Newsletter No. 95
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Free Pint
"Helping 41,000 people use the Web for their work"
http://www.freepint.com/
ISSN 1460-7239 6th September 2001 No.95
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IN THIS ISSUE
EDITORIAL
MY FAVOURITE TIPPLES
from Kylie Baxter
FREE PINT BAR & STUDENT BAR
In Association with Factiva
a Dow Jones & Reuters Company
Reviewed by Simon Collery
JOBS
Senior Researcher | Knowledge & Information Manager
Research Analyst | Business Analyst Assistant
FREE PINT REGULARS
TIPS ARTICLE
"Railways Online in the UK"
By Duncan Parry
BOOKSHELF
"International Business Information on the Web:
Searcher Magazine's Guide to Sites and Strategies
for Global Business Research"
Reviewed by Paul Pedley
FEATURE ARTICLE
"From Fortune 500 to Handelsblatt's European 500
- a look at some useful European and International Rankings"
By Helen Clegg
EVENTS, GOLD AND FORTHCOMING ARTICLES
CONTACT INFORMATION
ONLINE VERSION WITH ACTIVATED HYPERLINKS
<http://www.freepint.com/issues/060901.htm>
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>>> ABOUT FREE PINT <<<
Free Pint is an online community of information researchers. Members
receive this free newsletter every two weeks packed with tips on
finding quality and reliable business information on the Internet.
Joining is free at <http://www.freepint.com/> and provides access to
the substantial archive of articles, book reviews, jobs, industry news
& events, with answers to your research questions and networking at
the "Free Pint Bar" and "Student Bar". Free Pint Regulars (paid
members) also receive a weekly current awareness newsletter, discounts
and publicity. Please circulate this newsletter which is best read when
printed out and viewed in a Courier font.
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EDITORIAL
August is traditionally a quiet month for business, but again Free
Pint seems to be bucking the trend.
The Free Pint Bar had its busiest month in August and over 6,000
people now receive the Bar Digest three times a week. There's
certainly a critical mass of users as evidenced by the fact that
nearly all questions are receiving satisfactory responses in a very
short time <http://www.freepint.com/bar>.
We've been welcoming lots of new Regulars (paid members) and working
hard to provide you with a top-notch weekly Pub Crawl with lots of
articles and reviews to keep you up to date with developments in the
information and Internet worlds. Read the new Regulars section below
to catch up on the latest. Do consider signing up as a Regular and
receiving the Pub Crawl at <http://www.freepint.com/regular>.
Free Pint Jobs is also constantly being enhanced, and you can now
search for jobs specifically from one of the five agencies listing
over 230 vacancies at <http://www.freepint.com/jobs/>.
We have lots of other exciting things planned for the autumn,
including relocation to larger offices. Gary Price's Virtual
Acquisition Shelf will be with us shortly, but in the meantime you can
join the hundreds of others who have subscribed to his new mailing
list in the last week <http://www.freepint.com/resourceshelf>.
Of course, we're also working on our presence at this year's Online
Information show in London in December. We have another big stand, but
don't know how we will top the popularity of last year's Bar when
visitors won hundreds of real free pints.
In today's edition of Free Pint we've really tried to pack in as many
resources as possible, covering diverse topics like travelling by rail
in the UK (useful if you're planning a trip here sometime), finding
business information on the Web and a fantastic article detailing
where to get business rankings around the world. All this along with
the usual mix of tips, jobs, events and the latest from the Bar.
If you enjoy today's Free Pint then do pass it on to your colleagues
and friends, and prompt them to sign up for their own copy. It's free
to do so at <http://www.freepint.com/>. I'd also value your feedback
on anything we do and welcome suggestions for new services.
Best regards
William
William Hann, Founder and Managing Editor
Email: <william@freepint.com> Tel: +44 (0)1784 455435
Free Pint is a registered trademark of Free Pint Limited (c) 1997-2001
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MY FAVOURITE TIPPLES
from Kylie Baxter
* I use SOSIG <http://www.sosig.ac.uk/law/> every day to get the
overview on legal sites mentioned elsewhere.
* LLRX <http://www.llrx.com/> stands for Law Librarian Research
Exchange and I never miss an article.
* As an Aussie, I enjoy the guide to 'Strine' at
<http://www.olympics.smh.com.au/specials/slang/> and wish I could
find a Yorkshire version.
