Questions and Answers of Information Systems

Research the status of Google Fiber. Report updated findings to your class. Why do you suppose Google decided to become an ISP? What other Internet access experiments has the firm been involved in?
Describe how the DNS is fault-tolerant and promotes load balancing. Give examples of other types of information systems that might need to be fault-tolerant and offer load balancing. Why?
What are the risks in the kinds of automated trading systems described in this section? Conduct research and find an example of where these systems have caused problems for firms and/or the broader
Show your understanding of the economics and competitive forces of the telecom industry. Discuss why Verizon chose to go with fiber. Do you think this was a wise decision or not? Why? Feel free to do
Research DNS poisoning online. List a case, other than the one mentioned in this chapter, where DNS poisoning took place. Which network was poisoned, who were the victims, and how did hackers exploit
Search the Internet for a traceroute tool, or look online to figure out how to use the traceroute command built into your PC. Run three or more traceroutes to different firms at different locations
Why have other nations enjoyed faster broadband speeds, greater availability, and lower prices?
Why is the switch from IPv4 to IPv6 so difficult? What key principles, discussed in prior chapters, are slowing migration to the new standard?
Find out if your school or employer is an Internet2 member. If it is, run traceroutes to schools that are and are not members of Internet2. What differences do you see in the results?
The iPhone and other smartphones have been called both a blessing and a curse for AT&T. Why do you suppose this is so?
Test to see if networks that you frequently use (home, school, work, mobile) are ready for IPv6 by visiting http://test-ipv6.com/ (or a similar site). Search online to see if your service provider
Research high-frequency trading and flash crash incidents. Are there any recent developments that managers should be aware of? Do you feel there is enough being done to curtail risks associated with
Investigate the status of mobile wireless offerings available in your area. Which firm would you choose? Why? Which factors are most important in your decision?
Have you ever lost communication access-wirelessly or via wired connection? What caused the loss or outage?
What factors shape the profitability of the mobile wireless provider industry? How do these economics compare with the cable and wire line industry? Who are the major players, and which would you
Last-mile providers often advertise very fast speeds, but users rarely see speeds as high as advertised rates. Search online to find a network speed test and try it from your home, office, mobile
What's the difference between LEO satellite systems and the type of system used by O3b and SpaceX? What are the pros and cons of these efforts? Conduct some additional research. What is the status of
What advantages could broadband offer to underserved areas of the world? Is Internet access important for economic development? Why or why not?
Does your carrier offer a femtocell? Would you use one? Why or why not?
Be prepared to debate the issue of Net neutrality in class. Prepare positions both supporting and opposing Net neutrality. Which do you support and why?
Investigate the current status of Net neutrality regulations in your state and nation and report your findings to your instructor. Do you agree with the stance currently taken by your government? Why
Consider your own personal password regime and correct any weaknesses. Share any additional password management tips and techniques with your class.
Visit the security page for your ISP, school, or employer. What techniques do they advocate that we've discussed here? Are there any additional techniques mentioned and discussed? What additional
The data breaches at Equifax and Target Corporation are among the largest ever in US history. Were you impacted by this breach (or any other)? How did you find out about the breach? Did you take
What is a botnet? What sorts of exploits would use a botnet? Why would a botnet be useful to cybercriminals?
Why is it a bad idea to use variants of existing passwords when registering for new websites?
What sorts of security regimes are in use at your university, and at firms you've worked or interned for? If you don't have experience with this, ask a friend or relative for their professional
What factors were responsible for the Target and Equifax breaches? Who should have been responsible for these breaches? How do you think the firms could have prevented the attacks, and what should
Why are threats to the power grid potentially so concerning? What are the implications of power grid failure and of property damage? Who might execute these kinds of attacks? What are the
Relate an example of social engineering that you've experienced or heard of. How might the victim have avoided being compromised?
While we've discussed the risks in having security that is too lax, what risk does a firm run if its security mechanisms are especially strict? What might a firm give up? What are the consequences of
As individuals or in groups assigned by your instructor, search online for recent reports on information security breaches. Come to class prepared to discuss a breach you've researched, its potential
Scan the trade press for examples of hacking that apply to the various motivations mentioned in this chapter. What happened to the hacker? Were they caught? What penalties do they face?
Have you ever seen phishing exploits? Have you fallen for one? Why did you take the bait, or what alerted you to the scam? How can you identify phishing scams?
What risks does a firm face by leaving software unpatched? What risks does it face if it deploys patches as soon as they emerge? How should a firm reconcile these risks?
Think of firms that you've done business with online. Search to see if these firms have experienced security breaches in the past. What have you found out? Does this change your attitude about
Why do cybercriminals execute attacks across national borders? What are the implications for pursuit, prosecution, and law enforcement?
Have you or has anyone you know fallen victim to malware? Relate the experience-how do you suppose it happened? What damage was done? What, if anything, could be done to recover from the situation?
What methods do firms use to ensure the integrity of their software, their hardware, their networks, and their partners?
Why do law enforcement agencies struggle to cope with computer crime?
Why are social media sites such a threat to information security? Give various potential scenarios where social media use might create personal or organizational security compromises.
An organization's password management system represents "the keys to the city." Describe personnel issues that a firm should be concerned with regarding password administration. How might it address
A single rogue employee effectively held the city of San Francisco's network hostage for ten days. What processes or controls might the city have created that could have prevented this kind of
Some users regularly update their passwords by adding a number (say month or year) to their code. Why is this bad practice?
Research recent revelations on the extent of government data surveillance. What concerns do government surveillance raise for the computer security of individuals and corporations? Do you believe
What are some of the factors that must be considered when evaluating the cost of an IT decision?
