Exam, 2 hours - 50% (Unseen - Learning outcomes 1 and 2).

Coursework, 5,000 words maximum - 50% (Learning outcomes 3 and 4).

Students will work in teams to develop a prototype e-commerce site and produce a technical report.

This module provides a framework for understanding the issues and trends relating to electronic commerce. Its overall focus is on understanding how the technology can be used to support such business applications. The starting point is therefore from the business perspective, to understand the business needs, and the social and legal aspects that affect electronic trading. A broad introduction to the technology then introduces how such systems can be constructed.

As this module provides an important bridge into the field of e-commerce, the lecture material will focus strongly on the application domain. Case studies of actual e-commerce sites will be the focal point of the tutorial sessions, and an assignment will be concerned with providing a critical evaluation of existing practices.The students will have an opportunity of developing Web based materials through the practical sessions, with a group based assignment.You will be expected to cover a wide range of topics, many of which must be studied in your own time under the direction of academic staff. You must apply generalisation, abstraction and make critical judgements in understanding and applying the material.
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PC with Internet accessWebserver: NT IIS, ASP.NET, relational databaseWeb authoring tools - HTML, XML, JavaLibrary

Core Texts:

Electronic Commerce, Sixth annual edition, Schneider Gary P, Thomson Course Technology, ISBN 0-619-217049 (2006) and subsequent editions are also suitable.

Recommended Texts:

Usability for the Web: Designing web sites that work, Brinck T, Gergle D, Wood S D, Morgan Kaufman Publishers, ISBN 1-55860-658-0, (2002).
E-Business and E-Commerce Management, Chaffey David, Pearson Education Ltd, ISBN 0273 65188 9, (2002).
E-Commerce Strategy, Technologies and Applications, Whiteley David, McGraw Hill, ISBN 007 709552 9, (2000).

Background Reading:

E-Commerce Fundamentals and Applications, Chan H, Lee R, Dillon T, Chang E, John Wiley & Sons Ltd, ISBN 0 471 49303 1, (2001).
Electronic Commerce B2C Strategies and Models, Elliot Steve, John Wiley & Sons Ltd, ISBN 0-471-48705-8, (2002).
Electronic Commerce - Strategies and Models for Business-to-Business Trading, Timmers Paul, John Wiley & Sons Ltd, ISBN 0-471-49840-8, (2000)

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