Influences of E-Retailer Sponsored Virtual Community on Consumer Loyalty: An Exploration of Underlying Mechanisms

An e-retailer sponsored virtual community (ESVC), as the backyard of an e-commerce website, provides consumers with an online platform to play with each other. Different from transactional e-commerce platform, ESVC assembles consumers together to fulfil their social needs. In recent years, with the popular of Web 2.0 information and communication technologies (ICTs), e-retailers also start to integrate social media within ESVC. This greatly increases consumers’ online community participation, as social media facilitate information sharing and interactions among community members with a social flavour. Moreover, social media provide a variety of IT artefacts to visualize the interactions between consumers and e-retailer, which reshapes the relationship between e-retailer and customer as a triad model. However, in this new context, the influences of ESVC characteristics and IT artefacts on e-retailer-customer relationship were not well investigated. Some researchers have made effort to open the “black box” between ESVC with social media investment and customer loyalty, but still lack theoretical foundations. This research explores the underlying mechanisms from a new perspective, and proposes a theoretical framework based on reciprocal theory

THE DEVELOPMENT OF A REAL-TIME FEEDBACK SYSTEM IN WEIGHTLIFTING

The purpose of this study was to develop a real-time feedback system (RTFS), which can provide weightlifters some useful information, such as the heights of the bar, video clip and so on, immediately after finishing their attempts under training conditions. A Kinect was used to capture the depth data and RGB video, the methods of the pattern recognition and algorithm were established, and the software was developed to identify the barbell and calculate the 3-D data of barbell COM (Centre of Mass). An experiment was carried out to compare the data from RTFS and that from 3D analysis based on video to check the reliability of RTFS. The results showed that the data of barbell COM obtained by RTFS can describe the movement of barbell sufficiently. This new system can help weightlifters to diagnose their skills and improve their training effectively

Physico-mechanical properties of particleboard made from seaweed adhesive and tapioca starch flo

Flour acted as filler was added into adhesive formulations in industry and it affects the performance of adhesive. Seaweed was chosen to act as adhesive as seaweed produces glue that can attach very strongly to the rocks despite the presence of contaminants. This study was conducted on physical and mechanical properties of particleboard by adding different percentages of tapioca starch flour (0%, 25%, 50%, and 75% based on solid basis) into seaweed adhesive formulation. 100% urea formaldehyde was used as control in the production of particleboard. The particleboards were cut and tested based on JIS A5908. The moisture content was lowered from 11.00 to 8.45% when 25% tapioca starch flour rose to 75% when added into seaweed adhesive. Thickness swelling declined from 40.18 to 26.55% and water absorption from 192.25 to 96.21% when 75% tapioca starch flour was added. Hence, it improved the physical properties of particleboard. Meanwhile, the mixing of higher percentage of tapioca starch flour into seaweed adhesive contributed a higher value of modulus of rupture, modulus of elasticity and internal bonding. In a nutshell, mixing higher percentage of tapioca starch flour in seaweed adhesive improved the physical and mechanical properties of seaweed adhesive in particleboard