Some researchers claim that we are witnessing the advancement of becoming a network society, and in spite of the different problems associated with the network form of organization, many cities still choose to engage in different types of networks. On account of that the aim of the study is to examine which expectations Swedish member cities of the network Eurotowns might have, and if their actions in the initial period of engagement in Eurotowns mainly could be explained by ?Logic of Consequentiality? or ?Logic of Appropriateness?.A qualitative research method was used and a major part of the empirical material consists of the information given by the interviewees.Regarding the expectations Swedish member cities have on Eurotowns, the result showed that five main areas could be identified mutual resource exchange, activities, breadth, security and meeting place. The results also showed that the actions of Swedish member cities may vary between ?Logic of Consequentiality?, ?Logic of Appropriateness? or a combination of the both logics.Furthermore the study also provides empirical evidence supporting the previously theoretical criticism expressed regarding the central assumption that the strategic actions of an actor can be regarded as a direct consequence of the mutual resource dependency..

This study focuses on the integrity of students at Uppsala University that has used the university?s network, UpUnet. We?ve studied their opinions with the use of questionnaires that cover questions related to privacy and awareness about logging of data traffic.The results showed that more students than our hypothesis suggested were unaware of the surveillance on the network, and the majority of these also had a negative opinion towards logging of data traffic. However, we found that there were several relations between how the students responded on our questionnaire, and we?ve presented these in the analysis chapter towards the end of the essay..

The purpose of this project was to find an understanding for why public agents working with introduction of immigrants have decided to co-operate and co-ordinate their efforts. Another purpose was to gain insights in what characterizes this co-operation.Seven interviews were made with practitioners working with these questions on national-, regional- and local levels. The material gathered in this process was then analysed using governance theory and more specific the parts dealing with Joined- up government and Whole- of Government. Two analytic tools were used in the analysis: wicked problems and network.The first of these, wicked problems, was made operational by the use of insecurities. Analysing the interviews along these lines proved very useful in explaining why public agents have decided to try to work together.

The purpose of this paper is to examine how the traditional airlines' strategies are affected by the low-cost carriers emergence and their business model and in wich ways they can achieve profitability. Furthermore we also want to examine the factors that affect the airlines' efficiency and competitiveness.The results of this study shows that the growth of the low-cost carriers have affected the network airlines' strategies as they, among other things, had to also lower their fares. This has forced them to revise their cost and efficiency in their entire operation. The result has also shown that the network companies can not come down to the same level of low costs as the low-cost carriers, and must therefore examine their ability to increase revenues instead. .

AbstractPeople and organizations that network with one another have during the past decades, at a larger extent than before, replaced classical hierarchies. These networks have become increasingly important, as the globalisation has amplified the pressure for focused and flexibleorganizations. There is a risk of restraining the inventiveness of the firm and force customers and suppliers into cooperation by a too great commitment and dedication to the network. There are two sides to every penny, positive and negative aspects of networking.Concerning the negative approach to networking, there is relatively little theory present. The theory is regarded an emerging theory.

The aim of this study was to use stories from three people who previously lived in homelessness to increase the knowledge of the social network's impact on the process of exiting homelessness. In order to answer our questions, whether the social network facilitated or hindered the way out of homelessness, we have used a narrative method to take advantage of these person's life stories. As a theoretical perspective, we used the ecology of human development, based on the idea that human development occurs in interaction with their environment at different levels. Results showed those interviewees' networks had a significant impact on their path out of homelessness and that these relationships both facilitated and hindered this process. At the same time, these relationships affected our interviewees in different ways and were found in various areas of life, which indicates that there is more than one way out of homelessness.

This thesis presents the question of a possible breakthrough for mobile payment solutions in Sweden. The way payments are made and the way cash is being used in the society is changing. To be accepted as an alternative method, if cash isn't king anymore, the new technology will have to acquire user acceptance. In this thesis a case study of Swish, a mobile payment solution for P2P-payments, is presented. The focus of the study is customer value and technology acceptance of the service.

This Masters thesis concerns difficulties experienced by Gender Studies researchers in an information seeking context. The aim is to identify, and study the cause of, these potential difficulties by asking the following questions: How do researchers in Gender Studies seek information? What difficulties may arise when information seeking is carried out in Gender Studies? What may be the cause of these difficulties? What does Gender Studies consist of? In order to find feasible answers to these questions, particular attention is paid to the context in which the researchers exist and work. The database KVINNSAM serves as an example of how libraries have tried to overcome barriers in information seeking in Gender Studies. The method used is a qualitative one based on interviews and literature studies.

