Evolution of Microprocessor

American University CSIS 550 History of Computing Professor Tim Bergin Technology Research Paper: Microprocessors Beatrice A. Muganda AU ID: 0719604 May 3, 2001 -2- EVOLUTION OF THE MICROPROCESSOR INTRODUCTION The Collegiate Webster dictionary describes microprocessor as a computer processor contained on an integrated-circuit chip. In the mid-seventies, a microprocessor was defined as a central processing unit (CPU) realized on a LSI (large-scale integration) chip, operating at a clock frequency of 1 to 5 MHz and constituting an 8-bit system (Heffer, 1986).It was a single component having the ability to perform a wide variety of different functions. Because of their relatively low cost and small size, the microprocessors permitted the use of digital computers in many areas where the use of the preceding mainframe—and even minicomputers— would not be practical and affordable (Computer, 1996). Many non-technical people associate microprocessors with only PCs yet there are thousands of appliances that have a microprocessor embedded in them— telephone, dishwasher, microwave, clock radio, etc. In these items, the microprocessor acts primarily as a controller and may not be known to the user.The Breakthrough in Microprocessors The switching units in computers that were used in the early 1940s were the mechanical relays. These were devices that opened and closed as they did the calculations. Such mechanical relays were used in Zuse’s machines of the 1930s. -3- Come the 1950s, and the vacuum tubes took over. The Atanasoff-Berry Computer (ABC) used vacuum tubes as its switching units rather than relays. The switch from mechanical relay to vacuum tubes was an important technological advance as vacuum tubes could perform calculations considerably faster and more efficient than relay machines.However, this technological advance was short-lived because the tubes could not be made smaller than they were being made and had to be placed close to eac h other because they generated heat (Freiberger and Swaine, 1984). Then came the transistor which was acknowledged as a revolutionary development. In â€Å"Fire in the Valley†, the authors describe the transistor as a device which was the result of a series of developments in the applications of physics. The transistor changed the computer from a giant electronic brain to a commodity like a TV set.This innovation was awarded to three scientists: John Bardeen, Walter Brattain, and William Shockley. As a result of the technological breakthrough of transistors, the introduction of minicomputers of the 1960s and the personal computer revolution of the 1970s was made possible. However, researchers did not stop at transistors. They wanted a device that could perform more complex tasks—a device that could integrate a number of transistors into a more complex circuit. Hence, the terminology, integrated circuits or ICs.Because physically they were tiny chips of silicon, they ca me to be also referred to as chips. Initially, the demand for ICs was typically the military and aerospace -4- industries which were great users of computers and who were the only industries that could afford computers (Freiberger and Swaine, 1984). Later, Marcian â€Å"Ted† Hoff, an engineer at Intel, developed a sophisticated chip. This chip could extract data from its memory and interpret the data as an instruction. The term that evolved to describe such a device was â€Å"microprocessor†.Therefore, the term â€Å"microprocessor† first came into use at Intel in 1972 (Noyce, 1981). A microprocessor was nothing more than an extension of the arithmetic and logic IC chips corporating more functions into one chip (Freiberger and Swaine, 1984). Today, the term still refers to an LSI single-chip processor capable of carrying out many of the basic operations of a digital computer. Infact, the microprocessors of the late eighties and early nineties are full-sclae 32-b it and 32-bit address systems, operating at clock cycles of 25 to 50 MHz (Heffer, 1986).What led to the development of microprocessors? As stated above, microprocessors essentially evolved from mechanical relays to integrated circuits. It is important to illustrate here what aspects of the computing industry led to the development of microprocessors. (1) Digital computer technology In the History of Computing class, we studied, throughout the semester, how the computer industry learned how to make large, complex digital computers capable of processing more data and also how to build and use smaller, less -5- expensive computers.The digital computer technology had been growing steadily since the late 1940s. (2) Semiconductors Like the digital computer technology, semiconductors had also been growing steadily since the invention of the transistor in the late 1940s. The 1960s saw the integrated circuit develop from just a few transistors to many complicated tasks, all of the same chip. (3) The calculator industry It appears as if this industry grew overnight during the 1970s from the simplest of four-function calculators to very complex programmable scientific and financial machines.From all this, one idea became obvious—if there was an inexpensive digital computer, there would be no need to keep designing different, specialized integrated circuits. The inexpensive digital computer could simply be reprogrammed to perform whatever was the latest brainstorm, and there would be the new product (Freiberger and Swaine, 1984). The development of microprocessors can be attributed to when, in the early 1970s, digital computers and integrated circuits reached the required levels of capability.However, the early microprocessor did not meet all the goals: it was too expensive for many applications, especially those in the consumer market, and it -6- could not hold enough information to perform many of the tasks being handled by the minicomputers of that time. How a m icroprocessor works According to Krutz (1980), a microprocessor executes a collection of machine instructions that tell the processor what to do. Based on the instructions, a microprocessor does three basic things: †¢ Using its ALU (Arithmetic/Logic Unit), a microprocessor can perform mathematical operations like addition, subtraction, multiplication and division.Modern microprocessors contain complete floating point processors that can perform extremely sophisticated operations on large floating point numbers. †¢ A microprocessor can move data from one memory location to another. A microprocessor can make decisions and jump to a new set of instructions based on those decisions. There may be very sophisticated things that a microprocessor does, but those †¢ are its three basic activities. Put simply, it fetches instructions from memory, interprets (decodes) them, and then executes whatever functions the instructions direct.For example, if the microprocessor is capable of 256 different operations, there must be 256 different instruction words. When fetched, each instruction word is interpreted differently than any of the other 255. Each type of microprocessor has a unique instruction set (Short, 1987). -7- Archictecture of a microprocessor This is about as simple as a microprocessor gets. It has the following characteristics: †¢ an address bus (that may be 8, 16 or 32 bits wide) that sends an address to memory; †¢ a data bus (that may be 8, 16 or 32 bits wide) that can send data to memory or receive data from memory; †¢ RD (Read) and WR (Write) line to tell the memory whether it wants to set or get the addressed location; †¢ a clock line that lets a clock pulse sequence the processor; and a reset line that resets the program counter to zero (or whatever) and restarts execution. †¢ A typical microprocessor, therefore, consists of: logical components—enable it to function as a programmable logic processor; program co unter, stack, and instruction register—provide for the management of a program; the ALU—provide for the manipulation of data; and a decoder & timing and control unit—specify and coordinate the operation of other components.The connection of the microprocessors to other units—memory and I/O devices—is done with the Address, Data, and control buses. -8- Generation of microprocessors Microprocessors were categorized into five generations: first, second, third, fourth, and fifth generations. Their characteristics are described below: First-generation The microprocessors that were introduced in 1971 to 1972 were referred to as the first generation systems. First-generation microprocessors processed their instructions serially—they fetched the instruction, decoded it, then executed it.When an instruction was completed, the microprocessor updated the instruction pointer and fetched the next instruction, performing this sequential drill for each ins truction in turn. Second generation By the late 1970s (specifically 1973), enough transistors were available on the IC to usher in the second generation of microprocessor sophistication: 16-bit arithmetic and pipelined instruction processing. Motorola’s MC68000 microprocessor, introduced in 1979, is an example. Another example is Intel’s 8080. This generation is defined by overlapped fetch, decode, and execute steps (Computer 1996).As the first instruction is processed in the execution unit, the second instruction is decoded and the third instruction is fetched. The distinction between the first and second generation devices was primarily the use of newer semiconductor technology to fabricate the chips. This new -9- technology resulted in a five-fold increase in instruction, execution, speed, and higher chip densities. Third generation The third generation, introduced in 1978, was represented by Intel’s 8086 and the Zilog Z8000, which were 16-bit processors with minicomputer-like performance.The third generation came about as IC transistor counts approached 250,000. Motorola’s MC68020, for example, incorporated an on-chip cache for the first time and the depth of the pipeline increased to five or more stages. This generation of microprocessors was different from the previous ones in that all major workstation manufacturers began developing their own RISC-based microprocessor architectures (Computer, 1996). Fourth generation As the workstation companies converted from commercial microprocessors to in-house designs, microprocessors entered their fourth generation with designs surpassing a million transistors.Leading-edge microprocessors such as Intel’s 80960CA and Motorola’s 88100 could issue and retire more than one instruction per clock cycle (Computer, 1996). Fifth generation Microprocessors in their fifth generation, employed decoupled super scalar processing, and their design soon surpassed 10 million transistors. I n this – 10 – generation, PCs are a low-margin, high-volume-business dominated by a single microprocessor (Computer, 1996). Companies associated with microprocessorsOverall, Intel Corporation dominated the microprocessor area even though other companies like Texas Instruments, Motorola, etc also introduced some microprocessors. Listed below are the microprocessors that each company created. (A) Intel As indicated previously, Intel Corporation dominated the microprocessor technology and is generally acknowledged as the company that introduced the microprocessor successfully into the market. Its first microprocessor was the 4004, in 1971. The 4004 took the integrated circuit one step further by ocating all the components of a computer (CPU, memory and input and output controls) on a minuscule chip. It evolved from a development effort for a calculator chip set. Previously, the IC had had to be manufactured to fit a special purpose, now only one microprocessor could be ma nufactured and then programmed to meet any number of demands. The 4004 microprocessor was the central component in a four-chip set, called the 4004 Family: 4001 – 2,048-bit ROM, a 4002 – 320-bit RAM, and a 4003 – 10-bit I/O shift register. The 4004 had 46 instructions, using only 2,300 transistors in a 16-pin DIP.It ran at a clock rate of – 11 – 740kHz (eight clock cycles per CPU cycle of 10. 8 microseconds)—the original goal was 1MHz, to allow it to compute BCD arithmetic as fast (per digit) as a 1960's era IBM 1620 (Computer, 1996). Following in 1972 was the 4040 which was an enhanced version of the 4004, with an additional 14 instructions, 8K program space, and interrupt abilities (including shadows of the first 8 registers). In the same year, the 8008 was introduced. It had a 14-bit PC. The 8008 was intended as a terminal controller and was quite similar to the 4040.The 8008 increased the 4004’s word length from four to eight bits , and doubled the volume of information that could be processed (Heath, 1991). In April 1974, 8080, the successor to 8008 was introduced. It was the first device with the speed and power to make the microprocessor an important tool for the designer. It quickly became accepted as the standard 8-bit machine. It was the first Intel microprocessor announced before it was actually available. It represented such an improvement over existing designs that the company wanted to give customers adequate lead time to design the part into new products.The use of 8080 in personal computers and small business computers was initiated in 1975 by MITS’s Altair microcomputer. A kit selling for $395 enabled many individuals to have computers in their own homes (Computer, 1996). Following closely, in 1976, was 8048, the first 8-bit single-chip microcomputer. It was also designed as a microcontroller rather than a microprocessor—low cost and small size was the main goal. For this reason, da ta was stored on-chip, while program code was external. The 8048 was eventually replaced by the very popular but bizarre 8051 and 8052 – 12 – (available with on-chip program ROMs).While the 8048 used 1-byte instructions, the 8051 had a more flexible 2-byte instruction set, eight 8-bit registers plus an accumulator A. Data space was 128 bytes and could be accessed directly or indirectly by a register, plus another 128 above that in the 8052 which could only be accessed indirectly (usually for a stack) (Computer, 1996). In 1978, Intel introduced its high-performance, 16-bit MOS processor—the 8086. This microprocessor offered power, speed, and features far beyond the second-generation machines of the mid-70’s. It is said that the personal computer revolution did not really start until the 8088 processor was created.This chip became the most ubiquitous in the computer industry when IBM chose it for its first PC (Frieberger and Swaine, 1984 ). In 1982, the 802 86 (also known as 286) was next and was the first Intel processor that could run all the software written for its predecessor, the 8088. Many novices were introduced to desktop computing with a â€Å"286 machine† and it became the dominant chip of its time. It contained 130,000 transistors. In 1985, the first multi-tasking chip, the 386 (80386) was created. This multitasking ability allowed Windows to do more than one function at a time.This 32-bit microprocessor was designed for applications requiring high CPU performance. In addition to providing access to the 32-bit world, the 80386 addressed 2 other important issues: it provided system-level support to systems designers, and it was object-code compatible with the entire family of 8086 microprocessors (Computer, 1996 ). The 80386 was made up of 6 functional units: (i) execution unit (ii) segment unit (iii) page unit (iv) decode unit (v) bus unit and (vi) prefetch unit. The 80386 had – 13 – 34 registers divide d into such categories as general-purpose registers, debug registers, and test registers.It had 275,000 transistors (Noyce, 1981). The 486 (80486) generation of chips really advanced the point-and-click revolution. It was also the first chip to offer a built-in math coprocessor, which gave the central processor the ability to do complex math calculations. The 486 had more than a million transistors. In 1993, when Intel lost a bid to trademark the 586, to protect its brand from being copied by other companies, it coined the name Pentium for its next generation of chips and there began the Pentium series—Pentium Classic, Pentium II, III and currently, 4. (B)Motorola The MC68000 was the first 32-bit microprocessor introduced by Motorola in early 1980s. This was followed by higher levels of functionality on the microprocessor chip in the MC68000 series. For example, MC68020, introduced later, had 3 times as many transistors, was about three times as big, and was significantly fas ter. Motorola 68000 was one of the second generation systems that was developed in 1973. It was known for its graphics capabilities. The Motorola 88000 (originally named the 78000) is a 32-bit processor, one of the first load-store CPUs based on a Harvard Architecture (Noyce, 