In respect to the new RC airplane models, the company may decide to sell the older versions or accessories that are compatible with the new models in bundles at lower prices. Product bundlin g will help the company achieve its objective by making it possible to sell items that might have not been sold. Procedure for price calculation In calculating the unit cost of the new RC airplane models, the company will apply the Conjoint Analysis (Curry 1996), which is a marketing research tool that is used to determine attributes the new product and how the new features affect the price of the new product. The choice to use conjoint analysis is supported by the fact that it is flexible and less expensive to carry out than concept testing (Trout 1998; Nagle Holden 2001; Rhim Cooper 2005). Suppose the company intended to produce sets of new RC airplanes, from the users’ perspective and experience, the new sets will be affected by some important product features, for example, speed, average plane life, and price. Table 1: Attributes of new RC airplane Average Speed Average plane life Price 80Km/hr 60 falls $ 82.5 70Km/hr 50 falls $ 85.0 60Km/hr 35 falls $ 90.0 From table 1, it clear that the markets â€Å"ideal† RC airplane is the one that has a speed of 80Km/hr, an average life of 60 falls, and is less expensive costing $ 82.5. However, from a manufacturing perspective the â€Å"ideal† new RC airplane is that which has a speed of 60Km/hr, has shorter life cycle of 35 falls, and cost more at $ 90 assuming that it cost less to manufacture RC airplanes that are slow and have shorter life cycles. Ranking the features conjointly between two buyers Table 2: Buyer 1 Average RC airplane life 60 falls 50 falls 35 falls Average Maximum Speed 80Km/hr 1 3 6 70Km/hr 2 5 8 60Km/hr 4 7 9 Table 3: Buyer 2 Average RC airplane life 60 falls 50 falls 35 falls Average Maximum Speed 80Km/hr 1 2 4 70Km/hr 3 5 6 60Km/hr 7 8 9 From table 2 and 3 the buyers tend to agree on the least preferred feature of the plane, but, buyer one tends to tradeoff average speed to ball life while buyer two makes an opposite tradeoff. Next is to figure out a set of values that when summed up produces buyer one’s rank as shown in table 3. Table 3: Set of values that produce buyer’s preferences Average RC airplane life 60 falls (90) 50 falls (50) 35 falls (0) Average Maximum Speed 80Km/hr (60) 1(150) 3(110) 6(60) 70Km/hr (30) 2(120) 5(80) 8(30) 60Km/hr(0) 4(90) 7(50) 9(0) Suppose table 4 represents the tradeoffs buyer one buyer one is willing to make between price and average airplane life: Table 4a Average RC airplane life 60 falls 50 falls 35 falls Price $ 82.5 1 4 7 $ 85 2 5 8 $ 90 3 6 9 Table 4b Average RC airplane life 60 falls (90) 50 falls (50) 35 falls (0) Price $ 82.5 (10) 1(100) 4(60) 7(10) $ 85 (5) 2(95) 5(55) 8(5) $ 90 (0) 3(90) 6(50) 9(0) From the analysis the company then ends up with a set of complete values known as utilities that capture buyer 1’s tradeoffs a shown in table five below. Table 5: Buyer 1 tradeoffs Average Maximum Speed Average RC airplane life Price 80Km/hr 60 60 falls 90 $ 82.5 10 70Km/hr 30 50 falls 50 $ 85 5 60Km/hr 0 35 falls 0 $ 90 0 The company will use the table above in calculating the price of the RC airplane to produce as follows: suppose the company intends to produce two models of RC airplane as show in table 6. Table 6 Speed RC airplane Long life RC airplane Speed 80Km/hr 70Km/hr Life cycle 50 falls 60 falls Price $ 85 $ 90 Then, the values for buyer one in table 5 when summed up provides the estimate of the buyer’s preferences as shown below in table 7. Table 7 Speed RC airplane Long life RC airplane Speed 80Km/hr 60 70Km/hr 30 Life cycle 50 falls 50 60 falls 90 Price $ 85 5 $ 90 0 Total utility 115 120 From table 7, it can be concluded that the customer is likely to prefer long life RC airplane over the faster model because it has the highest amount of utility. The company should produce life RC airplanes and sell them at about $ 90 per item. Due to multitude and complexity of factors involved in determining the price of products, assembling relevant information on the market conditions will determine the long term price changes. However, the short term price policies are tactical in nature as they endeavor to realize short term business objectives, and will be employed in relation to the goal they are intended to achieve. List of References Aaker, D A 1999, Managing brand equity: capitalizing on the value of a brand name, The Free Press, New York. Achrol, RS 1997, â€Å"Changes in the theory of inter-organizational relations in marketing: toward a network paradigm†, Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, vol. 25 no. 1, pp. 56-71. Alderson, W 1937, â€Å"A Marketing view of competition†, Journal of Marketing, vol.1, pp.189-190 Anderson, J C James, A N 1990, â€Å"A Model of distributor firm and manufacturer firm working partnerships†, Journal of Marketing, vol.54, pp. 42-58. Boone , LE Kurtz DL 2011, Contemporary marketing, Cengage Learning, Belmont CA Curry J 1996, Understanding conjoint analysis in 15 minutes: Quirk’s Marketing Research Review, Sawtooth Technologies, Inc. Day, G S Liam F 1988, â€Å"Valuing market strategies†, Journal of Marketing, vol.2, pp. 45-57 Doyle, P 2000, Value based marketing: marketing strategies for corporate growth and shareholder value, Wiley, Chichester. Doyle, P 2002, Marketing management strategy, Prentice Hall, Harlow Frank, G 1998, Cost of production versus cost of production, University of Wisconsin Press, Madison. Giddens, NJ, Parcell, Brees M 2005, Selecting an appropriate pricing strategy, viewed on https://www.extension.iastate.edu/agdm/ Kotler, P 1997, Marketing management: analysis, planning, implementation and control, Prentice-Hall, Englewood Cliffs, NJ. Kotler, P 2003, Marketing management, Prentice Hall, Upper Saddle River, NJ Nagle, T Holden, R 2001, The strategy and tactics of pricing, Prenti ce Hall, Upper Saddle River, NJ. NetMBA 2005, Pricing strategy, viewed on netmba.com/marketing/pricing/ Rhim, H Cooper, LG 2005, â€Å"Assessing potential threats to incumbent brands: new product positioning under price competition in a multi segmented markets,† International Journal of Research in Marketing, vol. 22, no. 2, pp.159-182. Trout, J 1998, â€Å"Prices: simple guidelines to get them right,† Journal of Business Strategy, vol. 22, pp. 13-16. Urbany, JE 2001, â€Å"Are your prices too low?† Harvard Business Review, vol. 79, no. 9, pp. 26-28. Uva, W L 2001, Smart pricing strategies, Department of Applied Economics and Management, Cornell University, Ithaca. Whitefield, J 1994, Conflicts in construction: Avoiding, managing, resolving, MacMillan, New York.