* I like Hilton's Harbour <http://hilton.org.uk/> for the Web articles
combined with the classic design, and the great photography is
a bonus.
* For a bit of fun, Sodaconstructor
<http://www.sodaplay.com/constructor/player.htm> can't be beat,
although it's hard to explain what it does exactly ...
Kylie Baxter is Information Officer and Webmistress for the University
of Hull Law School <http://www.law.hull.ac.uk>. She likes photography,
but isn't very good at it.
Tell us about your top five favourite Web sites. See the guidelines at
<http://www.freepint.com/author.htm> and email <simon@freepint.com>.
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>>> PUB CRAWL = CRAWL OF PUBLICATIONS <<<
Every week we review news and articles in a whole range of
information-related publications in the "Pub Crawl" newsletter.
This makes it an unmissable current awareness tool.
The Pub Crawl is sent to Free Pint Regulars every Friday.
To sign up as a Regular for just over 1 pound per week, visit:
<http://www.freepint.com/regular>
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FREE PINT BAR
In Association with Factiva
a Dow Jones & Reuters Company
Reviewed by Simon Collery
<http://www.freepint.com/issues/060901.htm#bar>
Free Pint Bar <http://www.freepint.com/bar>
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It's been a hectic few weeks since the last Newsletter came out.
People have been getting hot under the collar about 'inappropriate'
postings and some have objected to the sort of response they got to
their queries (12495, 12496). I would like to reassure Free Pinters
that the Bar is moderated and we will intervene if things ever get
unpleasant. We will also examine queries that may be inappropriate
and remove them if necessary.
On the other hand, the moderators of the Bar do not want to put
people off using the facility. There are all sorts of things people
need to find out in their day to day work and Free Pint has always
been a good place for that. We don't wish to be dogmatic about what
is and isn't appropriate. Nor do we wish to delete replies to
postings that express a legitimate opinion. There are many
experienced people in the Bar and we can all learn from each other.
That's one of the values of an active online community.
True, things can be pretty eclectic at times. What with New Zealand
flying machines (12142), second hand parachutes (11932), military
medals (12111), song lyrics (12511), music groups (12374), the
American presidency (12331) and the connection between wizards and
pigs (12515), it sometimes makes you wonder if you are on the right
planet. But the Bar is a relaxed and informal place and I think many
of our regular bibbers appreciate that.
Some postings are difficult to classify, but there's always room for
queries about things like spam (12056), UK rail travel (12510), the
cultural significance of colour (12313), e-books (12448), material
safety data sheets in French (12355), lists of European Union
committees (11966), law publications (11989), UK New Media awards
(12503), UK greeting card publishers (12193) and old paper measuring
terms (12219).
I admit that we have had some postings about language that have
stretched the boundaries of 'appropriateness', but again, it's hard
to draw a line sometimes. And it's undesirable to stem either the
creative flow or the good will that's an integral part of most
postings. So we've heard about the origin of the third and fourth
estate (12328), the definition of self-publishing online (12016), a
couple of Latin phrases (12500, 12301), a style guide for software
names (12520), definitions of break bumpers (12447), UK local
government terms (12017) and language resources (12534, 12516).
But the majority of questions are about pretty serious matters.
Business questions have ranged from biotechnology and pharmaceutical
company Web directories (12315), US company information (12278) and
branding for holding companies (12367) to the Bubble Theory of
Marketing (12095), merchant card services (12545) and outsourcing
payroll and accounting functions (12237).
There have also been questions about data analysis (12220), SIC code
search facilities (12064), IT consultancy services (12202), PR market
research companies (12371), Small to Medium Sized Enterprises
(12199), UK chambers of commerce (12126) and a list of UK companies
quoted on NASDAQ (12209). And we've had questions about specific
companies, such as Cole and Mason (12144) and Fylon (12453).
Finance matters have had plenty of airing recently. There have been
requests for data on the Big 5 accountancy firms (12462, 11983),
European financial risk reports (12068), sources of grants for online
projects (12526), start-up business grants (12103), virtual merchant
account providers (12450), the UK personal finance industry (11930),
the European premium rate industry (12022) and small grants in the US
(12342).
The Bar is a great place to pick up good Web resources and lately
we've heard about sites covering the European Courts (12162),
European Union approvals (12195), Intranets (12019), the credit card
industry (12009), ISPs (12390), patent alerts (12165), freebies
(12420) and computer security (12169). We're still looking for
sources of nutrition newsletters (11993) and pharmaceutical
directories (12551). Also, I reviewed sites about Web domains
(12179), knowledge management (12391) and XML (12524).
