What Is Stock Metadata?
Simply stated, metadata is data about data. And when properly understood and interpreted, stock market metadata, also simply referred to as stock metadata, can help you picture what’s happening with a company’s stock. So if there’s a trading trend developing, one of the tools you can use to spot a trend as it moves along would be stock market metadata.Working with Stock Metadata?
When you go online, you find vast varieties of stock charts, current and historical stock market results, and an increasing number of online news sources. But finding anything on stock metadata is challenging.In order to get more of a feel how this type of information can be used, consider any of the following scenarios:

You are planning to buy shares in a company and you want to have an idea during what 15-minute period of the trading day do shares statistically trade at their lowest points
You want to sell your shares and you want to have an idea of the best time of the day to execute your trade
You want to know the iterations of the various price range differences for a stock to help you time your trade and get a price that’s advantageous to you
You want to buy or sell a large block of shares and you want to see a breakdown of the different times of the day when the volume of shares traded for certain stock is both at its highest and lowest
Answers to these and many other questions can be found by going online and searching for it. I use Google and look either for the terms stock market metadata or stock metadata which returns links to all of the pertinent information. Stock metadata reports are unique. For example, you can easily see the relationships that exist between the Open and Close values of stock prices for the day. You can also see what the values are for the other days, day after day.These reports can cover a specific date range for the company being featured. And, with the availability of multiple arrays of values for the different group categories within each of the arrays, there’s more than a sufficient amount of data there to complete a thorough analysis. This is easy to see when you look at a report.Used as an analysis tool, stock metadata can also be used to show market trading activity for shares covering 15-minute blocks of time. Statistically speaking, you can quickly see.

Time periods when highest and lowest prices were reached
Time periods when highest and lowest trading volumes were reached
It also provides clear answers to questions spanning any period of time (days, months or years) like:

How many times during each of the 15-minute periods during normal trading hours have shares traded at the high of the day?
How about at the low of the day?
What times of the day recorded the highest volume of trades?
How about the lowest volume of trades?
Why is this type of information important? Statistically speaking, it identifies the potential best time of the day to buy or sell shares. When you learn to use stock market metadata, you come to realize that:

History tends to repeat itself
Numbers don’t lie, and
The trend is your friend.
Previously, the general public has not been able to easily locate a viable source of stock metadata and stock market metadata. Now that has been changing. When you do a search for either of those specific terms, you’re sure to find the information presented from the source sites or through links to articles written about this topic.Look for sites that also present features on companies being traded on the major North American stock exchanges. This includes numerous links to key sources of standard stock market information as well as including a selection of stock market metadata reports.When you choose to examine a featured company, make sure links included are to some of the best available online sites of key stock market information. Do they also have stock metadata reports for each company being feature there by them?Look for reports that are published every day of the week, Monday to Friday. Typically, the standard report titles as listed below, also have corresponding links to site pages that explain and describe the content of each of the reports.
Daily Historical Metadata Detail
Daily Historical Metadata Summary
15-minute Metadata Detail
15-minute Metadata Summary
15-minute Hi-Low Counts
Does Using Stock Metadata Work?Stock charts present graphical images about a company’s stock performance. There are multiple patterns to learn about. These must be understood and correctly interpreted. This can get quite complicated. And when used properly, they can be quite effective for stock trading and investing purposes.The advantage of stock metadata is that it uses something that you have been using all of your life: numbers. If you know how to do simple addition and subtraction, and you know how to count, then you can use and understand metadata.Some people even boast of using stock metadata to predict price results. Check out the following link to the Yahoo! message board for Morgan Stanley stock.It was submitted after lunch on Friday, October 9, 2009, to this Yahoo! message board in regards to the closing price of the day of Morgan Stanley shares. It was developed using specific selection criteria against the Daily Historical Metadata Detail report for MS shares from stock metadata reports available online for people to use. As you read the entry, you’ll see that if Bulls ruled at the end of the day, the prediction was the stock would close at 32.18. Well MS actually ended the day at 32.09 but a few seconds later after closing, the first transaction in after-hours trading was at, are you ready for this, 32.18. Talk about making a good prediction. I’ll let you be the judge.