Metabolic Syndrome and Diabetes Mellitus Case Study

Metabolic Syndrome and Diabetes Mellitus - Case Study Example In early diabetes mellitus, it has been stated that the ability of muscles to take up and utilize glucose are decreased by more than 50 percent. A major effect of glucagon occurs next in the pathology when it stimulates the release of excessive glucose from the live. Also, it is known that fat tissues in the body are resistant to the effects of insulin and they release free fatty acids which are a major contributor in the development of insulin resistant (Byrne, 2011). The release of free fatty acids from dysfunctional fat cells leads to increased insulin resistance. Adipocytes also release certain chemical mediator which act on the pancreatic beta cells and deteriorate their function. On the other hand it is a well-known fact that insulin has a lipolytic effect i.e. it causes breakdown of additional fatty tissues in the body and avoids accumulation of fat in the body. In type 2 diabetes mellitus patients who are already obese, insulin resistance develops over time and leads to deterioration of the function of beta cells of pancreas. Free fatty acids produced by adipocytes are transferred to the liver where they act on liver cells and inhibit the formation of glycogen from glucose. This results in the release of high levels of glucose from the liver. Early stages of the disease see high levels of insulin and high levels of blood glucose at the same time however the with decreased functional capacity of beta cells and their destruction in the course of the disease, blood levels of insulin decrease. This decrease in the levels of insulin leads to the accumulation of fat in the body and causes abdominal obesity (Byrne, 2011). Microvascular changes are of profound importance in type 2 diabetes mellitus since they can lead to fatal consequences. One of the major causes behind these microvascular changes is continuous hypertension in type 2 diabetes. Hypertension is caused by loss of the ability of

Marketing Plan - IPhone 5 Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Marketing Plan - IPhone 5 - Case Study Example The iPhone is increasing its market share due to the extreme loyalty of the existing Apple customers as well as the branding of the product; so far their marketing strategy has been immaculate. After going on sale in 2007, the Iphone has not looked back. The growth reasonably slow in the start, has increased dramatically over the years as improved versions are being introduced almost annually to quench the thirst of technology hungry customers looking for a product full of style. The Iphone 5 that will be launches through Kwantlen’s Apple Store will have pre-loaded applications and software that will help students and teachers at the campus to interact better and with ease. The biggest competition of Iphone 5 is the Blackberry Torch and Motorola’s Razor, as they all boast to be tech-savvy and sleek in style. Existing users of the Apple products, however, are also part of the target market for the newer version. Brand perception and brand loyalty has been the biggest str ength of Apple over the past half decade and Apple continues to cash in on this intangible asset that is only increasing in quantity over time. However, weaknesses include the rumours of a faulty reception and battery issues as have been claimed by some users. Another issue is the exclusive nature of iTunes. Apple can capitalize on its strength of branding and continue to offer products in different categories. They have no imminent threats as long as they keep on top to technology of their competition. The launch price of the product will be higher than the retail price of the current phone owing to the originality of the product as well as the added features to this specific model. The availability of these pre-loaded phones will be for the students enrolled in Kwantlen’s campuses only, increasing originality, and decreasing wait times. The basic product placement would be done through the distribution of the phone to the professors at a discounted price so that the usage o f the product by the professor directly increases product penetration to the 9000 students studying in all the campuses. Iphone 5: The fifth generation Iphone is expected to be launched soon. Iphone 4 was the 4th generation of iphones released for the public. Considerably different in its looks and style from its predecessor, it was an instant hit. However, there are certain features that are still wanted by its die hard consumers that are now expected to be released in Iphone 5. There are a number of changes that are expected in the newer version of the product. Rumours are already flying that the latest generation phone is already in production and trails are being conducted as this report is being formatted. The faithful Apple customers are looking forward to this release like anything; Iphone 4 was considered a huge success as it is different and advanced than its predecessor. However, there were glitches related to reception and hopefully this will be fixed in the new phone. Wi th the help of the USB connection, it will be easier to transfer files. The Iphone is user friendly and will have applications that will help increase student-teacher communication and acceptability at the academic area. The touch screen is patented and is the best in its smart phones category. Therefore, the preloaded academic material and applications will also help improve student-teacher acceptability.