1981). C) Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC) – 14 – In March 1974, Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC) announced it would offer a series of microprocessor modules built around the Intel 8008. (D) Texas Instruments (TI) A precursor to these microprocessors was the 16-bit Texas Instruments 1900 microprocessor which was introduced in 1976. The Texas Instruments TMS370 is similar to the 8051, another of TI’s creations. The only difference between the two was the addition of a B accumulator and some 16-bit support. Microprocessors TodayTechnology has been changing at a rapid pace. Everyday a new product is made to make life a little easier. The computer plays a major role in the lives of most p eople. It allows a person to do practically anything. The Internet enables the user to gain more knowledge at a much faster pace compared to researching through books. The portion of the computer that allows it to do more work than a simple computer is the microprocessor. Microprocessor has brought electronics into a new era and caused component manufacturers and end-users to rethink the role of the computer.What was once a giant machine attended by specialists in a room of its own is now a tiny device conveniently transparent to users of automobile, games, instruments, office equipment, and a large array of other products. – 15 – From their humble beginnings 25 years ago, microprocessors have proliferated into an astounding range of chips, powering devices ranging from telephones to supercomputers (PC Magazine, 1996). Today, microprocessors for personal computers get widespread attention—and have enabled Intel to become the world's largest semiconductor maker.I n addition, embedded microprocessors are at the heart of a diverse range of devices that have become staples of affluent consumers worldwide. The impact of the microprocessor, however, goes far deeper than new and improved products. It is altering the structure of our society by changing how we gather and use information, how we communicate with one another, and how and where we work. Computer users want fast memory in their PCs, but most do not want to pay a premium for it. Manufacturing of microprocessors Economical manufacturing of microprocessors requires mass production.Microprocessors are constructed by depositing and removing thin layers of conducting, insulating, and semiconducting materials in hundreds of separate steps. Nearly every layer must be patterned accurately into the shape of transistors and other electronic elements. Usually this is done by photolithography, which projects the pattern of the electronic circuit onto a coating that changes when exposed to light. Be cause these patterns are smaller than the shortest wavelength of visible light, short wavelength ultraviolet radiation must be used. Microprocessor features 16 – are so small and precise that a single speck of dust can destroy the microprocessor. Microprocessors are made in filtered clean rooms where the air may be a million times cleaner than in a typical home (PC World, 2000)). Performance of microprocessors The number of transistors available has a huge effect on the performance of a processor. As seen earlier, a typical instruction in a processor like an 8088 took 15 clock cycles to execute. Because of the design of the multiplier, it took approximately 80 cycles just to do one 16-bit multiplication on the 8088.With more transistors, much more powerful multipliers capable of single-cycle speeds become possible ( ). More transistors also allow a technology called pipelining. In a pipelined architecture, instruction execution overlaps. So even though it might take 5 clock c ycles to execute each instruction, there can be 5 instructions in various stages of execution simultaneously. That way it looks like one instruction completes every clock cycle (PC World, 2001). Many modern processors have multiple instruction decoders, each with its own pipeline.This allows multiple instruction streams, which means more than one instruction can complete during each clock cycle. This technique can be quite complex to implement, so it takes lots of transistors. The trend in processor design has been toward full 32-bit ALUs with fast floating point processors built in and pipelined execution with multiple instruction streams. There has also been a tendency toward special instructions (like the MMX – 17 – instructions) that make certain operations particularly efficient. There has also been the addition of hardware virtual memory support and L1 caching on the processor chip.All of these trends push up the transistor count, leading to the multi-million tra nsistor powerhouses available today. These processors can execute about one billion instructions per second! (PC World, 2000) ) With all the different types of Pentium microprocessors, what is the difference? Three basic characteristics stand out: †¢ †¢ †¢ Instruction set: The set of instructions that the microprocessor can execute. bandwidth: The number of bits processed in a single instruction. clock speed: Given in megahertz (MHz), the clock speed determines how many instructions per second the processor can execute.In addition to bandwidth and clock speed, microprocessors are classified as being either RISC (reduced instruction set computer) or CISC (complex instruction set computer). – 18 – Other uses of microprocessors There are many uses for microprocessors in the world today. Most appliances found around the house are operated by microprocessors. Most modern factories are fully automated—that means that most jobs are done by a computer. Au tomobiles, trains, subways, planes, and even taxi services require the use of many microprocessors. In short, there are microprocessors everywhere you go. Another common place to find microprocessors is a car.This is especially applicable to sports cars. There are numerous uses for a microprocessor in cars. First of all, it controls the warning LED signs. Whenever there is a problem, low oil, for example, it has detectors that tell it that the oil is below a certain amount. It then reaches over and starts blinking the LED until the problem is fixed. Another use is in the suspension system. A processor, controls the amount of pressure applied to keep the car leveled. During turns, a processor, slows down the wheels on the inner side of the curb and speeds them up on the outside to keep the speed constant and make a smooth turn.An interesting story appeared in the New York Times dated April 16 and goes to show that there’s no limit to what microprocessors can do and that resarc hers and scientists are not stopping at the current uses of microprocessors. The next time the milk is low in the refrigerator, the grocery store may deliver a new gallon before it is entirely gone. Masahiro Sone, who lives in Raleigh, N. C. , has won a patent for a refrigerator with an inventory processing system that keeps track of what is inside – 19 – and what is about to run out and can ring up the grocery store to order more (NY Times, 2001).Where is the industry of microprocessors going? Almost immediately after their introduction, microprocessors became the heart of the personal computer. Since then, the improvements have come at an amazing pace. The 4004 ran at 108 kHz—that's kilohertz, not megahertz—and processed only 4 bits of data at a time. Today's microprocessors and the computers that run on them are thousands of times faster. Effectively, they've come pretty close to fulfilling Moore's Law (named after Intel cofounder Gordon Moore), which states that the number of transistors on a chip will double every 18 months or so.Performance has increased at nearly the same rate (PC Magazine, 1998 ). Can the pace continue? Well, nothing can increase forever. But according to Gerry Parker, Intel's executive vice president in charge of manufacturing, â€Å"we are far from the end of the line in terms of microprocessor performance. In fact, we're constantly seeing new advances in technology, one example being new forms of lithography that let designers position electronic components closer and closer together on their chips. Processors are created now using a 0. 35-micron process.But next year we'll see processors created at 0. 25 microns, with 0. 18 and 0. 13 microns to be introduced in the years to come. † (PC Magainze, 1998) However, it's not just improvements in lithography and density that can boost performance. Designers can create microprocessors with more layers of metal tying – 20 – together the trans istors and other circuit elements. The more layers, the more compact the design. But these ultracompact microprocessors are also harder to manufacture and validate. New chip designs take up less space, resulting in more chips per wafer.The original Pentium (60/66 MHz) was 294 square millimeters, then it was 164 square millimeters (75/90/100 MHz), and now it's 91 square millimeters (133- to 200-MHz versions) (PC Magazine, 1998). When will all this end? Interestingly, it may not be the natural limits of technology that will eventually refute Moore's Law. Instead, it's more likely to be the cost of each successive generation. Every new level of advancement costs more as making microprocessor development is a hugely capital-intensive business. Currently, a fabrication plant with the capacity to create about 40,000 wafers a month costs some $2 billion.And the rapid pace of innovations means equipment can become obsolete in just a few years. Still, there are ways of cutting some costs, su ch as converting from today's 8-inch silicon wafers to larger, 300-mm (roughly 12inch) wafers, which can produce 2. 3 times as many chips per wafer as those now in use. Moving to 300-mm wafers will cost Intel about $500 million in initial capital. Still, nothing lasts forever. As Parker notes, â€Å"the PC industry is built on the assumption that we can get more and more out of the PC with each generation, keep costs in check, and continue adding more value.We will run out of money before we run out of technology. When we can't hold costs down anymore, then it will be a different business† (PC Magazine, 1998). At the beginning of last year, the buzz was about PlayStation 2 and the Emotion Engine processor that would run it. Developed by Sony and Toshiba, – 21 – experts predicted the high-tech processor would offer unprecedented gaming power and more importantly, could provide the processing power for the PlayStation 2 to challenge cheap PCs as the entry-level de vice of choice for home access to the Web.PlayStation2 is equipped with the 295MHz MIPS-based Emotion engine, Sony's own CPU designed with Toshiba Corp. , a 147MHz graphics processor that renders 75 million pixels per second, a DVD player, an IEEE 1394 serial connection, and two USB ports. Sony will use DVD discs for game titles and gives consumers the option of using the product for gaming, DVD movie playing and eventually Web surfing (PC World, 2000). Soon, instead of catching up on the news via radio or a newspaper on the way to work, commuters may soon be watching it on a handheld computer or cell phone.Early January this year, Toshiba America Electronic Components announced its TC35273XB chip. The chip has 12Mb of integrated memory and an encoder and decoder for MPEG-4, an audio-video compression standard. According to Toshiba, the integrated memory is what sets this chip apart from others. With integrated memory, the chip consumes less power, making it a good fit for portable gadgets. This chip is designed to specifically address the issues of battery life which can be very short with portable devices.The chip will have a RISC processor at its core and running at a clock speed of 70MHz (PC World, 2000). Toshiba anticipates that samples of this chip will be released to manufacturers in the second quarter, and mass production will follow in the third quarter. Shortly after this release, new handheld computers and cell phones using the chip and offering streaming media will be expected (CNET news). – 22 – It is reported in CNET news, that in February this year, IBM started a program to use the Internet to speed custom-chip design, bolstering its unit that makes semiconductors for other companies.IBM, one of the biggest makers of application-specific chips, would set up a system so that chip designs are placed in a secure environment on the Web, where a customer's design team and IBM engineers would collaborate on the blueprints and make change s in real time. Designing custom chips, which are used to provide unique features that standard processors don't offer, requires time-consuming exchanges of details between the clients that provide a basic framework and the IBM employees who do the back-end work. Using the Internet will speed the process and make plans more accurate.IBM figures that since their customers ask for better turnaround time and better customer satisfaction, this would be one way to tackle this. As a pilot program, this service was to be offered to a set of particular, selected customers initially, and then would include customers who design the so-called system-on-a-chip devices that combine several functions on one chip (CNET news). A new microprocessor unveiled in February 2000 by Japan’s NEC, offers high-capacity performance while only consuming small amounts of power, making it ideal for use in mobile devices.This prototype could serve as the model for future mobile processors. The MP98 process or contains four microprocessors on the same chip that work together in such a way that they can be switched on and off depending on the job in hand. For example, a single processor can be used to handle easy jobs, such as data entry, through a keypad, while more can be brought – 23 – online as the task demands, with all four working on tasks such as processing video. This gives designers of portable devices the best of both worlds—low power consumption and high capacity (PC World, 2000).However, it should be noted that the idea of putting several processors together on a single chip is not new as both IBM and Sun Microsystems have developed similar devices. The only difference is that MP98 is the first working example of a â€Å"fine grain† device that offers better performance. Commercial products based on this technology are likely to be seen around 2003 (PCWorld, 2000). In PCWorld, it was reported that, last September, a Japanese dentist received U. S . and Japanese patents for a method of planting a microchip into a false tooth.The one-chip microprocessor embedded in a plate denture can be detected using a radio transmitter-receiver, allowing its owner to be identified. This is useful in senior citizen’s home where all dentures are usually collected from their owners after meals, washed together and returned. In such a case, it is important to identify all the dentures to give back to their correct owners without any mistake (PC World, 2000). In March this year, Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) launched its 1. 3-GHz Athlon processor. Tests on this processor indicated that its speed surpassed Intel’s 1. GHz Pentium 4. The Athlon processor has a 266-MHz front side bus that works with systems that use 266-MHz memory. The price starts from $2,988 (PCWorld, 2001). Intel’s Pentium 4, which was launched in late 2000, is designed to provide blazing speed—especially in handling multimedia content. Dubbed Intel Net Burst – 24 – Micro-architecture, it is designed to speed up applications that send data in bursts, such as screaming media, MP3 playback, and video compression. Even before the dust had settled on NetBurst, Intel released its much awaited 1. GHz Pentium 4 processor on Monday, April 23. The is said to be the company’s highest-performance microprocessor for desktops. Currently priced at $325 in 1,000 unit quantities. The vice president and general manager of Intel was quoted as saying, â€Å"the Pentium 4 processor is destined to become the center of the digital world. Whether encoding video and MP3 files, doing financial analysis, or experiencing the latest internet technologies—the Pentium 4 processor is designed to meet the needs of all users† (PC World, 2001).Gordon Moore, co-founder of Intel, over thirty years ago, announced that the number of transistors that can be placed on a silicon would double every two years. Intel maintains that it has r emained true since the release of its first processors, the 4004, in 1971. The competition to determine who has produced the fastest and smallest processor between Intel and AMD continues. Infact, Intel Corp. predicts that PC chips will climb to more than 10GHz from today's 1GHz standard by the year 2011. However, researchers are paying increasing attention to software.That's because new generations of software, especially computing-intensive user interfaces, will call for processors with expanded capabilities and performance.

