Made available in DSpace on 2014-06-11T19:27:49Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 0 Previous issue date: 2010-09-29Bitstream added on 2014-06-13T19:47:41Z : No. of bitstreams: 1 castro_dm_me_rcla.pdf: 1178878 bytes, checksum: 88d1232abc44a10cc6420408dc5b9230 (MD5) / Este trabalho aborda dentro da Geografia Cultural a importância da cultura na produção do espaço, tendo em vista o processo de industrialização da capital paulista, acentuando a cidade de São Paulo como um pólo de atração de movimentos migratórios. A introdução dessa nova massa populacional faz com que a cidade de São Paulo sofra mudanças estruturais, sendo que a mão de obra imigrante e a sua cultura regional tornam-se um dos fatores para essas mudanças. O trabalho faz um levantamento sobre o conceito de cultura abordado pela Geografia, dando destaque as escolas geográficas da França e da Alemanha, abordando o conceito de gênero de vida trazido para a Geografia por Vidal de La Blache / This work deals with the importance of the culture in the production of space, taking in mind the process of industrialization of the capital of São Paulo, once it is an icon of the migrating movements. The establishment of this new population mass forces the city of São Paulo to pass through structural changes, basically by the manual work of the immigrants as well as his regional culture becomes one of the main factors of these changes. This work makes a research about the concept of the culture dealt by Geography, pointing the geographical schools of France and Germany, dealing with the concept of genre of life brought to the Geography by Vidal de La Blache

Något som har blivit en stor fråga på sistone där arbetsgivare tvingats ta ställning är huruvida anställda har tillåtelse att använda sina privata enheter på arbetet eller inte. Användandet av smarta telefoner och surfplattor i privatlivet har på bara några år ökat relativt drastiskt. I och med detta så har viljan också blivit större bland arbetare att kunna utnyttja sina privata enheter även i arbetslivet. Detta fenomen kallas för Bring Your Own Device och implementationen av detta kan orsaka vissa problem och kan exempelvis påverka nätverkssäkerheten. Arbetet ämnade, att genom en enkätundersökning, undersöka hur pass vanligt det var att man tillät privata enheter i arbetet bland Sveriges kommuner och landsting. Det ämnade även undersöka vilka skyddsåtgärder som hade utförts för att skydda den resterande delen av infrastrukturen om man valt att tillåta BYOD. Resultatet från enkätundersökningen visar på att frågan ofta har lyfts bland organisationerna. Däremot har de oftast valt att inte införa BYOD på grund av olika anledningar såsom säkerhet, kostnader och brist på resurser. Har organisationerna istället valt att införa BYOD så har enheterna oftast separerats från de övriga nätverket på grund av säkerhetsskäl. / An ongoing question which have been brought into consideration lately is whether employees should be given the permission to bring their own devices to their jobs or not. The numbers of people using smartphones and laptops have been growing and with that, the will to make use of those devices at work. That phenomenon is called Bring Your Own Device and the implementation of it can cause network security related problems. This essay was written with the intentions to find out how many of the municipalities and counties that have allowed people to bring their own devices. The intentions was also to investigate which security actions that have been taken into consideration when securing the rest of the network from the brought devices. This was performed by sending out a survey. The result that the survey gave proves that BYOD have often been taking into consideration among the organizations. It also proves that many have chosen to not implement the phenomenon because of reasons like problem with the security, the costs, and the lack of resources. An overrepresented majority of the organizations who have chosen to implement it have decided to have the private devices in a separate network to secure the rest of the network infrastructure.

No description available.