There've been software and application queries about iHarvest
(12509), content analysis tools (11994), add-ons for Sage (12535),
faxing from Office 97 and Office 2K (12239), folder listing utilities
(12211), Gator (12479), MS Exchange (12242), Excel (12369), Windows
shortcuts (12024) and sending emails using the contact list in OE 98
(12247). Some of these questions have not been answered so, if you
can help out, do get in touch.
Other technical questions have been about Dell Latitude modems
(12203), setting up forums (12316), mailing large groups of people
(12277), losing D drives (12034), texting landlines (12041), creating
hyperlinks from Word to Excel (12279), Multimedia Memory Cards
(12307), fonts (12537), UK computer magazines (12518), scanning
(12474), pinging (12131), converting image files (11999) and
extracting data from .bin files (12351).
Search tools can be good for locating resources in general but not so
good for news items, especially recent ones (12546). However, there
are some places you can try. We've also heard about Google's directory
(12288), Search.com (12299), vertical search tools (12031), the
frequency of certain search terms (11971), submitting to search
engines (12309) and tools for tracing missing persons (12320).
Quantitative data is sought on Customer Relationship Management
platforms (12048), freight transportation (12549) and employment in
the gaming industry (12494). Answers about European employment
statistics (12401) and weather averages (11935) have been more
forthcoming.
Finally, a request for information on person centered counselling
courses in the UK still needs an answer, if anyone can help (11997).
And there were some interesting answers to queries about the benefits
of the Internet for children (12143), the UK Freedom of Information
Act and its implementation in universities (12197) and the average
reading age in the UK (11960).
And do let us know what you think about the Free Pint Bar. We are
always interested in hearing feedback, comments and suggestions of
any kind.
Free Pint Student Bar <http://www.freepint.com/student>
-------------------------------------------------------
[Note: To read a posting enter the message number in place of
XXXX in the address <http://www.freepint.com/go/sXXXX>]
Students have been researching exciting things such as US companies
with a UK presence (1713), the criteria and methodologies employed in
compiling university rankings (1722), the relative fairness of job
interviews (1724), e-strategies (1748), m-commerce (1757), food
traceability and new communication technologies (1767) and free
market research on the Australian computer industry (1771).
There have also been queries about financial assistance (1715),
converting college degrees to university degrees (1751) and teaching
software skills using packages that are forever changing, such as MS
Works (1743). If you can help out, do drop into the Student Bar.
Simon Collery, Content Developer <simon@freepint.com>
If you have a tricky research question or can help other Free Pinters
then do post a message at the Bar <http://www.freepint.com/bar> or
the Student Bar <http://www.freepint.com/student>.
To have the latest Bar postings sent to you every other day, log in to
your account online or send a blank email to <digest@freepint.com>.
For the Student Bar Digest contact <studentdigest@freepint.com>.
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There are a number of ways you can contact the Free Pint readership,
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Find out more, and sign up for the regular Advertiser Update at:
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FREE PINT JOBS
<http://www.freepint.com/jobs>
In association with Sue Hill Recruitment,
Glen Recruitment, TFPL, City Professionals
Free Pint Jobs has details of over 230 information-related vacancies.
You can now search for all jobs from a particular recruitment agency
by selecting that agency from a pull-down menu on the search page at
<http://www.freepint.com/jobs/>. Alternatively, view the agency's
profile by clicking on their logo and select the link at the bottom of
the profile page.
Here are the latest featured jobs:
Senior Researcher <http://www.freepint.com/go/j1116>
Developing bank infocentre - evening supervisor or senior researcher
roles available. Take your career to the next level. Register now.
Recruiter: Sue Hill Recruitment
Knowledge & Information Manager <http://www.freepint.com/go/j1149>
Experienced Information Professional to manage Information Dept. and
enquiry service and to drive forward Knowledge Management initiatives
Recruiter: Glen Recruitment
Research Analyst <http://www.freepint.com/go/j1164>
A large corporate finance consultancy seeks a Research Analyst for
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Recruiter: TFPL Ltd
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Recruiter: City Professionals
[The above jobs are paid listings]
Candidates: It is free to search Free Pint Jobs and you can set up a
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Advertisers: List your vacancies and receive significant publicity.
Recruitment agencies can also automatically upload all their jobs.