Advantages and disadvantages of using internet anonymously Essay

Internet freedom is a controversial issue nowadays, and there are some findings discovered that using internet without registered their real name will cause some critical problems as cyber bullying, stealing or intimidating since users do not need to have any responsibility about what they said. However, using internet anonymously are also some advantages which gives an essential protection to internet users. In this article, the advantages and disadvantages will be discussed. Using internet anonymously gives some advantages to some internet users. First, it can protect users’ privacy in an effective way. In this era of technology advancement, social network platform like facebook or twitter, it required users to upload their personal information and keep an eternal record. It is a dark side of the use of social network platform that those records may be used in a commercial way without users’ authorization. This action is stealing our information and invading our priva cy in a grey zone. Using internet anonymously can help protecting user’s information. According to Andrea (2013, P.32) , privacy is similar to human right, which need to be protected preferentially. Therefore, anonymously using internet is a way to protect users’ information not to be leaked. Also avoid that users’ information will not be used in a profitable way or an illegal way. Secondly, anonymously giving a comment to some critical issues or controversial topics can also protect users not to be traceable. Andrea (2013) noted that for some people who do not want to use their real name for giving some donation, not using their real identification is their privilege to do so. Some of the users tend to comment on some issues in a critical way and aggressive way, if using internet needs them to register their real name, thus, users who gave tough comments may be investigated their responsibility, and users then may not willing to tell the truth so as to protect themselves, and they may left their comments in a pretended way. This situation is related to the social justice. A finding in 2013 (Fu, Chan, & Chau, 2013) launched a real-name registration system to microbloggers in China which required them to give comments with their nick name or real name, and this poli cy cause a chilling effect on commenting on microblog, especially on political criticism and sensitive topics. Therefore using internet anonymously is an effective way  to encourage citizens to criticize on controversial topic and contribute to the society. Read more:  Advantages and Disadvantages of Internet on Students Alternatively, using internet without their real identity also has some disadvantages. Lack of responsibility is a main problem which caused by anonymity. Clapperton (2013) noted that using user’s real name to comment mean that before they write, a clear thinking is needed, and when user is going to write some contentious then he should find some supports for it. It implied that the majority of anonymous internet user might not have responsibility to bear with what they have commented, and they can issue some misleading expression without any consequence. Through the media on internet, those expression can be easily send to the others, thus the credibility will keep increasing that citizens may mistakenly believe in it. Therefore an atmosphere with lies and rumors is built in our society, which may disrupt public order. The final and the most important point is that anonymity will cause some illegal activity. Cyber bullying is one of the essential problems among teenagers in t his generation. Based on the view of lacking responsibility, Clapperton (2013) discovered that some internet users tend to use some offensive comment to criticize the others. Some of the comment recipients are being intimidating which damaged their self-esteem, and it may drive them to self-harm and suicide after being attacked in order to escape from the blame. This view shows that those users may not know what consequence and impact they made to the comment receiver, also the pressure they built on the comment receiver. In the research (Claudia, 2012), some anonymous message were posted in AgriBioTech Inc. company’s forum in 1999, which claim that the company was bankruptcy, it caused that the company’s shares plummeted, and have a severe loss. It demonstrated that the power of rumors, and this illegal action can caused a company to be beset with a crisis. Those problems are vital and should be improved in the future. In concluding this brief article, there are both advantages and disadvantages on using internet anonymously. In fact, using internet anonymously can help preventing privacy leakage and protecting users’ freedom of speech, which can maintain our social discipline. However, using internet anonymously can also weaken internet users’ responsibility, and give some offensive comments. It may possible to evolve the situation to cyber bullying, which gives the receiver a huge mentally impact. Reference list: Claudia, R. (2003). Evolving attitudes towards anonymous posting on the internet. Journal of Internet Law, 7 (1), 3. Fu, K. W., Chan, C. H. & Chau, M. (2013). Assessing censorship on microblogs in China: Discriminatory keyword analysis and the Real-Name Registration Policy.. IEEE Internet Computing., 17 (3), 42-50. Andrea, K. (2013). Web users should have the right to remain anonymous in cyberspace.. Engineering & Technology (17509637), 8 (9), 32. Clapperton, G. (2013). Web users shouldn’t have the right to remain anonymous in cyberspace.. Engineering & Technology (17509637), 8 (9), 33.