Are you looking for the best stock market research tools? Here’s a list of some of my top free choices.1. Barchart.com – At BarChart.com you can get a lot of technical trading analysis tools and can find stocks that are currently performing well (price wise) so you can find out if they are a company you could make some money with trading you can access Barchart.com here: http://www.barchart.com/2. Yahoo Finance – Yahoo Finance is a very popular finance site and has a wealth of information you can get stock quotes, charts, news, market research and search for companies that match your investing criteria, check out Yahoo finance here: http://finance.yahoo.com3. MSN Money – MSN Money has a lot of finance articles and stock market research tools you can learn a lot about a company here and they have a nice tool to search for stocks that meet your criteria, check out MSN Money here: http://moneycentral.msn.com/4. Multex Investor – Multex Investor is run by Reuters a large news company they have a lot of predefined searches to help you find stocks and allow you to create your own searches, check out Multex Investor here: http://www.investor.reuters.comYou can have one-click access to these http://www.reedfloren.com/sr/FrameMain.html”> free stock market research tools all at one page developed by John Purcell. http://www.reedfloren.com/sr/FrameMain.html

In 1994, I started using the CAN SLIM method of trading stocks. This method was developed by William J. O’Neil, the founder of Investors Business Daily. O’Neil used the best performing stocks in history, as a blueprint for the system. The strategy involves implementation of both technical and fundamental analysis.The goal is to find leading stocks of young, innovative companies, before they make major price advances. This is achieved by only buying the very best stocks at the right time. The method also implements solid money management. No system can have stock market success in the long run, without keeping losses small.In 1997, I was watching a young, innovative company called Yahoo, symbol YHOO. It went public in 1996, and was a leader in the new internet group of stocks. The fundamentals such as earnings per share and sales were excellent. I knew I was watching a potential big winner, and my odds of stock market success were quite substantial.At this time, the general was in a confirmed uptrend, and Yahoo showed good technical action. The stock found support at its 50-day moving average a number of times. Then, in July, 1997, Yahoo broke through a key resistance area on very heavy volume. This is when I bought Yahoo at $27.00 per share.The stock continued to show excellent technical action, as it moved up in price. Whenever there was a downward price reaction, it was in low volume. This price and volume action told me the big institutions, such as mutual funds, pension funds and bank funds, were not getting out of the stock. This is very bullish, since big institutions represent about 75% of all trading activity in the stock market.In late October, 1997, Yahoo did break through its 50-day moving average in heavy volume. This was my signal to get out of the stock. The big institutions were starting to sell. This major clue told me a big price decline was most likely in the making. I sold all my shares, and made nearly 100% profit in about 3 months. I followed historically proven, buying and selling rules. This is how to achieve stock market success.