Find out more today at <http://www.freepint.com/jobs>
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Free Pint's list hosting service collects all bounces and creates a
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FREE PINT REGULARS
<http://www.freepint.com/regular>
[Note: This section is primarily aimed at Regulars, paid members of
the Free Pint community. Regulars receive the weekly "Pub Crawl"
current awareness newsletter, discounts and publicity. Full details of
membership benefits and costs are at <http://www.freepint.com/regular>]
Much has been happening in the information and Internet industries
since the last edition of Free Pint, and we've been putting a lot of
effort into the weekly Pub Crawl to keep you up to date.
Staggeringly, we've analysed and summarised news and articles
appearing in over 30 publications, including Internet Business
Magazine, Econtent, BizReport, About.com's Web Search, M-
CommerceTimes, NYTimes.com, CNet.com, Traffick.com, The International
Herald Tribune, About.com's Librarians and Library Science,
Forbes.com, The Mercury News, CI Magazine, Business 2.0, Search Engine
Report, Wired, Guardian.co.uk, Clickz, Researchbuzz.com, About.com's
Web Search, ALA.org, USAToday.com, SearchEngineGuide.com, Society for
Competitive Intelligence Professional's (SCIP) CI Review,
DestinationCRM's Knowledge Management, Ananova, Silicon Valley, The
Register, Ecommerce Times, ContentBiz, Wired, About.com's Web Search,
ZDNet.com, SearchDay and Webmergers.com.
You'll have noticed more editorial too in each edition, and I hope
you're enjoying our slant on issues like journalists rubbishing the
Internet, professional versus amateur searchers and the dotcom
downturn. We're also now including other non-publication specific
articles and review pieces, like highlighting a guide to Knowledge
Management resources for both beginners and advanced users.
Thank you for your feedback on the Pub Crawl Archive which has been
well received. New Regulars like having access to all past issues and
we update the archive as soon as the Pub Crawl goes out each Friday.
Don't forget to set up your profile for the Directory of Regulars.
This is browseable by surname and organisation name now, and the
direct links from your Bar postings are getting noticed. We're keeping
track of the number of times your profile page is displayed, and you
can now publicise your page using the quick jump address
<http://www.freepint.com/go/rX> where X is your membership number.
We'd value your comments on any aspect of being a Regular and would
love to hear about your ideas for other services and content we could
provide to Regulars. So do write to me directly with your suggestions.
William Hann, Managing Editor <william@freepint.com>
[If you are not currently a Free Pint Regular and are interested in
finding out more and possibly singing up, then please visit the
Regulars homepage at <http://www.freepint.com/regular>]
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>>> T H E PLACE FOR INFORMATION-RELATED VACANCIES <<<
Whether you're searching for an information-related job or have
a vacancy to publicise, Free Pint Jobs is the destination for you.
There are 300 user profiles, so add yours for weekly email alerts
or advertise your vacancy to match against potential candidates.
Visit Free Pint Jobs today at <http://www.freepint.com/jobs/>
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TIPS ARTICLE
<http://www.freepint.com/issues/060901.htm#tips>
"Railways Online in the UK"
By Duncan Parry
Ah, to travel by train. The traffic free journey, the gentle clickety
clack of the rails, the green countryside rolling by, the incessant
ringing of mobile telephones, the foul tasting coffee, the sudden
inexplicable delays, the crowded carriages...
Travelling by rail in the UK has been a daily hell for many commuters
during the last year, following several accidents and the resulting
speed restrictions imposed across the network. Not to mention the
strikes and the tube.
Of course, there is one sector of UK passenger railways where strikes
are virtually non-existent: heritage railways. There is a vibrant
community of railway preservation groups, locomotive societies and
museums running steam services for tourists on preserved lines around
the country, as well as occasional mainline specials.
So where do you find information about travelling by train in the UK
as a resident or visitor? How do you find a steam railway to visit
with the grand-children? What about model railways? In this article
I'll try to answer these questions and provide an overview of some of
the sites available about the UK's railways.
Travelling by Rail
------------------
Timetables and Delays Information
To plan your journey use the official timetable from RailTrack
<http://www.railtimetable.co.uk/>. It's easy to use - just enter your
destination, departure point, etc., and you can view several journeys
before or after the time you specify. If you intend to buy your
ticket online at the same time, you might consider using the
timetables offered by the ticket companies mentioned below.