Building Accommodation for Horses, Sheep and Laying Hens Essay

Building Accommodation for Horses, Sheep and Laying Hens - Essay Example It is a vital skill for farmers and, in some countries, a form of art. Other countries have strict laws on the qualifications needed to treat animals and ensure that scientific methods are used to care for them. The science of animal husbandry, called animal science teaches us to care for the animals in relationship of their nutrition, habitation and reproductive physiology. Historically, certain sub-professions within the field of animal husbandry are specifically named according to the animals that are cared for. The common features of these animals are measured from their utility point of view. Horses are mainly used for aristocratic sports in modern times. Sheep cater the need of our clothing as well as meat and indigenous milk. Similarly domestic; no mechanized hens give us natural egg and meat. They all supply chemical free natural manure to grow vegetation when reared in a single sight. They need enough air through ventilation, adequate food management, water and other medical care in the farm. Frequent grazing in the wilder pesture land for both horses and the sheep yield natural ambience of their development each horse need at least ten by two metre space for their housing with enclosed food stock. A domestic hen needs minimum of two square feet area with hey ricks for living and similar area for laying eggs and hatching. They need to be taken care from reptiles and cats through adequate fencing. An Ideal site of accommodation of Horses, sheep and Hens surrounded by open areas Partitioned storied baskets for hens to live in The half walled with light grilled airy home of the 500 laying hens in the common nestle Stable of 50 horses in individual rooms of half walled accommodation with separate doors for each through the out side walls There are contrasting views on the ethical aspects of breeding animals in captivity, with one debate being in relation to the merits of allowing animals to live in natural conditions reasonably close to those of their wild ancestors, compared to the view that considers natural pressures and stresses upon wild animals vindication for captive breeding. The production of livestock industry has been practiced for centuries but is controlled by legislation today. Animal rights groups are playing vital role in the protection, welfare and conservation of the ever needed friends of humans HORSE BREEDING Horse breeding refers to reproduction in horses and particularly the human-directed process of planned mating of animals. While feral and wild horses breed successfully without human assistance, it can be beneficial to domesticated horses. Humans can increase the chances of conception, a successful pregnancy, and successful foaling. The male parent of a horse, a stallion, is commonly known as the sire and the female parent, the mare is called the dame. Both are genetically important, as each parent provides 50% of the genetic makeup of the ensuing offspring, called a foal. The word "colt" refers to a young male horse only; "filly" is a young female. Though many amateur horse owners may simply breed a family mare to a local stallion in order to produce a companion animal, most professional

Social Media and Young Adolescents

Social Media and Young Adolescents As technological innovations continue to expand, access to devices that connect one to social media have become more readily available to the public. A study conducted by Radesky et al. (2016) about the use of mobile technology among children found that mobile device usage by young children, even among those from disadvantaged backgrounds, continues to increase rapidly (p.504). The increasing usage of social media networks is strongly affecting the social development of young adolescents. The effects social media is having on young adolescents is can be positive or negative depending on how the child is being exposed to it. For instance, social media positively affects adolescents by enabling them to build stronger social connections with their peers as they are able to easily stay connected to them. In contrast, these connections can also have a negative effect on the social development of young adolescents if they are victims of bullying or other damaging relationships because thei r abuser can easily remain connected to them. In addition, the use of social media among young adolescents will also have an impact on their mental health as they can be exposed to unrealistic ideals of body image which can affect their self-esteem and have long term effect on their social development. It is highly important for the effects of social media usage on the social development of young adolescents to be studied because there can be many long-term effects if this milestone is not met. It is the job of professionals in the early childhood field alongside parents to assure they are educated in the matter and give the children the tools to surpass each developmental stage. One of the many benefits of the advances technology has made is the way in which people can remain connected and easily reached throughout the day. This indicates that young adults are able to remain connected to their friends outside of school hours, which aids their social development. According to Minna Ruckenstein (2013), mobile phones, game consoles, and computers are an essential part of the sociality between children in increasingly diverse ways (p.476). By having access to devices in which social interactions can occur outside of a school setting, children and young adolescents are practicing social skills on a regular basis. In addition, a study conducted by Sarah Wilson (2016) indicated that social media usage was helping children and adolescents stay connected to people in many ways. For instance, not only were they able to maintain relationships with peers but they were also able to remain in contact with long-distance friendships and find long-lost friends and family thr ough social media sources. Furthermore, social media is being used as a topic of communication among children. More specifically, meanings from home (and many other places) are carried to the playground, and in the social context of playing with media texts, children participate in social processes of meaning-making and identification (Willett, 2015, p.411). This indicates that media is being used as a form of socialization among children, therefore, if fostered away from the use of social media, some children could potentially risk the inability to build strong relationships with their peers. It is clear that when it comes to the social development of young adolescents, social media networks are an essential part of communicating and building relationships with one another. In contrast, although the use of social media networks has positive effects on the social development of young adolescents, there are also dangers that arise from using it. For example, if children are being victims of bullying, having access to social media can cause the aggressors to have another source at which to attack. Research on bullying and social media usage among children has found that online bullying, though sometimes anonymous, is typically done by peers whom know the victim personally. (Canty, Stubbe, Steers, Collings, 2016, p.52). This would mean that these victims would not be able to escape the bullying, it would follow them to their homes. In addition, the study found that children and young people recognise a greater likelihood of doing or saying something they would not if it were face-to-face (Canty et al., 2016, p.53). To further explain, children may feel more inclined to act a certain way if they are behind a screen because it is not as intimidating as in pe rson, which can result in a higher risk for online bullying and thus be detrimental to the social development of the victim. Another danger with young adolescents using social media is that their use may be uncensored and parents cannot always control what their children are doing or whom they are interacting with. For instance, children could be exposed to communicating with complete strangers they have never met, which could end up being predators. A study conducted by Elizabeth Daniels and Eileen Zurbriggen (2016), explored the dangers with teen sexuality and social media use. They found that young adolescents are using social media as ways in which they can post provocative images to capture the attention of their peers and attain social acceptance (p.938). The problem with this is that social media is being used as a way to attract attention but in doing that, everyone on the internet is having access to these inappropriate photographs of young adolescents, whom are underage and with a possible lack of understanding of the dangers that may come with it. This may result in a negative form of social dev elopment because they are growing up and engage in provocative content that may be above their developmental age. Apart from the positive and negative effects on the social development of young adolescents when