IntroductionMany organizations today have implemented technology such as Microsoft SharePoint to provide a central portal into their organization’s information and operations. While the promise of a central portal is alluring, it can also be elusive for project based organizations. The reason for this goes to the very purpose of systems such as SharePoint and project management systems.In addition, mid-market organizations have additional considerations. For the purposes of this paper, a mid-market organization is simply an organization that needs more than the tools that the low-end market provides, but does not have the resources, time, or budget for the tools provided for the high-end market. In other words, they are right in the middle and need the right balance between sophistication, ease of implementation, and cost. Whereas certain solutions may be obvious for large organizations because of the internal resources available, they are less obvious for mid-market organizations.This article will discuss strategies for how to solve these problems and properly implement project management capability with a SharePoint-type of information portal, within the bounds of the mid-market predicament.Different Systems, Different PurposesAn online portal, such as SharePoint, is generally defined as collaboration software with the benefit of sharing information in order to work better. In the last 10-15 years especially, information within the organization has grown dramatically. Emails, spreadsheets, documents, and all other types of information became scattered throughout the organization. The promise (and purpose) of SharePoint especially is to put some structure around this information, centralize it, and make it easily accessible to everyone in the organization. There is a lot of value in this. This is not to say that SharePoint cannot be configured to do a number of different things beyond what was just mentioned, only that this is the primary, stated purpose of SharePoint.For project organizations that are focusing on running projects, this focus causes some gaps if an organization is planning to rely solely on SharePoint for its project management needs. The primary reason is that SharePoint is not project management software and thus does not naturally have some project management features that project organizations need. These include items such as Gantt charts, project scheduling engines, and resource utilization tools. SharePoint does have natural capabilities that do support project management processes, such as lists, document management, and collaboration. It is just that, for project-based organizations, these capabilities tend to weigh too heavily on collaboration and not enough on more formalized project management tools. Organizations with heavy project loads find that they need a balance of both. The fact that this is true of SharePoint is evidenced by Microsoft’s push for deployment of Microsoft Project Server as a tool to be deployed in addition to SharePoint, although many mid-market organizations struggle with the implementation of two complex systems.Conversely, project management software systems, are designed specifically to help project based organizations manage their projects. As such, they generally include more formalized project management features such as Gantt charts and scheduling. A good project management software system will support the processes that a project based organization needs to follow to work better and be more competitive.On the other hand, most project management software systems are not designed as a portal for all information in the organization. They are focused on projects, the information pertaining to those projects, and the management of those projects. As such, it can be difficult for an organization to rely solely on project management software as a portal for the entire organization. It is not impossible to do this, simply difficult without the right mix of project management system capability (or better stated flexibility) and organizational needs.This all is not meant to frustrate the reader, only to reiterate what the fundamental purposes are of different types of software systems so that a coherent and practical strategy can emerge to meet the needs of mid-market organizations with project management requirements.StrategiesWhat are the strategies then that a project based organization can employ to achieve both the centralized portal and collaboration benefits of a SharePoint type of system and the project management benefits of a project management software system?There are three fairly obvious and logical strategies to be discussed along with their strengths and weaknesses.Strategy #1: SharePoint OnlyThe first strategy is to utilize the SharePoint technology exclusively and take the time and resources to configure and even extend its capability to fill in any gaps that arise. There are several advantages of this approach. These include the fact that there is only one system to manage. All of the information is in one system meaning that you do not need to develop knowledge regarding two systems or worry about integration between those systems.In addition, many organizations already have SharePoint implemented within their organization making it an easy decision to use existing technology.There are also some disadvantages to this approach. These include the fact that there will most likely be some gaps in the project management capability that will need to be filled in some way. This could be done via technical configuration or programming, or third party tools, but in some way the gaps will need to be filled to be effective. Another disadvantage is that technical resources will be relied upon to both keep the system operational and help it meet project management-specific needs. SharePoint is not a simple system to deploy, implement, and maintain.The idea with this strategy is to simply do the best you can with your existing SharePoint technology.Strategy #2: Project Management System OnlyThe second strategy is to implement only a project management software system and use it for all of