The recently improved RailTrack site does (seem) to warn you during
timetable searches of any engineering works. But a full list can be
found here <http://www.nationalrail.co.uk/news/fs_news.htm>. You can
also find information on posters on your local station, or call
National Rail enquiries on 08457 48 49 50.
A relatively new feature on the National Rail site
<http://www.nationalrail.co.uk/> is the ability to view information on
today's delays
<http://www.nationalrail.co.uk/realtime/fs_realtime.htm>, arranged by
train operating company (TOC). This is particularly useful as only
some of the individual TOCs web sites show running information.
Areas of the RailTrack site, including the timetable, are available
via WAP - information here
<http://www.kizoom.co.uk/railtrack/kizoom_info.html>.
Ticket Sales
There are several companies selling tickets online. The most well
advertised is The Train Line <http://www.thetrainline.com/>. The site
allows you to book tickets online after planning your journey based
upon the national timetable, and you can specify how many adults and
children are travelling, any animals, children or even bicycles and
any railcards you hold. Tickets are sent by post, or to your local
station if time is short.
A newcomer is TotalJourney <http://www.totaljourney.com/>, a joint
venture between the FirstGroup and Railtrack, which sells rail tickets
online and aims to offer a service including car rental, airline
tickets and hotel bookings soon.
Other companies in the ticket market are Train Direct
<http://www.traindirect.co.uk/> who sell tickets online for services
provided by First North Western and First Great Western, and Virgin,
who sell tickets for the entire network for the consumer
<http://www.virgintrains.co.uk/> and business customer
<http://www.vtbusinessexpress.co.uk/>.
Train Operating Companies (TOCs)
If you know you are travelling on a line operated by one company and
booking in advance, try checking their individual site - you may find
a special ticket offer or tourist attraction discounts. The quality
and range of information provided varies - some only offer details of
the lines they cover, some details of delays and a few have ventured
into online ticket sales. A list, with website links and an
indication of where they cover are here
<http://www.nationalrail.co.uk/tocs/fs_tocs.htm>.
Rail Passes
There are also several discount railcards available to UK citizens -
details here <http://www.nationalrail.co.uk/tocs/fs_tocs.htm>. These
are available for 18 -21 year olds, the senior citizens, the disabled
and families.
Airport Expresses
One of the positive benefits of rail privatisation has been the
development of high speed rail links between London and the major
airports of Gatwick <http://www.gatwickexpress.co.uk/>, Heathrow
<http://www.heathrowexpress.co.uk/> and Stanstead
<http://www.stanstedexpress.com/>. All three web sites detail the
stations served, the service and offer ticket sales.
EuroStar and The Channel Tunnel
Details of the passenger services between London, Paris and Brussels
can be found at Eurostar <http://www.eurostar.com/> and the car,
passenger and freight services between Folkestone and Calais at
EuroTunnel <http://www.eurotunnel.co.uk/>. This site often has
special offers on attractions and accommodation in France. An
interesting history of the idea of a channel tunnel, stretching back
to Napoleonic times, can be found here
<http://www.eurotunnel.co.uk/corpuk/history1.asp>.
There are discount travel passes available for travel from the UK to
Europe. A list of providers can be found here
<http://dmoz.org/Regional/Europe/United_Kingdom/Transport/Rail/Reservations/>.
Interestingly, a theoretical idea for an Atlantic tunnel on the sea
bed was recently published - read the story here
<http://www.ananova.com/news/story/sm_337462.html>.
Complain About Your Journey
Of course, not every rail journey goes to plan. So how do you
complain and get a ticket refund? The first thing to do, I've found
from experience, is to go to the ticket office at the end of your
journey if possible and ask for a complaint form. At the very least,
make sure you write down details of your journey (when you left and
were meant to arrive, and when you actually did) the same day -
there's nothing more frustrating than trying to complain and not being
able to remember what went wrong.
There are several sites at which you complain about your journey -
either to other rail users (and staff who may frequent the site) or by
e-mail to the companies. Of course, how seriously companies treat e-
mail complaints as opposed to paper based official forms is open to
debate - I suspect it depends on the company. The most useful are
TrainPain <http://www.trainpain.com/> and Delayed
<http://www.delayed.net/>.
Railway News
For the latest UK railway news headlines, visit my site
<http://www.railfind.co.uk/services/railway_news.htm>. If you want
alerts to UK railway news by e-mail, I suggest Ananova's alerts
service - you'll find a link at the above site.