using social media, there are also factors that may affect their mental health in connection to their social development. For instance, social media can become addictive and impede children from face to face interactions or in other cases more serious factors can occur such as self esteem problems and depression. Studies have shown that social media addictions are very real and can cause a lot of problems for youth in and outside of school because there is a lack of attention span and face to face communication with peers (Bà ¡nyai et al., 2017, p. 2). An addiction is a mental health problem that could potentially cause a lot of long term problems if it goes unresolved. These children could end up isolated from their peers and eventually struggle graduating from school or finding a job. Furthermore, the constant use of social media could affect at-risk children in many ways when it comes to self esteem. This is because of the pressures of being socially accepted by peers, as well as the pressure to look a certain way that is perceived by the media. Some of these negative aspects to the mental health of young adolescents include increased risk-taking behaviours, cyberbullying, depression, exclusion of minority groups and negative influences on health and wellbeing, namely reduced self-image and self-esteem (Richards, Caldwell, Go Caldwell, 2015, p.1154). This can affect the social development of children and young adolescents because not only are they dealing with the changes of transitioning from a child to a teenager but they now have to struggle with a mental health problem, which can result in loss of friendships and interest in activities they previously enjoyed. As an early childhood professional, it is highly important to be informed about the issues surrounding social media and young adolescents. With the up rise in technology and social media usage within schools, one needs to understand all aspects of the effect it has on the social development of children and young adolescents because if ignored there can be detrimental effects. As an educator, one needs to make choices on how to deal with the media students are using and in which ways to help them meet their full potential within social development, therefore it is very important to know the positives and negatives of social media usage. It is important to note that steps can be taken by parents, professionals and creators of media sites in order to prevent some of these issues. For instance, some of the social media risks for children can be minimised by adding in safety features (Richards, Caldwell, Go Caldwell, 2015, p.1154). If features are added to make sites safe, children will still be able to use them and interact with peers but in a way which inhibits access to inappropriate content or interactions with people they have never met before. In addition, there is a tool called the Bergen Social Media Addiction Scale, which is used to assess whether a child has an addiction to social media or not. This could be used to test children whom one thinks could be having a problem with a social media addiction and thus develop a treatment to help the child early on (Bà ¡nyai et al., 2017, p. 10). Lastly, it is advised for educators to teach children and youth about social media in school so that they are prepared for the things they may encounter while connected to the online world. Daniels and Zurbriggem (2016) posited that media literacy curricula that address social media specifically are important given the almost whole scale adoption of social media by young people and the electronic footprint using it entails (p.960).Teaching children about social media could highly aid in fostering a safe social development and prevent some of the negative outcomes. In conclusion, social media usage can affect the social development of young adolescents in many ways. There are positive outcomes to using social media such as better connectivity to peers and social acceptance as one is able to interact with peers outside of the school setting. To contrast, there are also negative outcomes such as increased forms of bullying that carry on from the school to the home, and risks of meeting strangers or being exposed to content that is not age appropriate. Lastly, there can be many detrimental factors to social development when it comes to mental health. Addiction to social media has been reported among youth as well as issues such as self esteem, which can result in young adolescents forming negative relationships with peers and having long term problems in and outside of the online world. Early childhood professionals, parents, and community members should realized the importance of this growing issue and aid young adolescents with social media usage. Social media sites should be made safe with restrictions for people under a certain age, tests should be conducted to help children battle social media addictions, and education on social media should be taught in school. These methods could aid in helping children have a safe social development and grow to be healthy adults. Overall, social media should be used among young adolescents with a great deal of supervision and a high level of education about the dangers of social media usage should be given, especially in a time where social media is easily accessed. References Bà ¡nyai, F., Zsila, à ., Kirà ¡ly, O., Maraz, A., Elekes, Z., Griffiths, M. D., Demetrovics, Z. (2017). Problematic Social Media Use: Results from a Large-Scale Nationally Representative Adolescent Sample. Plos ONE, 12(1), 1-13. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0169839 Canty, J., Stubbe, M., Steers, D., Collings, S. (2016). The Trouble with Bullying Deconstructing the Conventional Definition of Bullying for a Child-centred Investigation into Childrens Use of Social Media. Children Society, 30(1), 48-58. doi:10.1111/chso.12103 Daniels, E., Zurbriggen, E. (2016). Its Not the Right Way to Do Stuff on Facebook: An Investigation of Adolescent Girls and Young Womens attitudes Toward Sexualized Photos on Social Media. Sexuality Culture, 20(4), 936-964. doi:10.1007/s12119-016- 9367-9 Radesky, J. S., Eisenberg, S., Kistin, C. J., Gross, J., Block, G., Zuckerman, B., Silverstein, M. (2016). Overstimulated Consumers or Next-Generation Learners? Parent Tensions About Child Mobile Technology Use. Annals of Family Medicine, 14(6), 503-508. Richards, D., Caldwell, P. H., Go, H., Caldwell, P. Y. (2015). Impact of social media on the health of children and young people. Journal Of Paediatrics Child Health, 51(12), 1152-1157. doi:10.1111/jpc.13023 Ruckenstein, M. (2013). Spatial extensions of childhood: from toy worlds to online communities. Childrens Geographies, 11(4), 476-489. doi:10.1080/14733285.2013.812309 Willett, R. (2015). Childrens Media-referenced Games: The Lived Culture of Consumer on a School Playground. Children Society, 29(5), 410-420. doi:10.1111/chso.12067 Wilson, S. (2016). Digital technologies, children and young peoples relationships and self- care. Childrens Geographies, 14(3), 282-294. doi:10.1080/14733285.2015.1040726

Patriotism :: Essays Papers

Patriotism An egotist, according to the American Heritage Dictionary, is one devoted to his or her own interests and advancement. Everyone is an egotist in one way or another. Even when a person commits the most selfless acts of altruism, the act usually benefits the person in one way or another. Humanity is not, by nature, altruistic; humanity is, by nature, egocentric. This is evident in Yukio Mishima's "Patriotism" with the main characters, Reiko and Shinji. People are egotistical in the choices they often make: choosing friendship over patriotism, choosing to trust a spouse, and choosing one's personal freedom. The patriotism one feels for his or her own country is not as strong as the bonds of friendship. A country provides safety and a sense of belonging; however, in times of war this is all shattered. Shinji's colleagues are among the insurgents. The war has, no doubt, caused these men to resort to extreme measures. Living in a country that can no longer provide the safety and sense of belonging that these men seek, they turn to each other. Friends provide the safety and belonging even in times of war. People betray their country in their everyday actions, they deceive their employer, they lie to others, they cheat, and steal; but, one always thinks twice before betraying the trust of a friend. Shinji and Reiko remain loyal to what is important, their friends. Not only do Shinji and Reiko choose their friends over their country, they also find happiness in choosing each other rather than continuing in a world in which the two could not be together. This perfect union between the two illustrates something people search for everyday. Everyone is looking for his or her own Shinji or Reiko. This need to find a "soul mate" has spawned books, movies, songs, and plays. The "boy meets girl" scenario is a part of everyone's life. In "Patriotism", boy did meet girl, and this is a part of what makes this story universally appealing. People simply want someone with whom to share there lives.