Causes And Effects Of Brain Drain In Economics

Causes And Effects Of Brain Drain In Economics Introduction: According to a definition, ‘Brain Drain’, academically also known as the â€Å"human capital flight† is the large scale migration of highly educated, skilled and talented people of less economically advanced countries to highly rich and developed countries of the world due to conflicted issues, political instability and lack of opportunities in the developing countries. Globally, relocation of intellectuals is as old as mankind. This terminology of Brain Drain originated in 1960, when most of the intellectuals like scientists and engineers who were the real assets or the future of any country, emigrated from United Kingdom to America. The unsolved issue of Brain Drain is happening all over the world for the sake of better working conditions including, the island nations of the Caribbean, the anterior colonies of Africa and mostly in federal economies like the Soviet Union previous Eastern Germany, where aptitudes were not monetarily salaried. This p henomena was not as severe till 1960’s but with the huge capacity lopsidedly migrate to West Germany and North America from less developed regions. Substantial exoduses of skilled people were apparent at altered epochs of the economic growth of the countries of Europe and North America. However, with the progress in science and technological fields, only the intellectuals and highly qualified brains was of extraordinary mandate in highly developed countries. With the deficit in the core stream, the developed countries had to be dependent on the LDC’s. Professionals migrated from developing countries to three Developing countries (USA, Canada and United Kingdom) in 1960’s and by 1970’s, the figure had mounted. If one were to investigate statistics of all Developed Countries, the records would be alarming. This drift has continued in Africa and loss of huge qualified manpower is happen immigrations to Europe and North America annually. The questions that is arise in the social, political, economic, academic and probably in every sector of developing world. According to question the phenomena happened there are countless questions, but I want to explain the main attractions towards the developed world and why do talented and outstanding brains leave their countries? What are the costs of such migrations paid by developing countries? What policies can be implemented to stem such movements from LDCs to DCs? The goal of this paper is to highlight the unsolved, conflicted issue of Brain Drain and the Scientific Diaspora and the cause and effect relationship in the global knowledge based societies and also to address the cancerous disease directing the developing countries to failure. I will highlight some major questions, giving some suggestions which help to make policies to fade the disparities and the exploitation of skilled and semi-skilled labour in the developed world who themselves benefited to create the legislative crime of Brain drain and to hijack the rights of Cos in the shape of Scientific diaspora communities. How and when Brain Drain happens and intensifies Since the beginning of 1960s, the phenomena of brain drain became a highlighted and critical issue. With the neo-liberal economy and the tsunami wave of globalization has given a golden chance to the opportunists and played a vital role towards better and quality life including all accessories in every sphere of life. Globalization has opened a window for the human capital to agglomerate and mobilize where the brain extract and yet best recognized and rewarded in the highly economically strong and advanced countries.

International Entrepreneurship Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

International Entrepreneurship - Essay Example People often misunderstand the terms entrepreneurs and leaders, it is perceived that both the terms are synonymous but in reality it is not so. The traits of an entrepreneur are quite similar to that of a leader but it is unfair to say that both the terms are synonymous. This paper is going to deal with the risks which the entrepreneurs take and the dividends the same pays at a later stage. The word seminal means original and influential. These two are the most important qualities expected of any entrepreneur. It is very important that an entrepreneur sustains the growth of the company and at the same should look forward to increasing the same and it becomes highly imperative that the company uses innovation and creativity. An entrepreneur is expected to have a drive which can take the company to another level altogether. The hunger of the entrepreneur should reflect in the activities of the company. Entrepreneurship is considered to be very risky and trick, simply because many new ventures fail to perform as expected. "Most commonly, the term entrepreneur applies to someone who creates value by offering a product or service. Entrepreneurs often have strong beliefs about a market opportunity and organize their resources effectively to accomplish an outcome that changes existing interactions." ( Wikipedia, August 21, 2008). People who think out of the box, in the sense that, those who are able to see an oppurtunity and react according to the situation usually become entreprenuers. Eutreprenership contributes immensely to economy of that particular country, it also creates many job openings for the people. There are many views of the entrepreneurs for instance the classical view, the psychological etc, innovation falls under classical view of the entrepreneurs and it is based on the assumption that the entrepreneur is doing rather than owning. Innovation provides the entrepreneur with a great start and enables early growth in the organization. The risk faced by the international entrepreneurs is much high than the domestic entrepreneurs. This is also because the activities of a foreign market are much more complex than the domestic market. The international entrepreneurs take full advantage of their access to the foreign markets and availability of cheap labor but everything comes at a price, they also have to adjust to the foreign culture quickly, failing to do so would go on to produce undesirable results for sure. The market power of an entrepreneur is increased by the movement in the market power. The same helps the entrepreneur in spreading the risk and leveraging faster returns on new products. To be an entrepreneur one needs to have greater independence and self -fulfillment. When a person becomes an entrepreneur, he/she becomes self employed and it is

Banking Globalization and Global Imbalances Essay

Banking Globalization and Global Imbalances - Essay Example As such, in order for a bank to operate profitably in the foreign market, it must be able to gain or realize gains that are not available to local competitors. These gains to be realized when a bank is operating in foreign financial sector usually stem from; geographical risk diversification, competitive and comparative advantage factors and efficiencies that are not attained when operating exclusively in the local markets. On comparative advantages, better intermediation technologies, superior management quality, and innovative products are among the factors frequently cited by both the internalization theory and the electric theory of multinational corporations (De Haas & Lelyveld 2010). However, these factors are not permanent in the case of banks diversifying internationally based on the assumption that financial firms usually have intangible assets that cannot be imitated and management quality is easily transferable. Information is a crucial comparative advantage for a bank to operate in abroad markets. Organizations prefer doing business with a less number of banks to ensure that their sensitive financial information is not revealed to too many financial firms. As such, once a bank establishes a relationship with an organization, it has a competitive advantage in serving the firm’s operations in the foreign markets. The increased importance of information in the banking sector has resulted to the shift from cross-border borrowing and lending towards the foreign banks’ local operations in the emerging countries (Mariotti & Piscitello, 2010). One of the best ways of exploiting comparative advantages arising from the private information in foreign markets is following the client. This means that banks usually expand in the countries where their client choose to invest so that they can be able to offer them services that they need.  

Advertising (Answer Question From Book , The New Account Manager.) Assignment

Advertising (Answer Question From Book , The New Account Manager.) - Assignment Example Previously, the advertising agency had the sole responsibility of managing al advertising activities for the company. 3. IMC stands for integrated marketing communications and it refers to the combined use of promotional methods such as PR, advertising, personal selling and sales promotion. The role of IMC for advertising agencies is to coordinate different promotional tools in order to reach a wide range of targeted consumers. IMC is helpful to consumers since they are able to select the information they want about different products and services from a wide range of sources. IMC plays a significant role for account managers since they are able to reach a wide range of different clients including the advertising agents. 4. An â€Å"org† shows the structure of the company or the organization. On the other hand, an operational chart outlines the map of people responsible for executing each task. These two are related in that an operational chart is derived from the org chart where tasks in each department are split to show each person responsible for doing them. 5. The basic logistical systems include different aspects that affect the operations of the company. In encompasses things like product processing, management of inventory and transportation or method of delivering the product or service to the customers. These factors are interrelated. 6. Above the line (ATL) advertising is specifically targeted at a large number of consumers and it utilises mass media to reach them. On the other hand, below the line (BTL) advertising specifically targets individual customers and it uses methods like coupons and personal selling to reach the targeted consumers. 7. â€Å"Orchestration† refers to the process of arranging different components or parts of something to make it complete. In a business, different sections are orchestrated in order to achieve the desired goals. On the

Socialization of Children Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Socialization of Children - Essay Example It is important that adults should get involved in the child's media use to generate the feeling of assistance, co-ordination and co-operation. Media greatly persuades the minds of children and therefore such means are turning out to be the shapers and culture value transformers. It could be believed that media do fling socialization, although incomplete but it does inculcate the feelings and there could be an obvious alterations in the attitude of the child, modifications in habits and beliefs. This could further be strengthened if co-viewing is done with the adult. Although there are certain repercussions to this also as it takes away the time of the child, social interaction is reduced, there could be more beliefs on fictitious dispositions which generates confusion, it affects the psychology as there are certain values which need to be curtailed otherwise viz. violence, advertising, sexuality etc. Watching more of computer and TV affects the communication and interactive skills a nd also the academics. Parents and associated members of family or society plays vital role in developing the psychology of the child. There are various methods which aid in the development of positive predisposition.