Passenger Groups and the Regulator
There are several groups of passengers campaigning for improvements on
the railways, and even for re-nationalisation. These include
survivors of past rail crashes. These, and details of the regulator
were covered in an earlier Free Pint article
<http://www.freepint.com/issues/301100.htm>. You can find industry
and government sites, as well as some passenger groups, listed at my
site <http://www.railfind.co.uk/>.
Travelling from Abroad
If you are visiting the UK, you may be able to purchase rail passes
that offer discounted fares/unlimited travel across much of the
network and could save you a considerable amount of money. One
company providing these for the US is Europe on Rail
<http://www.europeonrail.com/> which sells passes for unlimited rail
travel in a set period. Other passes commonly available cover all of
Europe, the London Tube, and discounted travel for the youth
traveller. A list of providers can be found here
<http://dmoz.org/Recreation/Travel/Reservations/Rail/Europe/Euro-Passes/>.
Steam Railways
--------------
To be a steam engine driver was many a boy's dream before the end of
steam on the mainline in 1964. Some of those dreams have come true on
preserved lines, closed by BR to save costs.
Largely run by volunteers these lines provide hours of entertainment
to children (and their grandads), offering full steam services along
a few miles of track, as well as themed Santa and Thomas the Tank
Engine services. Even though steam services only run on the mainline
network as rare special services, the popularity of steam trains seems
to endure - as the continued popularity of the Thomas the Tank Engine
<http://www.thomasthetankengine.com/> cartoons and model railways
suggests.
You can easily find a steam line near you using
<http://www.railcentre.co.uk/railuk/mainuk.htm> which is arranged by
county or the interactive map at <http://ukhrail.uel.ac.uk/>.
Narrow gauge lines were an important part of the railway network,
often operating in an industrial setting or on private, isolated
lines. There are working lines throughout the country - these can be
found via an easy to use map at <http://www.narrowgauge.f2s.com/>.
There are also numerous museums and steam centres that offer static
and steaming exhibits - not just of engines, but of ornate coaches,
wagons, station buildings and other steam powered machinery. Perhaps
the most well known is the National Railway Museum at York - it boasts
an impressive array of exhibits, as well as one of the best museum web
sites I have encountered <http://www.nrm.org.uk/>.
There are also a number of groups aiming to re-open old lines, restore
particular engines or share historical information. These include the
Duke of Gloucester <http://www.dukeofgloucester.cwc.net/> group, the
excellent Didcot centre <http://www.didcotrailwaycentre.org.uk/> and
Historical Model Railway Society <http://www.hmrs.org.uk/>.
Model Railways
--------------
Since Frank Hornby <http://www.hornby.com/> sold his first model
train, model railways have become a popular toy for generations of
boys - and a full hobby for many dads and grandads, long after the
kids have moved on to Pokemon and Playstations. There are several
model railway magazines on sale in the UK, but unfortunately
the websites of the magazines aren't particularly useful, describing
little more that this month's issue. You can find model railway sites
via the HMRS <http://www.hmrs.org.uk/> or the directories below.
Directories
-----------
There are several sites providing directories of links to railway
sites, including my own UK focused site RailFind
<http://www.railfind.co.uk/>. Another extensive UK site is IRail
<http://www.irail.co.uk/>. Both cover travel, steam railways and
models, with links categorised and described. RailServe
<http://www.railserve.com/> holds links to many US railway sites
covering travel, history and model railroads. There are also several
railway orientated discussion groups and web rings at Yahoo!
<http://www.yahoo.com/>, and more discussion groups at Topica
<http://www.topica.com/>. You can search through these sites and find
one that matches your interests - or start your own.
> - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Duncan Parry is the owner of RailFind.co.uk, a directory of UK railway
web sites that will soon be merging with IRail.co.uk, another
directory of UK railway sites. The two sites aim to become the best
place to start finding UK railways info online. He is also a
directory editor for Lycos UK.
> - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
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FREE PINT BOOKSHELF
<http://www.freepint.com/bookshelf>
"International Business Information on the Web:
Searcher Magazine's Guide to Sites and Strategies
for Global Business Research"
Reviewed by Paul Pedley
This book is an excellent starting point for anyone wishing to
undertake international business research on the internet, whether you
are looking for company financial information, finding overseas buyers
for products, finding suppliers, or if you are looking for market
research studies.