Parking management system Essay

Globalization of the world’s industrial economies greatly enhances the value information to the ï ¬ rm and offers new opportunities to businesses. Today,information systems provide the communication and analytic power that ï ¬ rms need for conducting trade and managing businesses on a global scale. According to Kenneth and Jane (1998) [11], new kinds of knowledge and information-intense organizations have emerged that are devoted entirely to the production,processing,and distribution of information. In knowledge-and information-based economy,information technology and systems take on great importance. Knowledge-based products and services of great economic value such as credit cards,overnight package delivery,worldwide package delivery and worldwide reservation systems are based on new information technologies. Information technology constitutes more than 70 percent of the invested capital in service industries such as ï ¬ nance,insurance,and real estate. Across all industries,information and the technology that delivers it have become critical and strategic assets for the business ï ¬ rms and their managers. Information systems are needed to optimize the ï ¬â€šow of information and knowledge within the organization and to help management maximize the ï ¬ rm’s knowledge resources.Because the productivity of employees will depend on the quality of the systems serving them,management decisions about information technology are critically important to the prosperity and survival of a ï ¬ rm. Public utilities need a parking infrastructure that can function efï ¬ ciently and be integrated with the other urban city utilities. Economic development sees parking as a tool to support current economic activity and as incentive to attract new businesses. Safety and security departments see parking and its prerequisite enforcement as, just that, a requirement, albeit it is a low priority requirement that can divert that department from its higher priority function. Many parking facilities in Uganda are not effectively managed,take an example of the parking at Mulago Hospital were parking spaces are sufï ¬ cient to cater for the motorists that visit the hospital at a given time,but because of haphazard method of parking adopted by motorists that park according to convenience rather than utilizing bays systematically. This has caused jams at busy spots of the hospital leaving other parking spaces free.This calls for a Parking Management System that can be used assign bays to the motorists in a systematic and consistent manner so as to avoid trafï ¬ c jams at busy spots. The inability of motorists to identify parking bays at a speciï ¬ c facility in the shortest time possible would, signiï ¬ cantly, contribute to fatigue in operating the vehicle. Moreover, some motorists that fail to ï ¬ nd parking space tend to park vehicles illegally on shoulders or pavements which would likely result in unsafe conditions to highway trafï ¬ c, such as: †¢ Limiting the ability of parked vehicles to accelerate safely into trafï ¬ c steam. †¢ Conï ¬â€šicts between exiting and parked vehicles. †¢ Restriction of sign distance. †¢ Obstacles in clear recovery zone for errant vehicles. According to Trombly, (2003) [12], there is an existing phenomenon that truck drivers tend to use speciï ¬ c truck stops or rest areas along a speciï ¬ c route. It was found in Maryland that some drivers would give up seeking parking availability further and park on ramps and shoulders even when there are parking spaces available nearby . Thus,sometimes full occupancy exists at some locations, while parking spaces at other locations may not be fully utilized due to the unawareness of parking availabilities. Information technologies have been introduced into vehicles parking management system for decades. Providing real-time or near real-time parking guidance information to drivers is one important aspect and has emerged for more than twenty years. The general concept of this kind of system consists of mainly these components. Firstly, parking management centers collect parking arrival data by using sensors or detectors. Secondly, parking data collected is processed into parking availability information, and thirdly, this information is disseminated via all kinds of information media, such as radio, message signs, telephone and so on. Under the guidance of this information, drivers are supposed to reduce on-road searching time for parking spaces, which can consequently release the trafï ¬ c congestion during peak hours. Nowadays, parking information and guidance systems have been put into practice in tens of cities or airports in Europe, America, and Japan. However, very limited practice on parking information systems speciï ¬ cally for trucks on interstate highways have been put so far. In some states in US, advisory parking information 3 has been provided to truck drivers on signs along interstate highways, but currently there are few systematic descriptions on the implementation of this system. Garden City is one of the biggest shopping malls in Kampala City,located along Yusuf Lule Road. It has become a popular shopping anchor in Uganda with numerous number of shops dealing in a variety of goods. These range from home-use products to recreation facilities available at the mall. The Shopping complex was designed in such a way that it can accommodate parking for the clientele’s motor-vehicles.There are two levels of parking. Level I parking is on ï ¬â€šoor one of the shopping mall with a capacity of 110 motor vehicles whereas Level II parking is at the basement stretching to the complex’s yard has a capacity 240 motor-vehicles. The parking bays are clearly marked and can accommodate up to 350 motor-vehicles on a busy working day. The entire complex is secured with a wall fence and access to the shopping mall is through one entrance for motor-vehicles coming in and at the same time acts as an exit for motorists that are leaving the premises. At the moment,no charges are levied to the motorists that occupy the parking zones,this was identiï ¬ ed by the writer as good source of revenue for the owners of the shopping mall by charging a fee for all the motorists that utilize the parking bays. The kinds of systems built today are very important for the overall performance of the organization,especially in today’s highly globalized economy.Information systems are driving both daily operations and organizational strategy. Powerful computers,software,and networks have helped organizations become more ï ¬â€šexible,eliminate layers of management,separate work from location,and restructure work ï ¬â€šows,giving new powers both to line workers and management. The Internet and other networks have redeï ¬ ned organization boundaries,opening new opportunities for electronic markets and electronic commerce. To maximize the advantages of information technology,there is a much greater need to plan for the overall information architecture of the organization. 