Free doesn't always win. Why might a firm turn down free software in favor of a commercial alternative?
Name three companies that are players in the virtualization software industry.
The website NetCraft (http://www.netcraft.com) is one of many that provide a tool to see the kind of operating system and Web server software that a given site is running. Visit NetCraft or a similar
Research the role of 3D printers. Is this a disruptive technology? Which firms will be hurt as 3D printers advance? Which organizations will benefit from this transition? What advice do you have for
In what other ways do Amazon's information systems reduce errors? Why is error reduction so critical to firm performance?
Describe the ways that Amazon has expanded its "last mile" delivery network. Act as an investor or stock analyst and research online to get a sense of the size of the delivery market, the savings
Are any aspects of Amazon's various grocery models appealing to you? Are there demographic trends in the US that might influence the rise of alternative models to conventional store shopping for
Which firms use AWS? What do they gain by using a cloud provider, and what do they give up? How might Amazon or other cloud firms reduce concerns potential and existing clients might have?
Investigate the Amazon Echo online. Would you buy the product? Why or why not? Why will the Echo get "smarter" and offer more features over time?
Which requires more code-the firm's customer-facing website or warehouse automation?
If there are alternatives available, why would firms that compete with Amazon in some businesses use Amazon anyway?
List the ways in which Amazon Go's in-store technology could improve the customer experience. How might it improve the cost economics of retail? What kinds of additional costs do you think are
Why do you suppose Amazon's Fire Phone struggled in its first iteration? Do you think Amazon could ever be successful in phones? Why not, or what will it take to be successful? What, beyond phone
Although Amazon is investing in robotics, human beings still do most of the product picking. How does Amazon ensure that customer privacy is protected despite heavy human involvement? Do you think it
Are network effects at work in cloud platforms? How so? What kinds of complementary products might make AWS seem more attractive than a new cloud computing effort?
How successful have Kindle e-book readers been? How about Fire tablet, Fire TV, and Echo? What barriers does the firm face in competing? What advantages does Amazon have?
What is the cash conversion cycle (CCC)? What factors enable Amazon to have a CCC that is negative? Why are offline rivals unable to match these efficiencies? What advantage does this give Amazon
How big is this business relative to Amazon's other divisions? How big does Amazon think it can get?
How has Kindle pricing changed over time? Would you expect similar changes with Amazon's other consumer electronics products? Why or why not?
How do Amazon's prices compare with rivals' prices? What gives Amazon such advantages? What other pricing advantages does Amazon have that a conventional retailer might not be able to take advantage
Why did Amazon decide to get into cloud computing? This business is radically different from shipping books and other physical products. Do you think Amazon should continue to keep AWS as part of
How does the traditional publishing value chain differ from the Kindle value chain when Amazon is an author's publisher? List the rough percentages of revenue taken by each element in the value chain.
What is dynamic pricing, and why might this be risky?
What advantages does the Echo platform offer for Amazon? Would you (or do you) use an Echo? Why or why not?
What are private-label products, and what advantages do they offer Amazon?
Log into Amazon (or pull up a page if you "remain" logged in). Compare it to a classmate's page. What similarities do you notice? What differences? Why do you think Amazon made the choice to show you
If you were an author, would you use Amazon as a publisher or not? What factors would influence this decision? What do you think will happen regarding trends and these factors over time?
Amazon's unique customer data have allowed the firm to enter the advertising business. Which firms does this bring Amazon into competition with? Research Amazon's role in matching advertisers to
How is Amazon acting as a hothouse for content creation beyond books? What other categories of media products is Amazon involved in developing? Investigate these-has Amazon done well, or have these
What is channel conflict, and how has Amazon been subject to channel conflict?
How does Amazon keep management focused on customer issues and "putting the customer first"?
Is Amazon good or bad for the book business? Explain your answer.
Describe how Amazon Marketplace offers two-sided network effects.
What is Twitch? Why did Amazon buy it? Why is it a compelling service for the firm?
Besides network effects, what additional benefits does Amazon gain by allowing other retailers to sell potentially competing products on Amazon?
Why do you suppose Amazon has begun publishing video games? Producing more original video content?
What are the factors that contribute to the value created by network effects?
What is the difference between same-side exchange benefits and cross-side exchange benefits?
How is competition in markets where network effects are present different from competition in traditional markets?
Is market entry timing important for network effects markets? Explain and offer an example to back up your point.
List several products or services subject to network effects. What factors do you believe helped each of these efforts achieve dominance?
Give examples of one-sided and two-sided markets.
What are network effects? What are the other names for this concept?
Amazon's operations are a marvel of automation and procedural efficiency, but the firm has also been subject to criticism regarding its warehouse work environment. Investigate these criticisms on
How is scale important to Amazon? What advantages does scale offer Amazon over its smaller rivals?
What is the long tail? How does the long tail change retail economics? How does it influence shoppers' choice of where to look for products? What firms, other than Amazon, are taking advantage of the
Why is staying power particularly important to many technology products and services?
What is the difference between a one-sided market and a two-sided market?
What are the reasons why it is so difficult for late-moving, incompatible rivals to compete in markets where a dominant, proprietary standard is present? What is technological leapfrogging and why is
How might a firm subsidize adoption? Give an example.
Which firm do you suspect has stronger end-user network effects: Google's online search tool or Microsoft's Windows operating system? Why?
Think about the kinds of technology products that you own that are subject to network effects. What sorts of exchange do these products leverage (e.g., information, money, software, or other media)?
Does it make sense to try to prevent monopolies in markets where network effects exist?
Give an example of a partnership or alliance targeted at increasing network effects.

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