Problembakgrund: Mellan år 1970-2009 utgjordes apoteksmarknaden i Sverige av ett statligt monopol, där Apoteket AB hanterade läkemedelsförsörjning för samtliga landsting i Sverige. År 2009 privatiserades däremot apoteksmarknaden, och landstingen fick nu välja om det skulle hantera läkemedelsförsörjningen i egen regi eller fortsätta upphandla tjänsten till en extern aktör. Åren efter avregleringen har landstingen valt att gå olika vägar, där några valt att fortsätta outsourca denna tjänst och andra har tagit hem tjänsten och hanterar den i egen regi. Med kostnadsbesparingar och vårdkvalitet i fokus för landstingen, är det därför intressant att undersöka varför de hanterar tjänsten olika. Syfte: Syftet med studien är att först kartlägga hur landstingen i Sverige hanterar läkemedelsförsörjningen och därefter undersöka och identifiera vilka kritiska faktorer som finns gällande valet av hanteringssätt. Vidare avser studien att analysera hur valet av hanteringsätt påverkas av dessa kritiska faktorer. Utifrån denna analys är det sedan möjligt att utarbeta en modell för sourcingbeslut gällande läkemedelsförsörjning i svensk hälso- och sjukvård. Metod: I studien genomfördes en surveyundersökning, där avsikten var att utföra strukturerade telefonintervjuer på samtliga landsting i Sverige. Studien utgick ifrån en kvantitativ forskningsstrategi med inslag av kvalitativa delar. Detta för att kartlägga landstingens hanteringssätt av läkemedelsförsörjning, samt undersöka drivkrafter och kritiska faktorer vid valet av hanteringssätt. Slutsats: En beslutsmodell i form av ett beslutsträd utformades för sourcingbeslut gällande läkemedelsförsörjningen för svenska landsting. Beslutsmodellen utgick ifrån tre huvudområden som var kritiska vid valet av hanteringssätt gällande läkemedelsförsörjning – fokus på kärnverksamhet, kostnadsbesparingar och vårdkvalitet. Dessa utgjorde grunden i beslutsmodellen, och var avgörande vid beslutsfattandet gällande hanteringssättet. / Background: During the years of 1970-2009 the pharmacy market In Sweden was run by the government, where Apoteket AB managed drug supply for all counties in Sweden. In 2009, however, the pharmacy market was privatized and the county councils, which are responsible for the Swedish health care, now had to choose whether it would manage the drug supply in-house, or continue to procure the service from an external player. The years after deregulation county councils decided to go different ways with this, where some chose to continue to outsourcing this service and other decided to manage it in-house. With cost savings and quality of care as the main focus of the county councils, it is interesting to examine why they handle this service differently. Purpose: The purpose of the study is to first identify how the county councils in Sweden handle their drug supply, and then examine and identify the critical factors by outsourcing this service or by managing it in-house. Furthermore, the study will analyze how the choice of managing this service in-house or outsource it is affected by these critical factors. Based on this analysis, it is then possible to develop a model for sourcing decisions regarding drug supply in the Swedish health care. Method: The study was conducted using a survey study, where structured telephone interviews were used as a data collection method on the county councils in Sweden. The study was based on a quantitative research strategy, with some qualitative elements. This was considered necessary to map out how the county councils managed their drug supplying, and to examine the driving forces and critical factors in choosing between outsourcing or in-house. Conclusion: A decision model in the form of a decision tree was designed for sourcing decisions regarding drug supply for the Swedish county councils. The decision model was based on three main areas that were established as critical in the selection of management methods regarding the drug supplying – focus on core activities, cost savings and quality of care. These areas formed the basis of the decision model, and were established instrumental in sourcing decisions regarding drug supplying in Swedish health care.

Tanto na área pública como na área privada, as necessidades de financiamento são diretamente proporcionais às decisões de investimento. Para cada unidade monetária a ser investida há a necessidade de se obter fundos para o financiamento desse investimento. Quando são levantadas questões sobre o assunto –necessidades de financiamento- e essas questões são associadas às finanças municipais, surge uma lacuna para a qual, até o momento, não há estudos e/ou pesquisas que forneçam uma resposta sobre como medir o risco de crédito dos municípios brasileiros. A busca dessa resposta é o objetivo deste trabalho. A pesquisa bibliográfica forneceu o aporte teórico, tanto em finanças e crédito, como no uso de modelos econométricos. A análise de modelos de insolvência, aplicados a empresas, contribuiu para orientar os modelos que poderiam ser testados e possivelmente orientados para a análise do risco de crédito dos municípios. A Lei de Responsabilidade Fiscal (LRF), como uma primeira medida para iniciar o processo de gestão responsável, e, provavelmente, em um futuro próximo, a obrigatoriedade de divulgação dos demonstrativos financeiros e auditorias independentes sejam também componentes obrigatórios na gestão municipal, como também a adoção de “ratings" municipais, contribuíram para a motivação do desenvolvimento de um modelo de risco de crédito de municípios . Após a obtenção dos dados financeiros dos municípios brasileiros (no sitio da Secretaria do Tesouro Nacional), dos dados demográficos (disponibilizados em CD pelo Instituto Brasileiro de Geografia e Estatística - Base de informações municipais 3), da opinião de diversos especialistas sobre seu conceito em relação ao risco de crédito apresentado por diversos municípios, do tratamento desses dados e