1.2 Statement of the problem There is no systematic method for the allocation of parking bays and management lacks coordinated and centralized information for the effective management and control of the parking facility. 1.3 Objectives 1.3.1 General Objective The goal of this research is to develop a Parking Management System for Garden City Complex which will manage the parking facility more efï ¬ ciently.The management system will involve the development and application of a variety of advanced technology and automated control strategies to achieve signiï ¬ cant parking improvements resulting in maximum utilization of the available parking areas. 1.3.2 The speciï ¬ c objectives include: 1. Optimizing use of limited parking spaces to ensure that the motorists are assigned bays in the shortest time possible. 2. Revenue generation and accountability, management will be in position to determine revenue realized from motorists utilizing the parking bays by querying the system. 3. Customer satisfaction: Motorists will be alloted parking bays systematically by the parking management system, this will ease on the congestion brought about by motorists scrambling for speciï ¬ c parking bays for convenience. 1.4 Scope The project will realize its achievements based on the parking management of garden city complex. The scope of this study is a short term project level,therefore it weights towards getting a system fully implemented. 1.5 Justiï ¬ cation Findings of the study will be useful in the efï ¬ cient utilization of limited available Parking space supply at Garden City Complex and other institutions within the city . The ï ¬ ndings will also help Kampala City Council (KCC)in formulating policies with regard to parking control and management for shopping malls,for example making it obligatory for all those intending to put up structures in the city to make provisions for parking in the basements. This proposal suggests a parking information system that will serve the customer and the management of parking at the Shopping mall. Parking services will enable the customer to locate available parking,get directions,and make payment. CHAPTER TWO 2 LITERATURE REVIEW An extensive review of the literature related to parking systems was conducted by the researcher. The review seeks to survey available parking management systems and to understand their potential. The types of technologies included in th review are Parking Guidance Information (PGI), transit based information,smart payment systems, and e-parking. This section documents the major ï ¬ nding of the literature review. 2.1 The need for a Parking Management System According to Caroline,Rodier and Amanda (2004)[5],Early examples of smart parking management were Parking Guidance Information (PGI) systems that attempt to minimize parking search trafï ¬ c in large parking facilities and central cities by dynamically monitoring available parking,and directing motorists with Changeable Message Signs (CMS). The ï ¬ rst Parking Guidance Information (PGI) systems were installed in Achen,Germany,in the early 1970s. It is now estimated that more than 100 parking guidance information systems have been installed in cities throughout the world with the greatest concentration in Europe and Japan. In the United States,city center Parking Guidance Information (PGI) systems exist in St. Paul,Minnesota,and Pittsburgh,Pennsylvania. Large airport parking garage PGI systems have been installed in: Baltimore,Maryland; Houston,Texas; Orlando,Florida; and Minneapolis/St. Paul,Minnesota. Empirical and simulation studies of selected systems indicate that awareness and understanding of PGI signs can be relatively high,but in order to be effective,messages must display accurate information that meets travelers needs . Interestingly,visitors are more likely than resident commuters to use city center Parking Guidance Information (PGI) systems. Parking Guidance Information (PGI) systems were found to reduce parking facility queue lengths; however,system-wide reductions in travel time and vehicle travel,and economic beneï ¬ ts may be relatively small. Uganda as a developing country has not yet embraced such systems in its capital’s Central Business District (CBD),however the need for such systems is increasingly becoming inevitable because the demand for parking bays has tremendously shot up surpassing the supply especially at busy shopping malls. The only way the limited parking bays can be put to effective use is by employing a parking management system. According to Chopper (2005) [6],Parking in the San Diego Gaslamp Quarter is a very stressful activity for visitors. Visitors must circulate through the Gaslamp Quarter searching for parking on the street curb,in ï ¬â€šat lots and parking structures. The circulating trafï ¬ c is a signiï ¬ cant nuisance to foot trafï ¬ c,contributes air and noise pollution and adds to already congested trafï ¬ c ï ¬â€šow. Fundamentally,studies have shown that there is a sufï ¬ cient number of parking spaces,but the drivers spend a considerable amount of time searching for an empty spot. Existing parking control is serving the enforcement function,but provides little service to the customer. According to Axhausen and Polak (1995)[2],Building upon the objectives of Parking Guidance Information (PGI) systems,transit-based smart parking systems seek to increase transit use and revenues,reduce vehicle travel,lower fuel use,and reduce air pollution. These systems provide motorists with information via Changeable Message Signs (CMS) about spaces in park and ride lots,transit schedules and downstream trafï ¬ c conditions. The literature suggests that parking shortages at suburban rail stations may signiï ¬ cantly constrain transit ridership,thus more effective use of station parking may increase transit use and revenues . In addition, motorists may respond to pre-trip and en-route information on parking availability at transit stations by increasing their use of transit . Finally,regular commuters are more responsive to information about parking in conjunction with transit than more basic Parking Guidance Information (PGI) systems,because this information may be essential to catching a train during peak hours . Transit-based systems are concentrated in Europe and Japan however,at least two have been initiated in the United States in conjunction with Chicagos Metra System and San Joses Valley Transit Authority. Trafï ¬ c congestion is a problem that appears to be increasing in a worldwide context. In recent years considerable effort has been paid to the investigation of methods to reduce such congestion and the accidents and hazards that are usually associated with it. Collectively these efforts come under the aegis of Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS). A critical part of Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS) are the Advanced Traveler Information Systems (ATIS). Essentially these consist of in-vehicle information and guidance systems which help the driver to select routes which will reduce congestion,to ï ¬ nd parking in areas where it is sparse,and to facilitate rescheduling