The book started out as a series of articles in Searcher magazine
called "Around the web in 80 sites". It contains details of over
1,000 websites and it is split into sections covering geographic
regions. The complete list of URLs mentioned in the book are available
online at <http://www.infotoday.com/ibidirectory.htm>
The first section covers international or world resources. The
subsequent sections cover each geographic region. They start off with
a number of resources relevant to that region, and these are then
followed by a number of country specific resources. The book does not
attempt to cover every country of the world. Rather there is a
selection of countries covered within each regional section.
Coverage concentrates on "open" or "public" websites, albeit that some
of these do require the user to complete a free registration process
before they are able to access the sites.
Mention is also made of a number of commercial services such as
Dialog, Lexis-Nexis, and Factiva. This includes pointing out a number
of useful resources for business information searching such as the
Dialog company intelligence smart tool sheets and the products &
markets smart tool sheets.
The book highlights a wide selection of good quality international
business information sites on the internet free of charge; and which
are well worth further investigation. Whilst I was aware of quite a
few of the sites listed, the book certainly lists a number of sites
which I was not so familiar with.
The websites listed in this book cover a wide range of business
information topics such as banking, finance and stock exchanges;
chambers of commerce and industry; national and local government
resources; news resources; and yellow pages. One of the appendices
lists the URL's that are covered; and the book also has a detailed
index.
All in all this book is well worth the USD 29.95 investment.
> - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Paul Pedley is Head of Research at the Economist Intelligence Unit. He
maintains a website at <http://www.paulpedley.com>; is the author of
four books - including "Free business and industry information on the
web" and "The invisible web: searching the hidden parts of the
internet"; and is course director of a number of courses including one
on the Invisible Web <http://www.aslib.com/training/6/04.html>.
> - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
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To propose an information-related book for review, send details
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FEATURE ARTICLE
<http://www.freepint.com/issues/060901.htm#feature>
"From Fortune 500 to Handelsblatt's European 500
- a look at some useful European and International Rankings"
By Helen Clegg
Introduction
------------
Rankings are a great way of quickly finding the top companies in a
particular market sector or country. Most respected national
newspapers and business magazines compile such lists on a regular
basis and many can be viewed for free on the World Wide Web.
Magazines and newspapers have even started compiling rankings on other
subjects, e.g. the Top 10 European Regions which have produced the
most patents, 40 Best Places in the US to be single, the Richest
Americans, the Top 50 Entertainers in Australia and Europe's Best and
Brightest Entrepreneurs. This article takes a look at company and
more unusual rankings and covers Europe, the USA and Australia.
Europe
======
UK
--
Perhaps amongst the most well-known and respected UK annual rankings
are those compiled by the Financial Times newspaper
<http://www.ft.com>. The rankings are available for free on the FT
web site under the special reports section.
<http://specials.ft.com/ft500/may2001/global.html>. A welcome new
feature to these rankings is that you can download them directly into
an Excel spreadsheet, a real time saver! The FT compiles company
rankings for other major geographic regions as well as the UK:
* The UK 500
* Top 100 UK Companies - by turnover
* Europe 500
* Top 100 Eastern European Companies - ranked by market
capitalization
* The US 500
* Top 100 US Companies - by turnover
* Top 100 Canadian Companies - ranked by market capitalization
* Top 100 Latin American companies - ranked by market capitalization
* Japan 500
* Top 100 Japanese Companies - ranked by turnover only
* Top 100 Asia-Pacific Companies - ranked by market capitalization
* Top 50 Middle-East companies - ranked by market capitalization.
As the above list shows, some of the rankings are by market
capitalization only, but the rest have a number of other predefined
ranking options, ranging from sector profitability, turnover and
largest employers, to largest falls in rank and largest rises in rank.
Germany
-------
There are a number of good rankings available for Germany. One of the
best places to start is with the Handelsblatt
<http://www.handelsblatt.com>, which is Germany's main financial and
economic daily newspaper, the German equivalent of the Financial
Times. Under the heading called "Unternehmen und Markte" - Companies
& Markets, on the left-hand side of the home page, the hyperlink
marked "Europa 500 Rating" takes you to the Handelsblatt's three
rankings tables:
* Die 50 grossten Privatunternehmen - 50 largest private companies
* Die 500 grossten Unternehmen Europas - Europe's 500 largest
companies
* Die 100 grossten Unternehmen des Neuen Marktes - 100 largest
companies listed on the Neuer Markt.
