Thesis (M.S.)--University of North Carolina at Greensboro, 2007. / Title from PDF title page screen. Advisor: Fereidoon Sadri; submitted to the Dept. of Mathematics and Statistics. Includes bibliographical references (p. 41).

The new global economy is based on knowledge and information. Further- more, the Internet is facilitating new forms of revenue generation of which one recognized potential source is content delivery over the Internet. One aspect that is critical to ensuring a content-based revenue stream is billing. While there are a number of content-based billing systems commercially available, as far as can be determined these products are not based on a common model that can ensure interoperability and communication between the billing sys- tems. This dissertation addresses the need for a content-based billing model by developing the CBiX (Content-based Billing in XML Environments) model. This model, developed in a phased approach as a family of billing models, incorporates three aspects. The rst aspect is access control. The second as- pect is pricing, in the form of document, element and inherited element level pricing for content. The third aspect is XML as the platform for information exchange. The nature of the Internet facilitates information interchange, exible web business models and exible pricing. These facts, coupled with CBiX being concerned with billing for content over the Internet, leads to a number of decisions regarding the model: The CBiX model has to incorporate exible pricing. Therefore pricing is evolved through the development of the family of models from doc- ument level pricing to element level pricing to inherited element level pricing. The CBiX model has to be based on a platform for information inter- change that enables content delivery. XML provides a broad family of standards that is widely supported and creating the next generation Internet. XML is therefore selected as the environment for information exchange for CBiX. The CBiX model requires a form of access control that can provide access to content based on user properties. Credential-based Access Control is therefore selected as the method of access control for CBiX, whereby authorization is granted based on a set of user credentials. Furthermore, this dissertation reports on the development of a prototype. This serves a dual purpose: rstly, to assist the author in understanding the technologies and principles involved; secondly, to illustrate CBiX0 and therefore present a proof-of-concept of at least the base model. The CBiX model provides a base to guide and assist developers with regards to the issues involved with developing a billing system for XML- based environments.

XML is quickly being utilized in the field of technical communication to transfer information from database to person and company to company. Often communicators will structure information without a second thought of how or why certain tags are used to mark up the information. Because the company or a manual says to use those tags, the communicator does so. However, if professionals want to unlock the true potential of XML for better sharing of information across platforms, they need to understand the effects the technology using XML as well as political and cultural factors have on the tags being used. This thesis reviewed literature from multiple fields utilizing XML to find how tag choices can be influenced. XML allows for the sharing of information across multiple platforms and databases. Because of this efficiency, XML is utilized by many technologies. Often communicators must tag information so that the technologies can find the marked up information; therefore, technologies like single sourcing, data mining, and knowledge management influence the types of tags created. Additionally, cultural and political influences are analyzed to see how they play a role in determining what tags are used and created for specific documents. The thesis concludes with predictions on the future of XML and the technological, political, and cultural influences associated with XML tag sets based on information found within the thesis.

published_or_final_version / Computer Science / Doctoral / Doctor of Philosophy

Approved for public release, distribution unlimited / Adopting Extensible Markup Language (XML) and Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP) are key steps to accommodate the evolution of Internet technologies. While HTTP is already a proven standard communication protocol responsible for the rapid expansion of the World Wide Web, XML provides general mechanisms for determining validatable documents and addresses several deficiencies of HTML regarding diverse document structure and content. XML and HTTP together provide many of the essential capabilities associated with database engines. The Modeling, Virtual Environments and Simulation (MOVES) Institute of the Naval Postgraduate School (NPS) is continuing to build a database of 3D tactical scenarios and using X3D and VRML tools. The configuration parameters and statistical results of these scenarios are XML documents. For a better understanding and usability of these results by the end users, a Webbased application stores and manipulates these XML document. This thesis develops a server-side application that can store, serve, and annotate tactical scenarios for X3D operational visualization and anti-terrorist training by using XML and HTTP technologies. The experimental demonstration for this work is the prototypical Anti-Terrorism/Force Protection (AT/FP) simulation model developed by Lieutenant James W. Harney, USN, using Extensible 3D Graphics (X3D)/ Virtual Reality Modeling Language (VRML) models. / Captain, Tunisian Army