Environmental Protection Agency Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Environmental Protection Agency - Essay Example With the wide scope and scale of EPA’s thrusts and issues spanning practically all facets of the environment, evaluation of specific policies to determine whether some identified programs promote business investment or discourages it need to focus on a specific focus. To achieve the aim of the essay, the cleanup activities promoted by the Superfund, would be used to evaluate policies that either promote or undermine business investment. Superfund Background The Superfund is specifically designed to address the cleanup activities needed for hazardous wastes. The scope of the policies and guiding procedures to govern operations and activities under the Superfund are likewise vast encompassing areas such as the cleanup process and the site activities. Under the cleanup process, there are 10 major classifications with 44 indicated enforcement policies and guidance for implementation and direction. The site activities include 10 areas such as contacts and agreements, enforcements, worker health and safety, institutional controls, among others, that each have respective regulations and policies for due evaluation and implementation. Assessment of Policies As revealed by Gale Encyclopedia of Espionage and Intelligence, â€Å"EPA provides outreach and educational activities for communities surrounding the toxic waste sites to raise awareness of risks, prevention and avoidance strategies, and to promote direct involvement in cleanup activities† (The Gale Group, Inc., 2004). The EPA, through the Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance (OECA), as one of the policy enforcement agencies, â€Å"aggressively goes after pollution problems that make a difference in communities through vigorous civil and criminal enforcement that targets the most serious water, air and chemical hazards. OECA also advances environmental justice by protecting vulnerable communities† (EPA: OECA 2011, par. 1). The agency’s success in policy design and in enforcemen t relies on the joint collaboration and participation of other agencies, particularly with the Office of Administration and Policy (OAP) that â€Å"recommends national policy on issues pertaining to enforcement and compliance. OAP provides a wide range of administrative support services which includes: human resources, labor relations, budget, finances, contracts, grants, records management and management of the compliance and enforcement information on the Agency’s Web site† (EPA: OECA 2011, par. 13). The govening office in charge of policy design works in coordination with other offices to ensure that their policies are appropriately implemented and other appointed agencies monitor compliance to these regulations. The other crucial agencies that participate in enforcement of policies include the Office of Civil Enforcement, Office of Criminal Enforcement, Forensics and Training (OCEFT), Office of Compliance (OC), Office of Environmental Justice (OEJ), Office of Feder al Activities (OFA), Federal Facilities Enforcement Office (FFEO), and Office of Site Remediation Enforcement (OSRE). With the clarity of explicitly stated policies, regulations and governing compendium, as well as the specific regulating offices tasked with enforcement and monitoring of compliance to

MARKETING PROFESSIONAL Practice Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

MARKETING PROFESSIONAL Practice - Essay Example At the next level, the people who will work on this plan’s realization need to be identified and appropriately trained. The research for the staff required for the completion of an organizational plan begins within the organization. If specific competencies are involved in the particular project, then individuals with the required skills need to be identified. At this point, there is the following problem: is the organization involved able to respond to the financial needs of such initiative? In current case, the financial status of the particular (non – profit) organization is rather satisfactory – at least for now. However, the organization is not able of hiring staff; for this reason, volunteers will be asked to participate in the particular project – supporting the organization’s permanent staff. The various aspects of the specific scheme – of attracting volunteers – need to be carefully reviewed: a) volunteers will be treated like the permanent staff, b) the tasks allocated to volunteers will be checked – in accordance with the skills and the competencies of each individual, c) the time period of the volunteers’ participation in the project will be strictly defined – each volunteer will be asked to participate in the project for a short period – not more than a month – in order to guarantee the quality of the work provided but also the availability of volunteers, d) the performance of volunteers will be monitored – ensuring that volunteers who highly perform will be rewarded for their efforts; non-financial rewards could be provided to volunteers aiming to enforce their motivation. When the financial and the non-financial resources required for the specific project have been allocated – in the context described above – then the practical implications and challenges of the project should be identified and evaluated. First, the phases of the project need to be presented: a) in terms of location, the project will be

High income improves evaluation of life Essay Example for Free

High income improves evaluation of life Essay The premise that â€Å"Money buys happiness† is a one that is misconstrued by many in the pursuit of happiness. The perspective that having money creates happiness has been assessed by many from timely memorial but alas studies have shown that it is relative to the status and class of the individual and also the amount of money which one earns or possesses. Happiness can be defined as the state of mind or emotions based on a particular circumstance and feeling at a particular time. There are different interpretations of happiness. Contentment is a state of happiness and satisfaction or ease of mind. The well-being of an individual is a reflection of happiness and can be assessed by the subjective and emotional well-being of that individual. Money can be classified as an asset, property or resources owned by an individual or just currency which can be used to purchase goods and services. Subjective well-being is defined as a person’s cognitive and affective evaluations of his or her life. Subjective well-being (SWB) is defined as \a person\s cognitive and affective evaluations of his or her life\ (Diener, Lucas, Oshi, 2002). To truly evaluate whether money buys happiness or if there is a correlation between having money and being happy an in-depth study would need to be conducted. Studies have therefore been conducted by researchers who have done surveys to assess the socio-economic standard of living of various persons in society and also evaluating the third world versus a first world living improvement after acquiring a degree of wealth or additional income. The empirical data from the Gallup research organization using the Gallup- Healthways Well-Being index have shown that an increase in emotional well-being is exponentially related to an increase in income. However, that correlation is directly proportional to the degree of increase and size of the income. Surveys have been conducted in third world countries like Jamaica where per capita income is much lower than a first world country like the United Kingdom or Britain or the United States of America. The skilled labor force in third world countries with the requisite professional qualifications has a level of income acquisition and potential to earn and live a comfortable life which contributes to the lifestyle which has been sought after in the betterment of the professional individual’s status and quality of life. However social class and inequalities exist and the potential earning power decreases with the individual’s lack of skill and qualifications. A contradiction, however, exists where an individual from the Rural Area is compared with one from the urban townships. Many persons who have not been exposed to the urban cultures and opulent surroundings of the major cities have expressed happiness and contentment with their station and status in life as they enjoy their routines of farming lifestyles on rural plantations with their â€Å"low level† of income. One can, therefore, surmise that not experiencing another level or change in status can contribute to ones perceived the degree of subjective well-being and happiness. If one is not aware of riches he or she will not be able to recognize poverty. However, with the technological advancements and the Westernization of most countries, the United States of American and the country’s high standard of living has been portrayed as the pivotal ambivalent expression of what wealth and happiness should be. Therefore many continue to strive to achieve this pinnacle of success in the acquisition of more money to generate the peak of happiness. The resulting dilemma without insightful perspective is the unavailability of first world opportunities to achieve and acquire significantly more income to obtain the type of wealth and lifestyle portrayed by the Western Media. Research by the Gallup Healthways well-being index indicates that emotional well-being is directly proportional to the level of income one earns. The researchers theorize that beyond an annual income of $75000 there is no change in emotional well-being and therefore no increase in happiness as a result of any upward movement in income. There is, therefore, a level of satisfaction with the high degree of income but not overwhelming happiness. On the other hand, low-income earners have an exponentially low level of life satisfaction and love emotional well-being. Having a large income provides the means to afford greater luxuries in life, desired comfort, and fulfillment. It provides status in life, access to greater health care and References Kahneman, D, and A Deaton. (2010). High income improves evaluation of life but not emotional well-being. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 107 (38): 16489-16493. Diener, E. Biswas-Diener, R. Social Indicators Research (2002)