of activities when congestion makes this a feasible alternative. It is argued that such assistive information will beneï ¬ t individual drivers in terms of helping to achieve their scheduled behaviors and activities as well as beneï ¬ ting the system by improving trafï ¬ c ï ¬â€šow. Axhausen (1994) [2] carried out three waves of surveys (one before wave and two after waves) to compare the reduction in parking search time after implementation of the parking information system in Frankfurt am Main,Germany. A non-linear model was developed to relate the parking 10 search time to the estimated occupancy of off-street parking facilities before and after installation of parking guidance and information system. Smart parking systems can also take advantage of innovative technologies to improve the ease and convenience of paying for parking. Smart cards can minimize transaction time by allowing a user to simply wave their card in front of a reader,and contact less cards with wireless communication capabilities can further reduce delays. Mobile communication devices can also be used in smart payment transactions. Smart parking payment systems are now being developed and implemented worldwide by cell phone developers,credit card companies,and other technology and service providers. Smart payment systems were found to reduce operation,maintenance and enforcement costs as well as improve collection rates . When transit agencies attempt to induce drivers off of highways to take transit into a city center,time saving. Hester(2002) [9] designed two experiments in a visualized driving simulator to test alternative models of drivers parking decision with the parking availability and guidance information displayed on Variable Message Signs (VMS). In Experiment 1,three different versions of the expected utility theory were tested. In these three hypotheses,one might assume that drivers attempt to:- †¢ minimize the expected travel time, †¢ minimize the walking distance,and †¢ minimize the time spent on waiting for a lot for a parking space or, †¢ equivalently,maximize the parking availability. The results in Experiment 1 showed that participants responses were more often consistent with the decision to minimize the expected travel time than they were either with the decision to minimize the walking distance or to maximize the parking availability. However,a further study in Experiment 2 suggested that the strategies that most test drivers used is a lexicographic decision strategy,in which drivers decided to park in a lot if the number of open spaces was greater than or equal to some criteria number. Such a strategy is more simple cognitively than the previous one,and thereby greatly reduces the cognitive load on the drivers. Asakura (1994) [3] developed a computer simulation model to evaluate the effects of parking information. The simulation model consists of three sub-models: a demand model based on multinomial logic model,a performance model to describe the car parking status,and an information service model. The messages shown on signs in the simulation were in three types of legends: waiting time,FULL/SPACES,and number of vacancies. Simulation results were for different scenarios with regard to different ratios of system users among all drivers and different congestion levels. It was found that the average waiting time decreases with the increasing proportion of informed drivers, especially when the proportion changes from 0 to 10 percent. The FULL/SPACES type is the most effective in reducing average waiting time at higher congestion levels; the waiting time information is the most effective at low congestion level,and the number of vacancies information is the least one in both cases. Polak (1995)[3] stresses that in recent years,however,there has been an increasing effort to focus on the driver as a recipient of advanced traveler information by developing a series of simulators,which allow manipulation of environments and observation of different driver behaviors . The use of such simulators is most helpful when attempting to decide the likelihood that drivers will accept information dispensed through their in vehicle guidance system. The development 12 of driver simulators and the consequent modeling of driver behavior has been an attempt to enrich the potential of Advanced Traveler Information System (ATIS) methodology. Of signiï ¬ cant importance,however,is the increased acknowledgment that these simulations work best if the environment is designed to have as many important real-world features as possible (e.g.,trafï ¬ c lanes instead of undifferentiated network arcs; signalized or otherwise controlled intersections instead of unconstrained nodes in a graph theoretic representation of a system; indicators of trafï ¬ c speed and driving headway; etc.). According to Havinoviski,(2000) [8]In Chicago,real-time parking management systems for parkingand-ride facilities along transit corridors were proposed . The systems will display or broadcast overall and speciï ¬ c parking lot information,next train arrival information,expressway or tollway incident and travel time information. Infrared detection,inductive loop detection,video image processing were considered the most practical techniques for measurement of parking availability. Four technologies,namely Internet,telephone,Variable message signs,highway advisory radio,were considered for information dissemination. Allen (1993) [1] studied the impacts of a parking guidance and information system on drivers behaviors at a disaggregated level in Kingston-up-Thames,London,United Kingdom. An attitude questionnaire and a Stated Preference (SP) experiment were employed in the study. The results of the attitude questionnaire showed a low level of system usage. 4 percent of all respondents were totally unaware of the system; 47 percent were aware of,but had never used it; 49 percent had used the system. In the Stated Preference experiment,parking price,walking time,and content of Variable Message Signs (VMS) were included. As the results suggested,the occupancy information of parking lots shown on Variable Message Signs (VMS) has a signiï ¬ cant effect on car-park choice 13 probability. When contents of Variable Message Signs (VMS) change from SPACE to FULL,a dramatic instantaneous impact on driver behavior resulted. Polak (1990) [2] summarized the basic technologies of Parking Guidance and Information (PGI) systems in the European and Japanese cities and the approaches adopted to system design and operation before 1990s. In reviewing the effectiveness of these systems,it was noted that Variable Message Signs (VMS) was a relatively mature technology for PGI systems,and two main technologies: rotating prisms and ï ¬ ber-optics were of proven reliability Basically,all those studies were based on the naive comparisons of before-and-after car parks usage patterns,arrival proï ¬ les at the facilities,and trafï ¬ c volumes,where before-and-after drivers surveys were mostly conducted. Those studies showed that parking guidance systems could have an impact on