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When purchasing digital content (DC), consumers are typically influenced by various information sources on the website. Prior research has mostly focused on the individual effect of the information sources on the DC choice. To fill the gap in the previous studies, this research includes three main effects: information cascades, recommendations and word of mouth. In particular, the purpose of this paper is to focus on the interaction effect of information cascades and recommendations on the number of software downloads.

The authors use the panel generalized least squares estimation to test the hypotheses by using a panel data set of 2,000 pieces of software at download.cnet.com over a month-long period. Product ranking and recommendation status are used as key independent variables to capture the effects of information cascades and recommendations, respectively.

One of this study’s findings is that information cascades positively interact with recommendations to influence the number of software downloads. The authors also show that the impact of information cascades on the number of software downloads is greater than one of the recommendations from a distributor does.

Information cascades and recommendations have been considered as the primary effects for online product choices. However, these two effects typically are not considered together in one research. As previous studies have mainly focused on each effect, respectively, the authors believe that this study may fill the gap by examining how these effects are interacted to one other to influence customers’ choices. The authors also show that the impact of information cascades on the number of software downloads is greater than one of the recommendations from a system does.

Downloading and uploading offer labour‐saving advantages and are now accepted as useful options in online searching. All aspects are here considered, from recent technical advances, applications and legal attitudes. There is also a review of current software for downloading. Recent developments mean a trend to higher internal memory and storage capacity, and greater transmission speeds. Packages now offer access to more than one host, give maximum assistance to the user without being menu‐driven and incorporate the latest developments in artificial intelligence. Disadvantages are in the length of time involved in the process and the fact that the legal issue of copyright has not yet been finalised. Database producers have turned to licensing under contract law, but there is still need to rely on user ethics, and the need for a standard permissions form is highlighted.

The purpose of this paper is to summarise and evaluate the literature on digital consumer behaviour and attitudes towards digital piracy.

The paper presents a review and synthesis of the academic literature on the subject, using the authors' unique “pro‐forma” approach to the evaluation of individual papers.

A major limitation in the studies reported became apparent. They are almost exclusively concerned with the behaviours and attitudes of young people. There is a dearth of studies looking at demographic differences, and also a lack of longitudinal work. Given these constraints, the literature strongly suggests that social and situational factors impact on the likelihood of illegally obtaining digital content more than ethical considerations. Anonymity is a strong indicator, “de‐individualising” people and releasing them from traditional societal constraints and making the digital world far different from the physical one. The literature is ambiguous on whether punishment acts as a deterrent.

The main point that comes out of these studies is that the digital world is not the same as the physical world. It is changing basic assumptions about the idea of ownership, sharing, and copying content. Laws prohibiting all unauthorised downloading potentially criminalise millions of people, so new and creative business models are needed to resolve the problem.

The authors believe this to be the first systematic review of current literature in this area since the issue became topical with the Pirate Bay trial and the Government's Digital Britain report.

Software is available for downloading from many Internet sources. This article lists and describes World Wide Web, FTP and Gopher sites where software is available, as well as software newsgroups that Internet e‐mail users can join.

This article discusses downloading from OPACs in general and from the INNOPAC system in particular. It begins by setting out a brief philosophy of downloading, providing an introduction to OPAC downloading. It then discusses the practice of OPAC downloading with particular emphasis on tools for capturing and “postprocessing” downloaded flies. Technical and institutional constraints on downloading are addressed and an innovative program for overcoming some of these constraints is described in detail. The article concludes by considering various proposals for improving INNOPAC downloading capabilities.

The purpose of this conceptual paper is to provide a typology for classification of the digital goods business (DGB), analyzing its characteristics with selected cases, to suggest an evolution strategy appropriate for today's digital business economy, and to address the research implications.

Based on a focus group interview, the study identified and classified the DGB models into four types in terms of sales channels and service methods, and further proposed five evolution strategies for the DGM.

The paper proposes five evolution strategies for the DGB: from streaming direct to streaming intermediary; from download direct to download intermediary; from download intermediary to streaming intermediary; from download direct to streaming direct; and from download direct to streaming intermediary. These evaluation strategies will be suitably applicable to the type of digital goods for which a business strives.