Benefits And Disadvantages Of Internet Banking

Benefits And Disadvantages Of Internet Banking This chapter will review the e-banking system in Malaysia and review the relevant literature on consumer perception towards e-banking. In addition, this literature review also considers the discussion of customer satisfaction and loyalty towards internet banking. 2.1 Benefits and Dis-advantages of Internet Banking 2.1.1 Benefits of Internet Banking Bu using internet, clients can access to their accounts doing transaction or access to other services with cost reduction and more convenience because online bank are operation 24hours per day, 7days per week. Furthermore, banks able to expand their market penetration internationally and offer personalized online services like clients able to check their account balances and monthly statement by login to the secure website of the bank, make payments, and transfer funds to other accounts. The speed of online banking transaction is generally faster than ATM processing speeds. Internet banking also provides advantages likes flexibility, individually and mobility which is a brand new distribution channel for clients to make on-line transaction. The improvement of internet protection through security technologies such as automatic log-off, firewalls, encryption, monitoring tools and authentication to ensure clients trust on internet banking (Banking Info, 2007). Table 1 are the benefits arise are summarized by Thulani et al.(2009) in their research paper on various study of internet banking. Benefits Related literature Cost Reduction Bradley and Stewart (2003), Rotchanakitumnuai and Speece (2003), Jayawadhera and Foley (2000), Nath et al 2001, Al-Sukkar and Hasan (2005) and Singh (2004), Corrocher (2002),Chang (2003), Sullivan and Wang (2005). Increased customer base Bradley and Stewart (2003), Jayawadhera and Foley (2000), Jen-Her Wu et al 2006 and Singh (2004), Corrocher (2002). Enable innovation and development of non-core business services Jayawadhera and Foley (2000), Nath et al. (2001), Karem (2003), Corrocher (2002), Chang (2003). Marketing and communication Jayawadhera and Foley (2000), Karem (2003), Corrocher (2002). Increased consumer loyalty and satisfaction Jen-Her Wu et al 2006 and AL-Sukkar and Hasan (2005), Nath et al. (2001). High profit consumers Jen-Her Wu et al 2006 and AL-Sukkar and Hasan (2005), Nath et al. (2001). Ability to attract new consumers AL-Sukkar and Hasan (2005). Table 1: Benefits of Internet Banking Source: Thulani et al. (2009) 2.1.2 Dis-advantage of Internet Banking AL-Sukkar and Hasan (2005) and Singh (2004) had identify the disadvantages of develop internet banking. They stated clients have to pay indirect cost as some of the internet banking systems charge money on browsing connectivity on personal computer. Moreover, cash are not available through internet. Customers are unable to withdraw cash or deposit cash by using internet banking. They also emphasize on security concerns, the issue of security concerns may delay the clients adoption of internet banking. Before using internet banking, applicant required to go through some procedure in one of the bank branch, especially the clients want to open a joint account. Some of the clients not familiar to internet browsing, they have to go through tutorials to familiarize with the navigation tools. Unfortunately, clients require re-familiarizing the navigation tools to access their account once banks update and upgrade their online system. Last but not least, trustworthiness is the most difficult yet most important issue face by clients. They always wonder whether the transaction or payments have been proceeding to another account accurately. 2.2 Aspect that Influence Consumer Perception towards Internet Banking The financial institutions have been use the Internet as an alternative way in order to provide services and interact with their customers. The electronic banking (e-banking) is no exception. Three of the most important characteristics of financial services to extend e-banking are: High availability, Scalability, and Security. (Antovski and LJ, 2001). According to them, high availability also can define in reliability, availability and serviceability. The e-banking are design for easy and continuous service to customers. Yibin and MU (2003) also stated the three improvements of the system infrastructure which are to build-up the reporting services for online transaction, improve the e-payment system, and improve the telecommunications infrastructure and other forms of electronic transaction. Factors such as the speed of transactions or the cost of using the Internet have little impact on an individuals final decision. After setting up better system infrastructure through Web, the new delivery channel can highly recommended to clients by giving guarantee on security, privacy and trust of Web system to minimize barrier. The adoption of electronic banking forces consumers to consider concerns about password integrity, privacy, data encryption, hacking, and the protection of personal information (Benamati and Serva, 2007). The following research provided the analysis on different aspect that will effect customer perception towards internet banking. 2.2.1 Electronic Security (E-Security) Electronic security is a tool or process designed to restrict entry or prevent unauthorized access to a systems information assets or is a risk-management (Thomas et al., 2002). Mueller (2001) stated that e-security prevents the hacker and others from accessing customers information, security pin number or credit card number. Thomas et al. (2002) highlighted e-security adds value to a naked network. As Internet is a new distribution channel for banking system, it require to providing sufficient security to maintain trustworthiness of clients towards the internet. Any inexpedient of security in Internet usage may lead to increase fear and desperate among the clients and bar them to use the banking system as their private information being hacked. Thomas et al. (2002) stated that although technology offer a new distribution channel for financial institution but it creates opportunities for crimes to be committed very quickly. A criminal can use the tools available on the Web to hack database on internet and steal personal hidden identities in seconds. This is why e-security must be taken very seriously. However, Raigaga (2000) stated that some banker has delay the online banking service due to the security concern. Consumer perceptions of security are measure through the operations and processes of encryption, protection, verification and authentication. The mechanisms of encryption, digital authentication, firewalls, protection, filtering routers, and personal identification numbers influence the internet customers perception towards security and might increase the confidence and trust of consumer. E-security is one of the important factors to be stressed. Most of the customers refuse to use internet banking as the alternative way to carry on transaction and payment because they afraid of losing their private information and data on hacker. 2.2.2 Trustworthiness Trust is considered as a strategic variable in current marketing (Selnes, 1998). Meanwhile, the development of internet banking brings new challenges, this lead to an increase of motivation in bank to provide a better service. Bank image will might slightly improve if clients able to enjoy better service. Bank image and consumer trust are significant influence the individual behavior (Ratnasingham, 1998). Bank image and customer trust are significantly affect individual behavior and their level of perception (Ratnasingham, 1998; Rexha et al., 2003; Lehu, 2001; Ba, 2001). Since the online banking give a higher level of risk to the clients, so Gefen et al. (2003) stated that trust is an important aspect to take note when doing internet transaction because it determines the nature of businesses. The issue of trust arises when risk is involved. Trust is the main factor being concern because bank and clients are physically separated from each other and there is a large number of suspicious about the e-security over the Internet. Generally, customers distrust and worries about the reliability of internet banking even the e-security system is good. Apart from this, Chellappa (2002) also emphasize on trust will be favorably influence with the increase in perceptions of security in EC (Electronic commerce) transactions. Furthermore, clients lack of confidence on the e-security is the main obstacle prevent e-banking is being developed further. As William Pitt, the eighteenth century British statesman once said,confidence is a plant of slow growth. Nexhmi et al. (2003) believe that trust and commitment are key relational mediators in the development of customers within the banking industry. According to them satisfaction will have a role in development but a more important element is to maintain close bank-customer relationship. Overall customer satisfaction with the bank will be directly related to the level of trust within the relationship. 2.3 Consumer Satisfaction and Loyalty Towards Internet Banking. For offline environments, it is common knowledge that quality of services and products is a key determinant of customer satisfaction and customer loyalty (Caruana, 2002; Cronin and Taylor, 1992; Kelley and Davis, 1994; Parasuraman et al., 1988). The quality of services delivered through a Web site has become a more significant success factor than low prices or being the first mover in the market space (Mahajan et al., 2002; Reibstein, 2002; Shankar et al., 2003). Research by Patricio et al. (2003) goes one step further to measure service quality of various banking services through different delivery channels, including the electronic and traditional channels. They have found that perceived service quality with one delivery channel has an impact on how another channel is perceived. Moreover, Fassnacht and Ko ¨se (2007) found that high electronic service quality in web-based services had an important role in building overall customer trust for the service provider. Furthermore, Jean-Michel (2003) notes that customer is most important in designing, providing and evaluating the level of service quality. Customers past experience with the service is one of the factors that influence them to use Electronic banking for transaction. According to Vohra (2002), electronic banking makes it easier for customers to compare banks services and products. This can increase competition among banks and allow banks to enter into new markets by overcoming resistance and thus expand their geographical boundary. Banks operate websites through which customers are not only able to inquire about account balances, interest, and exchange rates but also conduct a range of transactions. Shailey et al. (2003) therefore notes that understanding customer requirements and meeting their demands and expectations is becoming a challenge. However, acceptance of this new technology has not yet been found to be equal in all parts of the globe indicating a lack of a common generalizability. Ramayah et al. (2002) suggest that users will eventually lose interest in using Internet banking if they feel that it is not useful to use Internet banking even though the system is rather easy to handle. One of the most important discussions was carried out by Machauer and Morgner (2001), who defined four clusters of German bank consumers. These were transaction oriented, generally interested, service oriented and technology opposed groups. In another study in Singapore, Liao and Cheung (2002) found that individual expectations regarding accuracy, security, transaction speed, user-friendliness, user involvement, and convenience were the most important quality attributes in the perceived usefulness of Internet-based ebanking. Among these, the first five determined the willingness of consumers to use of Internet based banking. According to Zorayda Ruth B. Andam (2003), 42% of respondents said they had access to computers and 7% said they had access to the Internet. Therefore, it can be perceived that this large variance has been found due to security obstacle in Asia and the emerging markets. This may be one of the greatest reasons why people do not initiate online banking or open inve stment accounts. Then, we might draw our concerns on perceived service quality and indeed, access to high quality services and products is another crucial concern. Apparently, there may also be a preference for personal contacts with the banks. customer satisfaction and customer retention are increasingly developing into key success factors in e-banking. http://www.mpexpert.com/images/stories/storydoc/Measuring_the_quality_of_ebanking_portals.pdf Sathye (1999) investigated the adoption of online banking by Australian consumers and argued that the intention of Internet banking in Australia is significantly influenced by variables of system insecurity, awareness of service and its benefits, ease of use, and availability of infrastructure Meanwhile the importance of the Internet to users banking needs relates to the advantages that accrue to the users of the technology in question. As adoption and the usage of the Internet banking services increases, a certain maturation point will be reached in the following years (Mà ¤enpà ¤Ãƒ ¤, 2006). Academicians also take a different stance in the theories they adopt when exploring consumer adoption of electronic banking (Laforet and Li, 2005). This study shows that only protected transaction, have significant impact on consumers perception about e-banking security, followed by service quality and regulatory frame work issues. This study offers an insight into e-banking in Malaysia. http://www.academicjournals.org/ajbm/pdf/pdf2009/Jun/Haqua%20et%20al..pdf African Journal of Business Management Vol.3 (6), pp. 248-259, June 2009 Available online at http://www.academicjournals.org/AJBM ISSN 1993-8233  © 2009 Academic Journals

The Vulture and the Child Essay examples -- Photograph Photography Ess

The Vulture and the Child This award winning photograph was taken by Kevin Carter in 1993 in the African country of Sudan. Carter won a Pulitzer Prize for this picture in March 1994 (Long). This picture shows a famine stricken child crawling towards a UN food camp which was situated nearly a kilometer away. This picture was first published on the front page of The New York Times on March 23, 1993; followed by Mail & Guardian, a Johannesburg weekly. Later, it was published in the National Geographic and TIME magazines. The picture created such a great impact that every possible media displayed it. This photograph intends to grab the attention of the entire world as a community striving to improve the quality of life. Considering the fact that this picture was published in major newspapers around the globe, the target audience is the general public of the world. Sudan is one of the poorest countries in the continent of Africa. Political instability in Sudan continued to bring famine, pestilence and death to the 3.5 million people who lived in that region. The violations of the rules of war committed by the government and the SPLA(Sudan People’s Liberation Army) factions were a direct and important cause of food shortages and deaths. The U.N. estimated that as many as 800,000 people were in immediate need of international food relief while another 700,000 needed non-food assistance as seeds, farming tools, etc just to feed the population of Sudan(Human Rights Watch). The country was in shambles with international trade deficits rising and constant famines making it nearly impossible to grow any food. This photograph was taken by Kevin Carter when the country was going through such a devastating crisis. ... ...rt/eadptxt.html> CY Leow’s Photoblog, â€Å"Photog’s Trauma.† Screenshots†¦:Photog’s Trauma 29 Jan. 2004. CY Leow’s Photoblog. 22 Mar. 2004. Human Rights Watch. â€Å"Sudan.† Human Rights Watch. 22 Mar. 2004. < http://www.hrw.org/reports/1994/WR94/Africa-09.htm> Cate, Fred. â€Å"Through a glass darkly.† Harvard University Asia Center 26 Aug. 1999. Harvard University Asia Center. 22 Mar. 2004. < http://www.fas.harvard.edu/~asiactr/archive/fs_cate2.htm> Hawthorne, Peter. â€Å"The Bang-Bang Club risked — and some lost — their lives to capture defining images of human tragedy.† TIME Europe | Books : Moments in Time 9 Oct. 2000. TIME Magazine. 22 Mar. 2004. < http://www.time.com/time/europe/magazine/2000/1009/bang.html> Carter, Kevin. Mar 1993.