In the future network-based Swedish Defence (NBD), attaining information superiority will be of great importance. This will be achieved by a network of networks where decision-makers, information- and weapon-systems are linked together. As a part of the development of NBD, we have performed a study of user interface design for a future network-based tool package for analysis of sensor systems, referred to as the C2SR-system. This thesis was performed at Ericsson Microwave Systems AB, Sensor and Information Networks, during the autumn 2002. A pre-study concerning the requirements of usability, trustworthiness and functionality of a user interface for the C2SR-system was performed.

This Master?s Thesis deals with a special problem that may be of importance when planning a frequency hopping mobile communication network. In normal cases the Frequency Assignment Problem is solved, in order to plan the use of frequencies in a network. The special case discussed in this thesis occurs when the network operator requires that the frequencies must be arranged into groups. In this case the Frequency Assignment Problem must be solved with respect to the groups, i.e.

The company Sol & Energiteknik wanted to examine the possibility to make a standardhouse totally energy independent. Based upon this I have, during the spring of 2007,examined the possibilities available at the market today through litterature studies, contactwith several companies and reading reports at the internet.The first thing to examine has been to determine the energy consumption for a standardhouse, and find out if there are better technologies to be used for energy conservation.My conclusion in this matter is that there are possibilities today for building a house moreenergy efficient.When I had reached the point at which my design for the house was decided, I also hadto choose the different products to use to produce energy as well as to store that energy.To produce heat and electricity to the house I decided to use a wind turbine and a solarwater heater.The most difficult part of designing a house that is energy independent is that theproduced energy must be stored somehow. Storing the heat is relatively easy beacuse theheat can be stored in a large water tank. The electricity is a bigger problem beacuse itmust be stored in batteries, which today are too expensive to be used in a standard house.In the future producing and storing hydrogen might be used to produce electricity, buttoday that technology is both expensive and not tested enough.My final conclusion is that a standard house can not be built to be totally energyindependent today, unless it is very expensive to connect the house to the electricitynetwork. As an alternative solution I came up with a proposal for a house which isconnected to the electricity network and have some amount of own produced energy.This house prooved to be a good investment if you choose to build it today, and it couldbe a very good investment in the long run beacuse energy prices increase every year..

Background: Traditionally defined boundaries and borders between organizations are at present being re-evaluated because of new and tougher demands. Today we can see a trend where these boundaries are being lowered or even eliminated when organizations choose to co-operate instead of compete. Purpose: In order to create an understanding for the partner selection process in the newly founded joint ventures between the companies which are building the Swedish 3G Network, the determining factors are being studied. Delimitation: The studies companies are co-operating as network operators but are at the same time competing as mobile operators. This relationship is in the literature described as co-opetition, which will not be investigated in this paper.

Authors: Phia Bergdahl & Karin TydénTitle: This is the era of the personal brand ? a study about the role of a personal brand in a professional context in modern societyLevel: BA Thesis in Media and Communication StudiesLocation: Linnaeus UniversityLanguage: SwedishNumber of pages: 54Background In pursuit of being unique and stand out, it has become fashionable to market yourself as a personal brand. According to some experts on the subject, this has become a necessity for survival in the tough competition about the jobs and the customers. With Internet and social media as a natural element in our society, we also have to relate to these channels when it comes to communicating ourselves.Purpose The purpose of this study is to examine the role of the personal brand in a professional context in modern society and to explore Internet involvement in communicating the brand.TheoriesWe have used Bauman?s theory of ?consumer society?, how we live in a society where we are both the consumers and the goods consumed. We have also used Castells?s theory of "network society" and how its growth is changing our culture.

During the last years, the importance of sourcing in firms has increased. Globalization, fierce competition and an increased level of outsourcing are common explanations to why firms have highlighted the potential to realize savings and the value creation that the Purchasing department can generate. One trend that follows in parallel with globalization is an increased pressure from society on firms to take responsibility for the impact that its products and services have on the environment. This responsibility creates even more attention as outsourcing involves trade with suppliers in low wage countries, where the level of environmental and social responsibility is not always satisfying. The Purchasing department, the firm?s interface with suppliers should therefore, together with the firm?s Environmental department, play a key role in the firm?s contribution towards sustainable development.

Regional European Offices with the purpose to represent regions and municipalities in the EU-system have had a substantial expansion over the last years. One example is the North Sweden European Office for the counties of Norrbotten and Västerbotten, consisting of seven different headmen who are representing both the private sector as well as the public system. This diverse leadership representation makes North Sweden a very good example on a so called Quango, organisations that stand under simultaneous influence from both public and private sectors. These Quangos opens up new possibilities to solve public problems, but they also bring together two different working models which is not always easy to handle for a Quango. According to earlier surveys some characteristic Quango problems within North Sweden exist, for example the ability to prioritize and thereby be as effective as possible.