da constituição de um banco de dados integrando todas as informações selecionadas, e aplicando-se a análise estatística discriminante ao banco de dados obtido, obteve-se um modelo estatístico com um nível de acerto aproximado de 70% / As many on public area as on private area, the financing needs are relative to investment decisions. For each monetary unit to be invested there is need to obtain funds to financing. When questions are made about this issues –financing needs- and those questions are associated to municipal finances, one hiatus appears at this moment, wich there wasn’t studies or researches to be able to provide a reply or a solution on the subject to measure the brazilians municipal credit risk. The search for this solution is the subject of the present work. The bibliographic research provide the theoretical base, as many in finances and credit, as econometrics modeling. The bankrupt modeling analysis applied to companies, contributed to orient the templates that could be tested and possibly oriented to municipal credit risk analysis. A special Law of Fiscal Responsibility (LRF), is the first rule to begin the responsible management process, and probably, in the near future, the obligation of disclosure the financial statements, and independent audits that may be the mandatory components on municipal management, as well as the adoption or acceptance of municipal ratings contributed to the motivation to development of one model of municipal credit risk. After the attainment of brazilian cities financial information, from the official National Treasure site, demographic data (available in CD of Brazilian Institut of Geography & Statistics’ database of municipal information), and about expertise’s judgments on the subject of concept in relation to credit risk presented for many cities, about the treatment of these information and the creation of a database that grant the full integration of selected information, applying the discriminant function analysiys to the database obtained, resulted a statistic model that hit a target level with approximatly 70%.

Tanto na área pública como na área privada, as necessidades de financiamento são diretamente proporcionais às decisões de investimento. Para cada unidade monetária a ser investida há a necessidade de se obter fundos para o financiamento desse investimento. Quando são levantadas questões sobre o assunto –necessidades de financiamento- e essas questões são associadas às finanças municipais, surge uma lacuna para a qual, até o momento, não há estudos e/ou pesquisas que forneçam uma resposta sobre como medir o risco de crédito dos municípios brasileiros. A busca dessa resposta é o objetivo deste trabalho. A pesquisa bibliográfica forneceu o aporte teórico, tanto em finanças e crédito, como no uso de modelos econométricos. A análise de modelos de insolvência, aplicados a empresas, contribuiu para orientar os modelos que poderiam ser testados e possivelmente orientados para a análise do risco de crédito dos municípios. A Lei de Responsabilidade Fiscal (LRF), como uma primeira medida para iniciar o processo de gestão responsável, e, provavelmente, em um futuro próximo, a obrigatoriedade de divulgação dos demonstrativos financeiros e auditorias independentes sejam também componentes obrigatórios na gestão municipal, como também a adoção de “ratings” municipais, contribuíram para a motivação do desenvolvimento de um modelo de risco de crédito de municípios . Após a obtenção dos dados financeiros dos municípios brasileiros (no sitio da Secretaria do Tesouro Nacional), dos dados demográficos (disponibilizados em CD pelo Instituto Brasileiro de Geografia e Estatística - Base de informações municipais 3), da opinião de diversos especialistas sobre seu conceito em relação ao risco de crédito apresentado por diversos municípios, do tratamento desses dados e da constituição de um banco de dados integrando todas as informações selecionadas, e aplicando-se a análise estatística discriminante ao banco de dados obtido, obteve-se um modelo estatístico com um nível de acerto aproximado de 70% / As many on public area as on private area, the financing needs are relative to investment decisions. For each monetary unit to be invested there is need to obtain funds to financing. When questions are made about this issues –financing needs- and those questions are associated to municipal finances, one hiatus appears at this moment, wich there wasn’t studies or researches to be able to provide a reply or a solution on the subject to measure the brazilians municipal credit risk. The search for this solution is the subject of the present work. The bibliographic research provide the theoretical base, as many in finances and credit, as econometrics modeling. The bankrupt modeling analysis applied to companies, contributed to orient the templates that could be tested and possibly oriented to municipal credit risk analysis. A special Law of Fiscal Responsibility (LRF), is the first rule to begin the responsible management process, and probably, in the near future, the obligation of disclosure the financial statements, and independent audits that may be the mandatory components on municipal management, as well as the adoption or acceptance of municipal ratings contributed to the motivation to development of one model of municipal credit risk. After the attainment of brazilian cities financial information, from the official National Treasure site, demographic data (available in CD of Brazilian Institut of Geography & Statistics’ database of municipal information), and about expertise’s judgments on the subject of concept in relation to credit risk presented for many cities, about the treatment of these information and the creation of a database that grant the full integration of selected information, applying the discriminant function analysiys to the database obtained, resulted a statistic model that hit a target level with approximatly 70%.