American Slavery Essay -- Slavery in the United States

Enormous changes swept through nearly every facet of American society in the years between the American Revolution and the Civil War, and the institution of slavery was no exception to this rule. Prior to the Revolution, slavery existed in every American colony. The growing population of settlers was founded on and maintained by notions of inequality, in which indentured servants and slaves provided the necessary manpower for the development of a largely agricultural economy and the settlement of an ever-diminishing frontier. First- and second generation whites began to equate race and servitude as white indentured servitude waned and black slaves came to represent the primary source of forced labor in the Americas. In the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, many whites and blacks negotiated the terms of slavery for the first time – new slaveholders sought to define the status of slaves and to create a viable workforce out of individuals unfamiliar with the language, land, or expectations of their keepers; new slaves, still intimately tied to their native languages and cultures, struggled to comprehend the new status forced on them in a strange land. As each group viewed the other as hostile strangers, dehumanization and brutality were commonly employed by new masters to conform African behavior to their expectations and needs. After the American Revolution, slavery underwent significant transformations in concert with larger changes sweeping the political, economic, and religious structure of the nation. The spirit of liberty in which the revolution was fought gave pause to whites who had begun to take the status of bondsmen for granted and elicited different responses in the North and South. Gradual emancipation in ... ... different from that of the colonial years – it was a distinctly Southern institution, grounded in the accepted tradition of generations past, bringing masters and slaves into closer contact, and eliciting radical opposition for the first time in the North. In other ways, antebellum slavery was a product of its earlier embodiment, shaped and transformed by the political, economic, and religious revolutions of the interwar years, just as the rest of society was. By 1861, an even greater revolution would be necessary to form a society free from its yoke. Works Consulted Douglas, Frederick. Narrative of the Life of an American Slave, Written by Himself. New York: Signet, 1968. Ginzberg, Lori D. Women in Antebellum Reform. Wheeling, IL: Harlan Davidson, Inc., 2000. Kolchin, Peter. American Slavery, 1619-1877. New York: Hill and Wang, 2003. American Slavery Essay -- Slavery in the United States Enormous changes swept through nearly every facet of American society in the years between the American Revolution and the Civil War, and the institution of slavery was no exception to this rule. Prior to the Revolution, slavery existed in every American colony. The growing population of settlers was founded on and maintained by notions of inequality, in which indentured servants and slaves provided the necessary manpower for the development of a largely agricultural economy and the settlement of an ever-diminishing frontier. First- and second generation whites began to equate race and servitude as white indentured servitude waned and black slaves came to represent the primary source of forced labor in the Americas. In the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, many whites and blacks negotiated the terms of slavery for the first time – new slaveholders sought to define the status of slaves and to create a viable workforce out of individuals unfamiliar with the language, land, or expectations of their keepers; new slaves, still intimately tied to their native languages and cultures, struggled to comprehend the new status forced on them in a strange land. As each group viewed the other as hostile strangers, dehumanization and brutality were commonly employed by new masters to conform African behavior to their expectations and needs. After the American Revolution, slavery underwent significant transformations in concert with larger changes sweeping the political, economic, and religious structure of the nation. The spirit of liberty in which the revolution was fought gave pause to whites who had begun to take the status of bondsmen for granted and elicited different responses in the North and South. Gradual emancipation in ... ... different from that of the colonial years – it was a distinctly Southern institution, grounded in the accepted tradition of generations past, bringing masters and slaves into closer contact, and eliciting radical opposition for the first time in the North. In other ways, antebellum slavery was a product of its earlier embodiment, shaped and transformed by the political, economic, and religious revolutions of the interwar years, just as the rest of society was. By 1861, an even greater revolution would be necessary to form a society free from its yoke. Works Consulted Douglas, Frederick. Narrative of the Life of an American Slave, Written by Himself. New York: Signet, 1968. Ginzberg, Lori D. Women in Antebellum Reform. Wheeling, IL: Harlan Davidson, Inc., 2000. Kolchin, Peter. American Slavery, 1619-1877. New York: Hill and Wang, 2003.

Laissez-fair Economics :: essays research papers

The United States of America generally operates under an economic policy known as laissez fair (let people do as they choose) economics. This type of economic system allows nearly no government intervention beyond the minimum necessary to allow the free enterprise system to operate according to its own laws. Laissez fair holds the traditional American belief in individual rights and responsibilities that has led to the creation of the wealthiest nation in the history of the planet. We know this type of economic policy works because our country has prospered for so many years under its format. One portion of laissez fair economics that focuses on individual rights and responsibilities without government intervention pertains to owning a private business. The right for anyone to own and operate a private business in our country is the central idea to letting the people create their own wealth. New and upstart businesses have a chance to be successful because there is always another place in the market for new and innovative products. If you want to get rich you have to be inventive, produce a product that people can afford, and be better at serving customers to earn more capital. This all revolves around the individual and their responsibilities to make a better product to get ahead because if they relax someone else will swoop up their business and their money. People work harder, longer, and better if they are working for themselves or a private business rather than a communist government. Although the belief in individual rights and responsibilities is important there must be some kind of government intervention. The government helps regulate bad companies selling third rate products and helps protect the consumer from buying these products. The government also intervenes if a company has an unfair monopoly over the entire market to help promote smaller businesses to enter the market and have a chance to produce revenue. We also know that if there is total government control the wealth of the individual suffers. Some of the poorest countries in the world rely on a Socialist government and lack economic growth and wealth.

The BCS system versus the playoff system

The NCAA division 1-A football is different from the rest of the sports in that it uses the BCS system to determine its champions instead of the normal playoff system. The BCS includes a polling system to determine the two best teams in the country, who then play against each other at a bowl game and the team that wins becomes the overall national champion. It has been said to be a very complicated formula and less preferred than the play off system.Supporters of the adoption of a playoff system in the ongoing debate argue that the BCS system is making the football fans to miss the high level of excitement that is normally there in other tournaments. Others say that the true champion can only be determined in the field, so the BCS system should be denounced. This is a well put phrase, in that out of the possible 28 games, only one game counts. If a play off system was adopted, then the fans would have 16 team playoff matches to watch, which is obviously much more exciting compared to watching just one determining game.(Bruce Varnadore, Will College football ever have a playoff? ) The BCS system was modified in 2004 and some champion determinants such as the records set by the team, how strong their schedule is and numbers of their wins were eliminated. The new system then included polling, where the coaches and the Associated Press writers were required to vote in order to determine the champions. This means that the voter’s influence on who the champions should be in the current system is two-thirds, compared to that of the old system which was only a quarter, which makes the situation even worse than before.(James Alder, About. com). The National Council of Athletic Association should adopt the playoff instead of the BCS system that is still in use. It does not seem to understand that the best and most legitimate manner that a champion can be crowned is through establishing a playoff system. They may say that the BCS is a far much better way to look fo r a champion among American colleges, but the truth of the matter is that it is not. I believe that a champion should defend his title at the pitch through the action he shows, not by being voted in.This would not only create a lot of excitement for the fans, but it would also give more meaning and gusto to the beginning of the year. Arguments for the playoff. The playoff system would generate as much money as the BSC system. The estimated cash in flows are estimated to be between three to four hundred million dollars, and if this money was distributed fairly among all division 1-A schools, then each school could get approximately 2. 5 million dollars every season. (Bruce Varnadore, will college football ever have a playoff?) Deserving teams that have good players and who’ve got game are denied the chance to be in the competition for the national championship title. Such teams as the BYU, a non conference team, are not given an equal chance and are therefore left out. This is not only a waste of talent, but is also shows unfairness. The playoff system would establish who the champion is through a one on one competition among all the teams. This is the much preferred bowl among many football fans. A recent opinion poll showed that most people prefer the playoff system than the BSC system.The results were such that 82 percent of the respondents would love to see a change in the current bowl games system, BSC to a playoff. The playoff system has also been favored because it would at least minimize the doubts concerning who the national champions should be even if it would not completely eliminate them. The play off system would work out just as fine as it does in the other season's games. Those in favor of the BSC system have said that the playoff would take a longer season and student players would not have enough time to concentrate on their academic work.However, this is not true because the division 1-AA applies a 16 team playoff system, and most times finishes ten days to the New Year, much earlier than the division 1-A games. It would also be much easier to implement the aforementioned system just as the NCAA implemented the BSC system. Arguments against the BSC system. Firstly, the basis on which a national champion is selected is unfair because it is based on statistics of people’s preference and personal opinion instead on the performance in the pitch.Secondly, there have always been controversies on who the real winner should have been had the game not been judged on the polls, but on action performance. Thirdly, just a single off game can cause the team to be eliminated from the championship contention, and finally, the minor non-BSC conference teams are often disadvantaged because they never get the chance to contend at the championship games. These are just but a few of the many shortcomings of the BSC system that make the fans of the game wonder why the NCAA won’t just adopt the playoff system.(James Alder , About. com). I think its time that the NCAA woke up, realize that this is the 21st century and bring a lot more excitement to the field. The empty seats at many of the bowl games should be enough indicators to them. Moreover, the idea of â€Å"preserving the culture and the integrity of bowl games† has been labeled as a lame excuse to avoid implementing the playoff system. They need to know that football fans deserve the kind of action there used to be just a few years ago, from Rose, Sugar and Gator to the big games at Orange bowl.(Gilbert Don, College bowls on road to nowhere. ) Works Cited 1) Alder. J. BCS vs. Playoff System, 1/5/2006. About. com, Retrieved 1/15/2009 http://football. about. com/od/bowlchampionship/i/bcsvsplayoffs. htm 2) Gilbert Don, College bowls on road to nowhere, January 4th 2009, HOF blog, Retrieved 1/16/2009: http://blog. hofmag. com/2009/01/04/college-bowls-on-road-to-nowhere/ 3) Varnadore Bruce, will college football ever have a playoff? 2003, Co llege football, Retrieved 1/16/2009: http://iml. jou. ufl. edu/projects/Spring03/Varnadore/index. htm