the organization’s needs. There are advantages to this approach as well. Similar to the first strategy, one advantage is that there is only one system to manage. All of the information is in one system thus requiring less training and administration. Another advantage is that the system will be designed specifically for project management. If most or all of the organization’s information is project-based, this will work well.Some of the disadvantages of this strategy include the fact that most project management software systems are not designed for other types of information sharing. For example, you generally will not see information on open orders from the organization’s accounting system in the project management system’s dashboard. It should be noted that this is not impossible, some systems have the capability to link to other systems and display data, but this is not the native purpose of these systems. Stated another way, these systems are usually geared towards projects, and not an overall portal for all the information in the organization.Another disadvantage can be the fact that project management software systems tend to be more formalized which means there may be some additional training involved over a simple collaboration system. This is not necessarily a bad thing – if an organization needs that level of capability, then it needs that level of capability and must train its staff on the capabilities and desired processes – but it is still something to consider.The idea with this strategy is to go full-out into what your organization in reality does: delivering projects.Strategy #3: The Hybrid ApproachThe third strategy is a hybrid of the other two strategies and involves implementing both a SharePoint type portal system, in addition to a project management software system. In other words, you implement both types of systems and connect them together.There are several advantages to this approach. For one, this approach works well with the whole idea of a portal system in the first place. In other words, a portal system like SharePoint is not meant to replace every other system in the organization but to act as a portal and central processing point for the information from those other systems. For example, an accounting system does what it does, while sharing information with the SharePoint system so that SharePoint can act as the central “clearing house” of all information. Likewise, a project management software system does what it does, while sharing information with the SharePoint system. In this approach, SharePoint becomes a true portal for delivering all relevant information across the organization, while the other systems are used to do what they do best (i.e. accounting for the organization’s finances or managing projects).In addition, there is generally more flexibility that an organization has with this approach. Considering the focus of managing projects, if there is a specific need for technology to support a new or improved process, you have more than one option. You have the option of doing that in the SharePoint system or you have the option of doing that in the project management software system, or even in the connection between the two systems. Either system may do certain things better than the other so that you are not tied down to a single technology.As with the other strategies, there are disadvantages to this strategy as well. They include the fact that you have to maintain multiple systems. This is negated somewhat if you take a Software as a Service approach (i.e. you do not host the software yourself), but there will always be some administrative items that you will need to have internal knowledge to function effectively.In addition, you need to maintain an interface between the two systems so that project information can be easily displayed in the SharePoint portal. That is not terrible difficult these days, but still an item to consider that needs to be maintained.The idea with this strategy is to get the best of both worlds.ConclusionsAs with any evaluation of software technology, the conclusions depend a great deal on the specific needs, objectives, culture, and processes of the organization performing the evaluation. The purpose of this paper is to provide background information so that you can determine the appropriate technology direction, not to make the decision itself. Thus it is important to understand your own organization before making determinations regarding technology. Once you have done that, there are some general guidelines that you can follow.If you do not have formal processes and can operate the organization entirely by collaboration, then native SharePoint technology may work.However, if you are a project based organization with any type of scheduling needs, project management software capability will be needed. A distinguishing factor is often in the management of tasks. If a simple to-do list is all that your process requires, then collaboration-type of software may fit the bill. If there is a scheduling component to the process (i.e. tasks need to be done at certain times and the schedule of those tasks needs to be tracked), then project management software-specific capability is generally required. There are other factors (such as resource utilization tracking) that can be evaluated, but task scheduling is generally the most common factor determining project management software need.If your organization is small enough in size and the scope of its information sharing is primarily project management focused, then using a single project management software system is generally a good approach. In other words, if you are in reality delivering projects and that is your world, go with the technology geared towards that world.Conversely, if your organization is large enough in size and has broader information sharing strategies beyond just project management, then incorporating a project management software system combined with SharePoint provides a lot of value.SharePoint is a registered trademark of Microsoft Corporation. EnterPlicity is a registered trademark of Team Interactions, Inc.