Submitted by Natalia de Souza Gonçalves (natalia.goncalves@ufpe.br) on 2016-10-05T14:35:09Z No. of bitstreams: 2 license_rdf: 1232 bytes, checksum: 66e71c371cc565284e70f40736c94386 (MD5) Tese_KrisleyMendes_Economia_PIMES.pdf: 1300020 bytes, checksum: 6274732268dffa32af34d6ab6676667b (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2016-10-05T14:35:09Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 2 license_rdf: 1232 bytes, checksum: 66e71c371cc565284e70f40736c94386 (MD5) Tese_KrisleyMendes_Economia_PIMES.pdf: 1300020 bytes, checksum: 6274732268dffa32af34d6ab6676667b (MD5) Previous issue date: 2016-05-25 / O objetivo desta tese é identificar no Brasil a heterogeneidade do perfil de comércio exterior quando avaliado em níveis menores de agregação geográfica e de seus efeitos sobre os salários e prêmios por qualificação, determinando as diferentes zonas de especialização no sentido de Venables e Limão (2002) e avaliando os fatores de atração e resistência ao comércio. O estudo leva em conta a posição geográfica com dados no nível de municípios, para determinar os diferentes padrões de inserção regional ao comércio exterior – isto porque, se as diferentes regiões não são igualmente ligadas ao comércio exterior, os efeitos do comércio podem ser regionalmente heterogêneos. A tese se compõe de três ensaios. No primeiro, são analisados as características e o comportamento do volume de comércio internacional praticado nos estados e municípios brasileiros em 2000 e 2010, de modo a avaliar a heterogeneidade presente no perfil de comércio. A estratégia empírica consistiu no cálculo de indicadores de comércio exterior. Os resultados confirmam que quando se analisam níveis menores de agregação geográfica as especificidades regionais se revelam, diferindo significativamente dos resultados nacionais. Isso permite inferir que os efeitos do comércio podem não ser igualmente distribuídos. No segundo ensaio, é analisada a relação entre salários e comércio exterior, a fim de determinar zonas de especialização. O modelo teórico provém de Venables e Limão (2002) e a estratégia empírica é tomada de Chiquiar (2008). A análise econométrica é realizada pelo método dos mínimos quadrados generalizados factíveis (MQGF), com a avaliação de viés de variáveis omitidas proposta por Oster (2014) e descontando-se os determinantes individuais dos salários. Os resultados confirmam a existência de respostas heterogêneas dos salários e prêmios por qualificação a variações no comércio exterior, a depender da posição geográfica. Estes resultados permitiram identificar zonas de especialização. As zonas mais abertas ao comércio exterior nas quais se podem identificar respostas Stolper–Samuelson agregam principalmente mesorregiões no Sul e algumas no Sudeste, enquanto as zonas mais fechadas a esse comércio concentram-se no Centro-Oeste, Norte e Nordeste, onde a exposição ao comércio parece intensificar as desigualdades salariais interqualificações. No terceiro ensaio, buscou-se compreender os determinantes dos fluxos de comércio internacional a fim de examinar o efeito da integração e as resistências estruturais dadas pelos custos de comércio. Esta análise foi realizada para o Brasil e suas macrorregiões, com dados no nível municipal. O trabalho utiliza o chamado modelo gravitacional como estratégia empírica, sendo testadas oito de suas versões. O modelo regredido com variáveis instrumentais se mostrou consistente em relação ao modelo por MQO pelo teste de Hausmann. Os resultados mostram que o fluxo de comércio apresenta alta resistência em relação à distância e é dirigido mais ao Mercosul que ao resto do mundo. A evolução no decênio mostra que a resistência do fluxo de comércio à distância foi reduzida e a dependência da destinação ao Mercosul também se reduziu. Na análise por macrorregiões, as regressões sugerem que nas regiões Centro-Oeste e Nordeste os fatores de atração aumentaram e os fatores de resistência se reduziram, enquanto Sudeste e Sul desaceleraram sua sensibilidade à exposição ao comércio. Já o Norte permaneceu relativamente estável, tanto em relação a fatores de estímulo quanto a fatores de resistência. / The objective of the present thesis was to identify the heterogeneity of the foreign trade profile in Brazil when assessed in lower levels of geographical aggregation and their effects on salaries and skill premiums, determining the different zones of specialization as conceived by Venables and Limão (2002) and assessing the factors of attraction and resistance to trade. The study took account of geographic position using municipal-level data to determine the different patterns of regional involvement in foreign trade – this is because, if the different regions are not equally engaged in foreign trade, then the effects of trade may be regionally heterogeneous. The thesis comprised three investigations. In the first, the characteristics and behavior of the volume of international trade carried out in Brazilian states and cities in 2000 and 2010 were analyzed to assess heterogeneity in the trade profile. The empirical strategy entailed