by Yuen Lok-tin. / Thesis (M.Phil.)--Chinese University of Hong Kong, 2001. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 88-95). / Abstracts in English and Chinese. / ABSTRACT --- p.I / 摘要 --- p.III / ACKNOWLEDGEMENT --- p.V / TABLE OF CONTENTS --- p.VI / LIST OF FIGURES --- p.VIII / LIST OF TABLES --- p.IX / Chapter 1 --- INTRODUCTION --- p.1 / Chapter 1.1 --- Background --- p.1 / Chapter 1.2 --- Objectives --- p.2 / Chapter 1.3 --- Organization --- p.4 / Chapter 2 --- LITERATURE REVIEW & THEORETICAL FOUNDATION --- p.6 / Chapter 2.1 --- "Data, Information and Knowledge" --- p.6 / Chapter 2.2 --- Knowledge Management --- p.7 / Chapter 2.3 --- Information Transparency and Efficiency --- p.10 / Chapter 2.3.1 --- Transparency --- p.11 / Chapter 2.3.2 --- Efficiency --- p.13 / Chapter 2.4 --- extensible markup language (XML) --- p.14 / Chapter 3 --- DIGITAL FINANCIAL INFORMATION AND ISSUES --- p.16 / Chapter 3.1 --- Managing Financial Information on the Internet --- p.17 / Chapter 3.2 --- Existing Electronic Financial Filing Systems --- p.20 / Chapter 3.3 --- Financial Document Disclosure Model --- p.21 / Chapter 3.4 --- Interaction Between Information Producers and Consumers --- p.23 / Chapter 3.5 --- Gluing All Together --- p.26 / Chapter 4 --- IDEAL ELECTRONIC FINANCIAL DISCLOSURE SYSTEM --- p.27 / Chapter 4.1 --- Structure and Representation of Knowledge --- p.28 / Chapter 4.2 --- Content Creation --- p.33 / Chapter 5 --- PROPOSED APPROACH --- p.36 / Chapter 5.1 --- Preliminary XML Data Dictionary --- p.36 / Chapter 5.2 --- Creation of XML Tags --- p.40 / Chapter 5.2.1 --- Statistical Information Retrieval --- p.41 / Chapter 5.2.2 --- Accounting and Auditing Practice --- p.43 / Chapter 5.2.3 --- Investors´ةFeedback --- p.44 / Chapter 5.3 --- Value-Added Services --- p.45 / Chapter 6 --- DESIGN AND DEVELOPMENT OF ELFFS-XML --- p.49 / Chapter 6.1 --- Stages of ELFFS-XML --- p.49 / Chapter 6.1.1 --- Information Creation --- p.49 / Chapter 6.1.2 --- Information Collection/Storage --- p.50 / Chapter 6.1.3 --- Knowledge Generation --- p.51 / Chapter 6.1.4 --- Knowledge Dissemination/Presentation --- p.52 / Chapter 6.1.5 --- Feedback --- p.52 / Chapter 6.2 --- Components of ELFFS-XML --- p.53 / Chapter 6.2.1 --- Data Source Abstraction Layer --- p.55 / Chapter 6.2.2 --- Storage Abstraction Layer --- p.57 / Chapter 6.2.3 --- Logic Layer --- p.61 / Chapter 6.2.4 --- Presentation Layer --- p.63 / Chapter 7 --- EVALUATING ELFFS-XML --- p.66 / Chapter 7.1 --- Comparison with Other Financial Information Disclosure Systems --- p.66 / Chapter 7.2 --- Users' Evaluation --- p.70 / Chapter 7.3 --- Systems Efficiency --- p.71 / Chapter 7.4 --- XML Tag Generation Approach Performance Evaluation --- p.73 / Chapter 8 --- CONCLUSION AND FUTURE RESEARCH --- p.78 / APPENDIX I SURVEY ON INVESTMENT PATTERN --- p.80 / APPENDIX II CORE ELFFS-XML DTD --- p.84 / APPENDIX III PERFORMANCE RELATED XML TAGS --- p.86 / BIBLIOGRAPHY --- p.88

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Hong Kong, 2010. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 115-119). Also available in print.

Thesis (M.S. in Computer Science)--Naval Postgraduate School, March 2003. / Thesis advisor(s): Don Brutzman, Curtis L. Blais. Includes bibliographical references (p. 121-122). Also available online.

Thesis (M.S. in Information Systems Technology)--Naval Postgraduate School, March 2003. / Thesis advisor(s): Magdi N. Kamel, Gordon H. Bradley. Includes bibliographical references (p. 101-103). Also available online.

Thesis (M.Sc. (Computer Science)) - Rhodes University, 2007.