IntroductionThe concept of instituting marketing principles to non-profit institutions such as library and information Services is no longer a controversy. Organisations operate in an environment of change. Today we live in a global market for many goods and services in which technology, purchasing power and many factors change on a regular basis. One of the key functions of marketing is to find out how these changes affect clientele’s wants and needs and to develop organisational strategies and plans that will ensure that the library meets these challenges (Dransfield and Needham, 1995). It is therefore not surprising that public librarians are joining the marketing bandwagon. This article explores the marketing activities in the operations of the Sierra Leone Public Library services.Public LibrariesA Public Library is funded wholly and partly from public funds and the use of which is not restricted to any class persons in the community but freely available to all. It is a major agency of enlightenment for adults, providing for children the recorded experiences of others which will help them grow into adults.Usherhood (1981) defined Public Library as an organization established, supported and funded by the community, either through local, regional or national government or through some form of or other community organization. It provides access to knowledge, information and works of imagination through a range of resources and services and equally available to members of the public community regardless of race, nationality, economic and employment status and educational attainment.The Sierra Leone Library Board (SLLB)The Sierra Leone Library Board (SLLB) was established by Ordinance in June, 1959. The setting up of the Board was envisaged in the Government’s White Paper on Educational Development in 1958 and its functions outlined therein as follows:• To provide a national/public library Service;
• To support and reinforce programmes of adult and fundamental education;
• To provide effective services for children and young adults including requisite services to schools;
• To provide much needed information and references services;
• To provide where needed adequate services for special groups, that is women and girls, language groups.The Central Library is designed to give public services to Freetown and also to function as headquarter of the National/Public Library services and to provide accommodation for a growing collection of book and non-book materials in the country. It does all technical processing of stock for the Regional and Branch Libraries and has an Adult Lending Reference and a Children’s department.Libraries are charged with responsibility to provide information service to support educational, recreation and personal endeavours of the members of their respective communities and the Sierra Leone Library Board is not an exception to that. The following services are provided at the Sierra Leone Library Board to Clientele:Children ServicesThe Sierra Leone Library Board provides information services to children by the provision of books and other materials for children which are often housed in a special section known as the Children’s Library. A special service for children known as child orientated educational programme specially designed for younger library users is included in the children’s library services. They also provide services to children through storytelling, drama/play and reading aloud.Book Borrowing and Lending ServiceThe main task of Sierra Leone Library Board is to provide the public with access to books and periodicals. The Sierra Leone Library Board typically offers access to a variety of books which are available for borrowing by anyone with the appropriate library card.Current Awareness ServiceAt the Sierra Leone Library Board, current awareness service is aimed at bringing to the notice of potential users, newly available documents and information services. This is done by collating information and producing new secondary sources, circulating current periodicals or other documents acquired and producing and distributing one or more forms of bulletins.Selective Dissemination of InformationA more personal information service is being run at the Sierra Leone Library Board in which the library constantly notifies library users about particular information/materials matching them in a profile of the information needs and research pre-occupation of their clientele. This is done by either bringing references to relevant items to the notice of their clients and by obtaining copies and then supply the documents themselves to library users.Outreach ServicesThe Sierra Leone Library Board provides outreach information services which is committed to developing library outreach programmes for non-users, the undeserved, and people with special needs in the communities in restricted areas.Computer and Internet ServicesIn an attempt to bridge the digital divide, information resources and government services are being provided online by the Sierra Leone Library Board. This is done by providing access to the Internet and public computers for users who otherwise would not be able to connect to these services.Library MarketingMarketing is often viewed as a set of strategies and techniques that belongs to administrators outside of librarianship. But, librarians are also involved in the marketing process. The essence of marketing involves finding out users needs and want, then setting out to meet these needs.Marketing according to Weingand (1995) “can be viewed as a process of exchange and a way to foster partnership between the library and its community” (p.296). In order to maintain the relationship between the public library and the community, marketing strategies have to be employed as effective tool.Marketing in the public library means more than simply promotion or selling. It is more concerned about user needs. Marketing the Public Library is a social and managerial process by which products and services as well as values are exchanged in order to fulfill individuals or group needs. Marketing refers to those instruments through which information, both raw and processed, are transmitted to its members. Promotion or campaigning is but two activities in the broader exercise of marketingPlanning Library Marketing ProgrammesThe continued existence of libraries, if not their survivals, may well depend upon the use of marketing and planning strategies, communicated through effective public relations, to significantly alter the perceived role and position of the