As the study is exploratory in nature, further research will be required to empirically confirm the findings of the underlying study regarding various DGBs, such as software, games, and movies. In addition, as the proposed typology reflects only the current state of the DGB industry, a further elaboration of the typology may also prove necessary in the future as technologies and the DGB industry evolve.

Providing a useful theoretical foundation for future DGB studies and valuable insight into practical applications in the ever‐growing DGB field, the paper delivers transitional strategic insights based on digital goods taxonomy. This strategic implication can be applicable to analyzing and explaining current DGB cases.

Cloning software is now becoming quite popular in all types of libraries. Pricing is such that even smaller libraries can afford it. Cloning software basically takes an image of an entire hard drive and stores it on some kind of medium such as zip disks, compact disks, or a server’s hard drive. It can be used to roll out a group of new computers or as a backup system. It can be especially helpful to libraries that have limited staffing resources to devote to troubleshooting computer software problems. If a software problem occurs on a computer, it can basically be restored in a matter of minutes to the state it was in at the time the image was created. It is well worth the cost when purchasing computers in bulk for a new building or replacing a group of old computers. It is wise to consider a couple of things before going into the cloning business. First, design the images carefully. Second, create a method to track the images after they have been created. This article describes how cloning software can benefit a library as well as designing and tracking the images for most efficient usage.

Phishing attacks are the most common cyber threats targeted at users. Digital nudging in the form of framing and priming may reduce user susceptibility to phishing. This research focuses on two types of digital nudging, framing and priming, and examines the impact of framing and priming on users' behavior (i.e. action) in a cybersecurity setting. It draws on prospect theory, instance-based learning theory and dual-process theory to generate the research hypotheses.

A 3 × 2 experimental study was carried out to test the hypotheses. The experiment consisted of three levels for framing (i.e. no framing, negative framing and positive framing) and two levels for priming (i.e. with and without priming).

The findings suggest that priming users to information security risks reduces their risk-taking behavior, whereas positive and negative framing of information security messages regarding potential consequences of the available choices do not change users' behavior. The results also indicate that risk-averse cybersecurity behavior is associated with greater confidence with the action, greater perceived severity of cybersecurity risks, lower perceived susceptibility to cybersecurity risks resulting from the action and lower trust in the download link.

This research shows that digital nudging in the form of priming is an effective way to reduce users' exposure to cybersecurity risks.

Not only do microcomputers enhance productivity and efficiency in the workplace by the implementation of many applications — wordprocessing, information management, spreadsheet, calculations and financial models, graphics and so on, but they can now be used as a tool to tap the almost unlimited information available on the major online services. All that is needed are a few accessories to enable access to the hosts; thereafter, the user can adopt two routes: ‘downloading’ information on to a floppy or hard disk for personal manipulation of the data, or ‘uploading’ which enables quicker transfer of messages/requests/ orders, fast delivery of search results via electronic mail, data transfer to mainframe/minicomputer database or private file service which may offer fuller facilities such as major analytical processing.

The purpose of this paper is to provide an overview of free and open source (FOSS) geographic information system (GIS) software within the broader contexts of the open source software movement and developments in GIS, and pose the question of whether libraries and academic departments should consider adopting FOSS GIS.

The process of creating a basic thematic map was used to test six FOSS GIS software packages, as it is a multi‐step process and a good example of a common task GIS users would want to perform. The test demonstrates what the process of creating a thematic map using FOSS GIS involves and how it compares to proprietary software like ArcGIS.

Each of the individual FOSS GIS packages had their own particular strengths and weaknesses and some performed well for thematic mapping. The FOSS packages generally were weaker compared to ArcGIS in terms of support for various projection and coordinate systems, joining attribute data to GIS files, and automatic labeling, but their advantage is that they were free in terms of cost and licensing restrictions. When coupled with plug‐ins and helper applications the viability of the FOSS GIS packages increased.

There is little published research to date on the capabilities and applications of FOSS GIS despite the fact that it is a growing movement. This research provides a practical, application‐based overview and critique of FOSS GIS.