Review: Underwater to Get Out of the Rain: A Love Affair with the Sea by Trevor Norton

Underwater to Get Out of the Rain: A Love Affair with the Sea. 2004 in the U.K.; 2006 in the U.S. Trevor Norton. Da Capo Press, Perseus Books Group, 11 Cambridge Center, Cambridge, MA 02142. 385 p. Web address: www.dacapopress.com. Hardcover, US$ 25.00

Review: Great Waters: An Atlantic Passage by Deborah Cramer

Great Waters: An Atlantic Passage. 2001. Deborah Cramer, W. W. Norton & Company, 500 Fifth Avenue, New York, New York 10110. 442 pages. Web address: www.wwnorton.com. Hardcover, ISBN 0-393-02019-3, US$27.95. Paperback (published 2002), ISBN 0-393-32334X, US$ 15.95

Review: Corals of the World by J.E.N. Veron and Mary Stafford-Smith

Corals of the World. 2000. J. E. N. Veron (author) and Mary Stafford-Smith (editor and producer), Australian Institute of Marine Science, PMB 3, Townsville Mail Centre, Queensland 4810, Australia. 3 volumes, 1382 p. Email: [email protected]; web address: http://www.aims.gov.au/corals. US$175.00 or AU$265.00 set; discounts available for conservation and research organizations; student subsidies available

Book Reviews

World Atlas of Coral Reefs. 2001. Mark D. Spalding, Corinna Ravilious, and Edmund P. Green, University of California Press, Berkeley, California. 424 pages. Web address: http://www.ucpress.edu. Mailing address: The University of California Press, % California/Princeton Fulfillment Services, Inc., 1445 Lower Ferry Road, Ewing, New Jersey 08618. Clothbound, ISBN 0-520-23255-0. US$45.00, £29.95. Oceanographic Processes of Coral Reefs: Physical and Biological Links in the Great Barrier Reef. 2000. Eric Wolanski (editor), CRC Press, Boca Raton, Florida. 356 pages. Web address: www.crcpress.com. E-mail orders: [email protected]. Mailing address: CRC Press, 2000 N.W. Corporate Boulevard, Boca Raton, Florida 33431-9868. Hardcover, acid-free paper, ISBN 0-8493-0833- X, US$99.95, £66.99, CD-ROM included. The Everglades, Florida Bay, and Coral Reefs of the Florida Keys: An Ecosystem Sourcebook. 2002. James W. Porter and Karen G. Porter (editors), CRC Press, Boca Raton, Florida. 1,000 p. Web address: www.crcpress.com. E-mail orders: orders@ crcpress.com. Mailing address: CRC Press, 2000 N.W. Corporate Boulevard, Boca Raton, Florida 33431-9868. Hardcover, acid-free paper, ISBN 0-8493-2026-7. US$199.95

Using the Sayre Model to analyze Internet privacy

The Internet continues to evolve as a transportal of electronic commerce. It has penetrated into every facet of organizational life, from the ordering of commodity goods to providing a means to speed the recording and payment of federal income taxes. Internet usage continues to expand rapidly, surfacing issues in its wake that must be managed in order for it to ensure that it is viable as a long-term strategic tool for government and industry. To bridge the legal gap that has emerged as a result of the dynamic growth of the Internet, the United States Congress has acted to begin to address issues such as access to information and the unauthorized use of personal data. Though the issues themselves are not new, the amount of information and the rapidity of transfer of the information have been greatly expanded by the use of the Internet. This paper explores the relationship between the three dimensions (government, individual consumer needs and business as represented by industry groups) that are influencing the development of a legislated Internet privacy model

Competing in the Virtual World: E-Commerce Factors that affect the Property-Casualty Insurance Industry

Electronic commerce has exploded; its expansion projections are consistently understated. We explore the current state of the property-casualty insurance industry use of the Internet for electronic commerce, by analyzing the factors that affect the expansion and use of electronic commerce in the property-casualty insurance industry. The insurance industry has embraced the use of technology to expand its market and to provide better customer service. Competition within the United States has expanded recently to include companies in Europe and Asia. A survey of property-casualty insurance company web sites was performed to determine what types of services and features are currently offered through the Internet. Thirty-six web sites were sampled and the results showed that while no insurance company currently offers a fully electronic policy purchase process, there are a variety of services that are provided for through their web sites. The more common web based features include the ability to locate an agent, the ability to find information about how to report a claim, and the ability request a quote. Use of the Internet as a tool for electronic commerce within the insurance industry has not yet been fully utilized

Success Stories in Knowledge Management Systems

Historically, information systems have focused on capturing, storing, managing, and reporting explicit knowledge. Organizations today recognize the need to integrate both explicit and tacit knowledge in formal information systems. Knowledge management continues to be a critical strategy for an organization to achieve a sustainable competitive advantage, and consequently succeed in today\u27s knowledge-based economy. Knowledge management systems (KMS) are a class of information systems that manage, store and distribute knowledge. Knowledge management systems have proliferated in practice. In turn, theoretical research on knowledge management and knowledge management systems has proliferated. Knowledge management systems have emerged as powerful sources of competitive advantage. In this paper, we describe the characteristics and concepts of knowledge management systems. We explain how these systems transform modern organizations to high levels of success and present two successful cases that demonstrate this principal. We conclude with a summary of success factors that were common within two successful knowledge management system implementations