trafï ¬ c and parking patterns by redistributing parking demand between car parks,and by alleviating queues at the most popular car parks. Little evidence showed that those systems had given rise to any substantial changes in trafï ¬ c vol umes,arrival patterns and congestion. Edwards and Kelcey,(1997) [7] assert that,Variable Message Signs (VMS) and static signs were used in the operation to present parking availability information to drivers in the urban area. Loop detectors were used as the counting equipment at off-street parking facilities. Controller interface units then automatically calculates the number of available spaces in real time using pulse from the detectors each time a vehicle arrived or left the parking facility. The data were transmitted to central computers via dedicated phone line and T1 line,and were processed by parking management software. The central computers then sent the parking information to Variable message signs via Radio Frequency (RF) cellular communications. An Advanced Parking Information (API) system was designed and put into test operations in Saint Paul,Minnesota in late 1995 and early 1996 (Edwards and Kelcey Inc.,1997; HNTB,(1997). Variable Message Signs (VMS) and static signs were used in the operation to present parking availability information to drivers in the urban area. Loop detectors were used as the counting equipment at off-street parking facilities. Controller interface units then automatically calculates the number of available spaces in real time using pulse from the detectors each time a vehicle arrived or left the parking facility. The data were transmitted to central computers via dedicated phone line and T1 line,and were processed by parking management software. The central computers then sent the parking information to Variable message signs via radio frequency (RF) cellular communications. According to Road Bureau Ministry of Land,(2002) [9],parking guidance systems already had been implemented in 40 cities by the year of 1995in Japan (Toyama,1995). Most of them were based on Variable Message Signs (VMS) and static signs for display parking information at that time. The effects of these systems include: leveled utilization factor,less parking search time,and reduced on-road parking and smoother trafï ¬ c. In recent years,new technologies were introduced to parking systems. Since 1999,Internet web sites have been served for providing parking information in many Japanese cities. Other services such as cellular phone,Community Antenna Television (CATV),information service terminals at airports and bus terminals have also been included as parts of parking guidance systems in Japan to make more efï ¬ cient use of parking facilities and making parking facilities more convenient. Burdette (1999; 2001) [4] investigated advanced parking information systems at airports. In the research,a variety of Intelligent Traveler Systems (ITS) technologies applicable to Advanced Parking Information (API) at airports were investigated. A nine-step guideline was developed for imple menting an advanced parking information system at airports. According to a small sample survey conducted in the study,Variable Message Signs (VMS),static signs,radio,in-vehicle navigation system,and Internet are the most users preferred Intelligence Traveler Systems (ITS) technologies for this system. Parking information systems have been in practice for nearly 30 years,mainly serving for urban off-street,airport,and transit/bus parking facilities. In this information age,a number of new technologies are used in this kind of system. Variable Message Signs (VMS),static signs, Internet web site,telephone,and Highway Advisory Radio (HAR) are the most commonly used and acceptable technologies for disseminating parking information. The most commonly used data collection technologies include: loop detector,infrared detector, radar or sonic detector,video image processing,and so on. 2.2 Chapter Summary In an increasingly digital and wireless age,parking managers can take advantage of available technology to reduce operation,maintenance,and enforcement costs as well as to improve ease and convenience for motorists. Smart parking can make efï ¬ cient use of existing parking spaces and to make reserving and paying for parking,fast, convenient,and reliable. CHAPTER THREE 3 METHODOLOGY 3.1 Data Collection This chapter presents the data collection methods that were used by the researcher in exercising the study,tools that were used in the analysis and design of the system and also the tools used to develop and implement the system.The various data or requirements gathering techniques that were used included the following: 1. Interviews: An interview is a conversation in which the researcher tries to get information from the interviewer. The method assumes that the respondents to be interviewed have the information required; they can understand questions,which are put to them and will be willing to give answers while they are face-to-face. The researcher was able to interview some of the Garden City complex staff members and parking users who were utilizing the parking facility at that particular time and this helped the researcher to get ï ¬ rst-hand information on the operations of the parking facility. . 2. Questionnaires: Questionnaires were used by the researcher to gather facts about the parking behaviour of motorists and payment methods,questionnaires were aimed at getting information about the time spent in parking , and the mode of payment motorists would prefer for the utilization of parking bays.(Questionnaires appear in the appendix part of this report. It was established from the questionnaires and interviews conducted that some motorists prefered to pay in advance for use the parking facility for a given period to on-spot payment. The argument raised was that they at times run out of cash after shopping. On the other hand, it was also established that other motorists do rarely visit the shopping mall and as such they were willing to pay on spot for use of the parking facility. From the two arguments raised,it was concluded that the system to be built would accommodate both parties by making provisions for advance payments and on-spot payments. 3. Observation: The purpose of observation was to determine the measurements, types, numbers,objectives and so on. The process of observation is not conï ¬ ned to seeing only. We can observe by hearing,smelling,teaching,and tasting. The method was mainly used in viewing the set up of available parking bays,viewing for example the security cards given to the entrance as evidence that they are utilizing parking bays. It was observed that each saloon car is slated to occupy one parking bay at a given time. This method was also used to get information about the structure of the organization and any relevant background information about the organization that proved relevant to the study. I went further to look through some of transactions and this later helped in determining the data stored per entity involved in the designed system.