library in society.In a real sense, Public Relation is the promotion component of a full marketing plan of library programmes. It can be seen as the communicated module which serves the promotion function; conversely, it may be easily depicted as a philosophical relationship between library and community which serves as a guiding light for promotion activities.Both communication and research skills serve well in the marketing planning process of which Public Relations is an important component. Specific skills and knowledge are also needed in marketing planning programs for libraries. It goes without saying that both ongoing marketing planning and programmes, and in particular, how the needs of different groups of users differ from each other. Library and information services are complex entities, as are the human users and potential users of these services.Planning, promotion and campaigning are but all activities in the boarder exercise of marketing. User studies therefore, have a very wide range of uses in relation to the planning of library marketing programmes of a service. They contribute in the planning, promotion and development of library services. In their contribution they help in the understanding of different user group behaviour and their needs, and can assist in effective campaigning and planning process.Three steps to planning library marketing programmes are:• Knowing what your beliefs are and therefore what you want to achieve;
• Communicating these beliefs as practical objectives to the people with whom you work, in order that these objectives can be fulfilled; and
• Creating a vehicle which allows this to happen. This can only be achieved by defining the basic components and through organization.Methods of marketing in Sierra Leone Library BoardBook Displays and ExhibitionsDisplays and exhibitions are widely used in most public libraries as a marketing strategy to sell their products or items. The SLLB displays jackets of new books which are not yet included in the lending department for easy access by users and to increase usage. It is also a means of drawing the attention of users and non-users to particular aspects of library resources and services.Printed materials and PublicationsIn order to make a very good image of the public library and for public librarians to establish better communication between the library and users, publicity programmes are put in place by the management of the Sierra Leone Library Board through news release. The management also considers annual reports and newspapers as basic publicity techniques. Publications such as bibliographies, guides and brochures are used by the library to communicate with the wider public.Public Relations OfficePublic relations according to Usherhood (1981) is concerned with gaining of public support for an activity, cause, movement or institution. It is a process that furthers mental understanding and cooperation between a government; or any organisation and its various publics. The Sierra Leone Library Board has a Public Relations Office charged with the responsibility to enhance a smooth system of communication.User Education/Readers Advisory ServiceThis could be described as training a group of users in the effective use of the library and its resources. It is used to stimulate the users to make greater use of the library and introduces library staff to clientele who might be reluctant to seek their assistance. This is the principal means through which library staff can learn about readers’ needs, opinions and habits. Good communication with readers enables staff to inform and influence readers.The MediaThese involve printed and audio-visual forms of communication and any necessary equipment to render them usable. The Press, radio and television are important means of publicising information service, since they offer potential of reaching many people from all walks of life. The media are cultivated so that messages are distributed with regularity. Publicity mechanism such as news releases, special events and brochures can also be employed.The Social Media Groups (SMG)The Sierra Leone Library Board makes use of the Social media groups such as ‘Facebook’ and ‘Watsapp’ as an effective way for publicity in order to put their messages across to users of their services.Challenges of Marketing Library and Information Services at the SLLBA lot of challenges have militated against the effective planning and implementation of library marketing programs at SLLB. The following are some of the challenges:• Inadequate Staff: Although staff numbers have been maintained, the ratio of professional staff is very low. The library is manned mostly by paraprofessionals who mostly lack the skills to plan and implement marketing programmes.• Finance: The library depends heavily on government subsidy. The government has no specific or substantial funds for the running of the library thus the library administration has to foot most of the bills that have to do with marketing. The irregular flow of funds has served as a barrier to the progress of marketing library and information services at the SLLB.• Lack of standard printed materials and publications: The SLLB lacks most standard printed materials and publications due to poor planning of marketing programmes. This negligence has made the library handicapped of public relations tools in the form of printed materials and publications such as newsletters, questionnaires, diaries and calendars.• Displays are improper and exhibitions seem almost absent: The library depends mostly on donations and most of the books are acquired without jackets. Therefore displaying book jackets in inconsistent. In fact exhibition programmes are yet to survive as they are only recently introduced. The library lacks relevant display and exhibition materials to mount these activities.• Inability to organize frequent Radio Programs: The SLLB lacks media communication facilities. The library cannot frequently organise radio programmes on its own because of lack of funds. The absence of radio programmes stands out as an acute problem to the progress of marketing programs in the library.Conclusively, marketing is the instrument that libraries use to transform their aims and objectives into operational plans of action. In most developing countries’ public libraries such as the SLLB, marketing strategies cannot operate properly due to the existence of bottlenecks in planning programmes. Good marketing programmes actualise the plans and measures necessary for the achievement of goals and objectives.