calculation of foreign trade indicators. More specifically, the coefficients of openness, the product and destination Gini–Hirschman indices (PGI and DGI), the revealed symmetric comparative advantage (RSCA) index and the intra-industry trade (IIT) index. The results confirmed that when lower levels of geographical aggregation were analyzed, regional specificities emerged that differed significantly to national results. It can therefore be inferred that the effects of trade may not be equally distributed. In the second investigation, the relationship between salaries and foreign trade was analyzed to determine zones of specialization. The theoretical model was derived from Venables and Limão (2002) while the empirical strategy was taken from Chiquiar (2008). The econometric analysis was performed using the feasible generalized least squares (FGLS) method with assessment of omitted variable bias as defined by Oster (2014), controlling for individual determinants of salaries. The results confirmed the existence of heterogeneous responses of salaries and skill premiums to variations in foreign trade that were geographically dependent. These results allowed zones of specialization to be identified. The zones with greatest openness to foreign trade (in which Stolper–Samuelson responses were identified) encompassed mainly mesoregions in the South and some in the Southeast, whereas the zones more closed to trade were situated mainly in the Midwest, North and Northeast, where exposure to trade appeared to intensify interskill salary inequalities. In the third investigation, the determinants of international flows were investigated to examine the effect of integration and the structural resistance created by the costs of trade. This analysis was conducted for Brazil and its macroregion based on municipal level data. The study employed the gravity model as an empirical strategy and eight versions were tested. The instrumental variables regression model proved consistent in relation to the model by OLS using the Hausmann test. Trade flow exhibited high resistance in relation to distance and was aimed more at Mercosur than the rest of the world. The ten-year evolution revealed that resistance of the flow of distance trade declined and dependence on the Mercosur market decreased. On the analysis by microregion, the regressions suggested that the factors of attraction increased and factors of resistance decreased in the Mid-West and Northeast regions. Thus, while the Southeast and South regions decelerated their sensitivity to trade exposure, the Mid-West and Northeast showed more favorable conditions for expansion. The North, however, remained relatively stable in terms of both stimulus and resistance factors.

This dissertation examines the quality of hazard mitigation elements in a coastal, hazard prone state. I answer two questions. First, in a state with a strong mandate for hazard mitigation elements in comprehensive plans, does plan quality differ among county governments? Second, if such variation exists, what drives this variation? My research focuses primarily on Florida’s 35 coastal counties, which are all at risk for hurricane and flood hazards, and all fall under Florida’s mandate to have a comprehensive plan that includes a hazard mitigation element. Research methods included document review to rate the hazard mitigation elements of all 35 coastal county plans and subsequent analysis against demographic and hazard history factors. Following this, I conducted an electronic, nationwide survey of planning professionals and academics, informed by interviews of planning leaders in Florida counties. I found that hazard mitigation element quality varied widely among the 35 Florida coastal counties, but were close to a normal distribution. No plans were of exceptionally high quality. Overall, historical hazard effects did not correlate with hazard mitigation element quality, but some demographic variables that are associated with urban populations did. The variance in hazard mitigation element quality indicates that while state law may mandate, and even prescribe, hazard mitigation in local comprehensive plans, not all plans will result in equal, or even adequate, protection for people. Furthermore, the mixed correlations with demographic variables representing social and disaster vulnerability shows that, at least at the county level, vulnerability to hazards does not have a strong effect on hazard mitigation element quality. From a theory perspective, my research is significant because it compares assumptions about vulnerability based on hazard history and demographics to plan quality. The only vulnerability-related variables that appeared to correlate, and at that mildly so, with hazard mitigation element quality, were those typically representing more urban areas. In terms of the theory of Neo-Institutionalism and theories related to learning organizations, my research shows that planning departments appear to have set norms and rules of operating that preclude both significant public involvement and learning from prior hazard events.