New Product Launch Marketing Plan Essay

Audi LED headlights Audi is a top of the line luxury car manufacturing company who plans to achieve goals and provide consumers with one of kind products. Audi has decided to create a new LED head light with spot detection capabilities to assist with consumer safety while driving in the city, as well as down country roads. Audi has assessed the need for their new product and has found that the new LED headlights with spot detection would be great for the consumer as well as the company sales. Through past research by Audis team we have found that several accidents within the United stated States occurred due to poor head lights or blinding head lights. Though Audis current venture is geared towards consumer’s with families who travel at least 100 miles a week, their game plan is to incorporate this light into all vehicles. We will address the areas of target population, product position against the competitions, as well as each stage of the product life cycle and our expansion of product offerings. Audi focuses on people (Idea Connection, 2014). This new innovation of LED head lights will do just that; focus on people. Audi will utilize the family and let them be the guide behind the quality and performance of this new offering (Idea Connection, 2014). Target market profile At Audi, we came up with this new headlight technology that is designed to make night driving safer. The target market for our product is composed of couples with children under the age of 15. Among these families, the focus will be on those who drive SUVs’, Minivans and Sedans. The target audience will be based around those parents who drive their kids to extracurricular activities like piano lessons or soccer, and who live either deep in the  country or outside of the city. One submarket will be those who live within the city and like to travel outside the city. These headlights are best suited for people who drive over 100 miles a day. In terms of income, we will target individuals with a college degree who make more than one hundred thousand dollars per year. Our product will also aim at corporations who offer company vehicle for their senior executives. Key buying behaviors Three factors influence consumers buying behaviors, those factors are cultural, social and personal (Kotler & Keller, 2012). In terms of culture, individuals during the course of their life will be influenced by family, friends, neighbors, and others. Our consumers are individuals whose family members are accustomed to luxury cars, preferably Audis’. Cultural factors influencing buying behavior in terms of culture are also social classes. Our consumers will be individuals belonging to the upper class of society. For these individuals owning a luxury car with the latest technology is a statement. On the social level of consumers buying behaviors, our target market will be influenced by factors such as reference groups, family, and social roles and statuses (Kotler & Keller, 2012). Our consumers will be influenced by family members, for instance a mother will most likely want her children to ride safely in a minivan, or SUV. A businessman will buy an Audi sedan because it is a luxury car and it tell others what social class he belongs to. Our target consumers are influenced by membership groups. One example is an individual who buys a luxury car to blend in with others in hos social circle who also own luxury cars. â€Å"Personal characteristics that influence a buyer’s decision include age and stage in the life cycle, occupation and economic circumstances, personality and self- concept, and lifestyle and values.† (Kotler &Keller, 2012, p.155). Our consumers will be men and women, 30 years old or older. The target customers are also educated and very thoughtful as they carefully weigh the benefits of purchasing such a product (Rao, 2014). We believe that as mothers and wives, our consumers will be focused on safety. There have been a lot of plane crashes lately, because of that more and more people decide to drive instead of fly. Corporations will be concerned with profit. Corporations will see great benefit in Audi as it relates to the new LED head lights. The thought of safety will both save the company money, attract eager and loyal employees,  as well as give a strong impression on both competitors and new clients. Decision motivators for consumer/organizational target markets The primary decision motivators for buying the new headlights on the Audi car are the enhanced safety features of the product. Since the primary feature of the new headlights leads to secure driving, it will appeal to almost all consumers. On the other hand, the organizational target markets will entail the demographics of the urban areas. Geographic target markets will target the individuals who live in the urban areas that have developed infrastructures (Novak, De Leeuw & MacEvoy, 2011). Product life-cycle (PLC) LED headlights continue to develop short and long-term strategies in the product life-cycle. The first of four stages is the introduction into the market; customer-value hierarchy is vital during the introduction stage, which identifies the core benefit of the product and creates a detailed description of the basic product. The augmented product value stage must surpass the customer yearning for safety and technology. In addition, marketers will incorporate future potential product growth. The product design can be incorporated into any Audi vehicle during the manufacturing process. The LED headlight will be an upgrade option, and pricing will be slightly higher than Audis without the LED headlight. A strong customer-value hierarchy strategy will enhance product promotion, and the place to launch the LED headlight will be a joint effort with Audi Automotive. During the initial growth phase, pricing will remain slightly higher than Audis without the LED headlight. Based on the lesson learned during the introduction of the LED headlight, the customer-value hierarchy strategy will adjust to meet customer expectations. Product promotion will continue to expand into new markets. The maturity phase begins when the LED headlight implementation reaches market equilibrium; pricing will remain the same during this phase. If the product continues to exceed customer-value hierarchy strategy, the product promotion will continue with the addition of customer and law enforcement reviews. Research and development continues to improve the LED headlight technology. The decline phase begins when market followers enter the market; pricing will then be slightly reduced in an attempt to slow the rate of decline. Product promotion will then be redirected to the new and improved LED headlight. Promotions and places to  launch the new product will be nationwide rather than regional launches during the introduction phase. Product mix A Product Mix is referred to as â€Å"the complete range of products produced by a company.† (http://businesscasestudies.co.u). That being said, Audi plans to unleash its new LED headlights in all of its product lines, which will appeal to the varying types of drivers who have a plethora of different needs and wants in a luxury vehicle. Audi produces a multitude of options for consumers to choose from. These products include 13 sedan options that range from $29,900 to $137,900, six SUV/Crossover/Wagon options that span from $32,500-$51,900, six Coupe options ranging from $40,000-$115,900, and seven Convertible options that span from $35,600-$129,400. (http://www.audiusa.com). With 32 available products that can be altered to match the driver’s particular style, the LED headlight is poised to grant the ultimate driving experience. â€Å"Audi revolutionized vehicle lighting with the first full-LED headlamps in 2008.† (http://www.audileds.com). Audi responded to the automobile industry’s need to change how vehicle headlights affect road conditions for all drivers. Audi continues to enhance its LED design, which is sure to darken its competitors’ vision of the future of automobile driving experience and further differentiating itself by not only enhancing driving conditions, but will be made available in a variety of options. â€Å"Only one square millimeter in size and offered on every vehicle in the lineup, LEDs have opened up an array of styling opportunities for Audi designers.† (http://www.audileds.com). Audi adds that â€Å"these little marvels can be combined to create infinite shapes and arrangements, giving each vehicle a look that’s distinct yet unmistakably Audi.† (http://www.audileds.com). Positioning statement â€Å"For you that spend hours behind the wheel, Audi is one in its luxury class that provides not just the looks of a high end vehicle but the safest lighting for safe traveling. Unlike traditional vehicles Audi provides a combination of class, luxury, and the safest selection to keep you and loved ones safe†. Audi is not only committed to provide its consumers with top  notch service but it has also taken measures to separate itself from the competition. Audi is improving all of its vehicles by providing â€Å"LED lighting† on all its vehicles as part of its standard package. Audi’s positioning statement carries words such as â€Å"luxury, safe, traveling, family† which will always come to mind for those searching for a vehicle to purchase. Audi’s statement is targeting families, those that travel a lot, those that enjoy the luxury of a vehicle but at the same time want to keep themselves and loved ones safe. The consumers spoke and Audi listened. Their position statement is meaningful, important, and convincing to its customers, not just to the company. The Audi brand will deliver on this promise and continue to earn the trust and respect from consumers. References Anonymous. Staying ahead by meeting changing consumer needs. Business Case Studies: A Heinz case study. Retrieved August 2, 2014 from http://businesscasestudies.co.uk/heinz /staying-ahead-by-meeting-changing-consumer-needs/the-product-mix.html#axzz39FCRkOTR Defeat Darkness. LED technology:The vision of LED;View the LED experience. Retrieved August 2, 2014 from http://www.audileds.com/ Idea connection (2014). Audi looks to the future of car production. http://www.ideaconnection.com/open-innovation-success/Audi-Looks-to-the-Future-of-Car-Production-00392.html Retrieved August 1, 2014 Kotler, P., & Keller, K. (2012). Marketing Management (14th Ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall. Models. Retrieved August 2, 2014 from http://www.audiusa.com/models# Novak, T. P., DeLeeuw, J., & MacEvoy, B. (2011). Richness curves for evaluating market segmentation. Department of Statistics, UCLA.