Investigations reveal that the failure rate of e-governance projects in developing countries is between 35% and 50% whereby, 35% is classified as a total failure and 50% is considered a partial failure. Furthermore, previous e-governance frameworks lack reliable project discipline to deliver e-governance systems effectively to stakeholders for further exploits. This is one of the major reasons why e-governance projects fail to deliver the expected value to the citizenry and thereby, negatively impacting on socio-economic development. The purpose of this study was to develop a framework for benchmarking e-governance projects for socio-economic development in developing countries. The Design Science Research methodology was relied upon for the purpose of the study in order to answer its various research questions. Preliminary research investigations led to the identification of a range of critical success factors necessary for effective and efficient delivery of an e-governance project that fulfils expectations throughout the project lifecycle. Further investigations demonstrated that the foregoing critical success factors represent crucial and effective mechanisms for performing project assurance in the ambit of Monitoring and Evaluation. A generic framework for benchmarking e-governance projects was proposed. Further evaluation and validation exercises were undertaken on the framework through a survey involving a comprehensive sample of participants recruited from the Ghana ecosystem, a country considered a developing country. Experts who had comprehensive knowledge of challenges experienced when engaging in e-governance projects were also recruited from the international community as additional respondents in the survey. The study used a combination of simple random sampling and purposive sampling. Simple random sampling method was used to select 19 practising project managers, while purposive sampling method was employed to include e-governance experts in academic and research institutions as well as non-governmental organizations, with valuable insights concerning the research questions being addressed. The data collected was analysed using thematic analysis, and Pearson Chi-square test. The outcome of the evaluation and validation exercises produced an improved framework of which an appropriate prototyped proof of concept was developed for the purpose of enabling e-governance project stakeholders to perform project quality assurance throughout its lifecycle. Such as prototype, if implemented in real-life will go a long way in addressing many challenges faced in the entire e-governance project value chain from a prioritization, learning, cost, quality, time and impact perspectives. The overall outcome of this study showed that despite the reality that the failure rate of e-governance projects remains high in developing countries, there is strong evidence indicating that the aforementioned situation could be circumvented. The research found that success is achievable by embarking on a rigorous process of monitoring and evaluation based on well-defined performance metrics that embody time, quality, budget and scope. As such, the significant minimization of the failure rate of e-governance projects in developing countries would become reality provided that sound monitoring and evaluation are performed in all phases of the project even after its deployment. / Information Science / Ph. D. (Information Systems)

As the public and government officials become aware of the impact of public health on communities, it is important that relevant public health statistics be available for decision making. Existing web resources have limited visualization options, cannot visually compare a county to all others in the US, and cannot compare the counties in an arbitrary region to all others in the US. The College of Public Health Indicator Visualization Tool (CPHIVT) is a web application providing visualization and ranking for a county in the US in comparison to all counties for a specific health indicator. An iterative development methodology was used to complete major features and refine the features over time. Features divided into small tasks that could be completed within two-week cycles. After the first version of the web application was completed and presented to the client, client feedback on the application was used to refine specifications and was incorporated into planning for future iterations. Iterative development was adopted with a focus on improving and expanding existing features and making the application publicly available online. A suite of automated user interface tests is being developed to verify the application’s functions. Making a complete version of the application publicly available involves significant research and software configuration to deploy the web application in a secure and performant manner. The web application has two major components corresponding to its two major user groups. The first component allows authenticated users from the Department of Public Health to upload and manage sets of data for various health indicators. Tools are included to automatically process uploaded data points. This allows the information presented on the web site to be expanded and kept up to date over time with minimal effort. The second component is accessible to anyone and allows a user to choose to a state or county with text search or hierarchical navigation. The application then provides graphical charts showing that location’s standing for various health indicators compared to all other counties nationally. This is accomplished by applying percentile rankings to the counties and plotting the percentiles against the values for a selected indicator. A user can save a generated chart to a variety of export formats including PNG image or PDF document. The application is expected to serve as a tool for many community members. Staff and students at the College of Public Health will use this tool for presentations and research. County health departments will be able to use the tool when planning community programs. County government leaders can use this tool to determine areas of need in the community. Decision makers will have the ability to visualize their county or region as compared to the nation, not just to neighboring counties or within a state.