Companies in the first two ranking lists can be sorted by revenue in
Euro, number of employees, market capitalization, as well as industry
sector. The Neuer Markt listing is slightly different in that
companies can only be sorted by Euro share price or profit for 2000 or
2001.
Another good source for rankings in Germany is the monthly Manager
Magazin <http://www.manager-magazin.de>. There are two main rankings
on this web site which are useful:
* Euro 500
* Web Test.
The first one ranks the top European quoted companies. This list can
be sorted by shareholder value performance, revenue growth, market
capitalization, industry sector and number of employees. The second
ranks German companies by their ability to leverage Internet
technology. This list can be sorted by navigational capability,
interactivity, homogeneity and transparency. Both lists can be reached
by using the dropdown box on the left-hand side of the home page. For
the top European quoted companies, choose "Euro 500" and for the
Internet listing, choose "Web test". Although all the rankings in the
German magazines are in German, they are still a good place to start
and you only have to know a few key words to understand the
information that the lists provide.
France
------
France is somewhat behind the UK, the US and even Germany when it
comes to the Internet and this shows in the format of the rankings
posted on French web sites. However, the rankings are still a useful
way of quickly pinpointing the basic details of top French companies.
Les Echos <http://www.lesechos.fr> is one of France's leading business
newspapers and publishes a series of rankings for 14 different
industry sectors, from automotive, energy, distribution, to financial,
high-tech and aerospace. Although the web site is all in French, it's
not too hard to find the rankings. The industry sectors are listed
right in the middle of the home page . Each of these
hyperlinks takes you to a page dedicated to that particular industry
sector, then it's just a question of scrolling down until you see the
heading "Classements CA" on the left-hand side of the page. The
Classements CA hyperlink takes you straight to the sector list, which
ranks the major French companies by 1999 revenue.
More interactive company listings for France are provided by the
business magazine L'Usine Nouvelle <http://www.usinenouvelle.fr>,
under the heading "Annuaires". The lists available are:
* Les 5500 Entreprises - 5500 companies
* Les 2650 Usines - 2650 factories
* 500 PME Europeenes qui gagnent - 500 winning small/medium-sized
companies
* 100 Premieres Entreprises de France - Top 100 French companies
* Les 100 Premiers Groupes Industriels de France - Top 100 French
industrial groups.
The first two lists seem really strange, because they sport such high
numbers - most rankings are round numbers, e.g. the Top 50 or Top 200,
but not in this case! On closer inspection however, this is because
these are actually hyperlinks to searchable databases of the top
companies and factories in France, rather than strict rankings.
Database search criteria include industry sector, revenue, number of
employees, department (French equivalent of UK county) and region.
The display format is somewhat disappointing and is nowhere near as
good as any of the German, UK or US lists. The database just retrieves
a list of the companies' names and their industry sectors. More
detailed information on each company is available however, by clicking
on the company name. There is a hyperlink to the Top 100 French
companies and the Top 100 French industrial groups from the search
page of the 5500 companies.
For some more unusual rankings, check out the web site of L'Expansion
<http://www.lexpansion.com>. Under the magazine section, the
hyperlink marked "Classements" will take you to the following lists:
* Palmares des principaux groupes francaises en fonction de leur MVA
et de la variation de MVA en 2000 - Major French companies by
market value-added metric
* Les patrons fair play et les autres - Top 250 European companies
by their ability to implement good corporate governance
* Les 1000 de l'Expansion - Top 1500 French companies. This ranking
is split into smaller rankings, including the top industrial
groups, the top commercial enterprises, the top banks and
financial institutions and the top insurance companies.
* Les regions qui font avancer l'Europe - European regions which are
doing the most to advance the cause of Europe. This ranking is
split into the following:
* Le Top 15 de l'Expansion Europeene - Top 15 of European expansion
* Les 10 premiers selon le taux de chomage - Top 10 ranked by
unemployment rate
* Les 10 premieres selon la main d'oeuvre high-tech - Top 10 ranked
by high-tech labour force
* Les 10 premiers selon le nombre de brevets - Top 10 ranked by
number of patents
* Les 10 premiers selon le niveau de vie - Top 10 ranked by quality
of life
* Les 10 premiers reservoirs de main d'oeuvre - Top 10 ranked by
availability of labour.
So if you need to know the top European regions which are contributing
most to European expansion, check out "Le Top 15 de l'Expansion
Europeene". You'll find that Bavaria is in first place and the
Flemish province of Brabant in 15th place. Bavaria comes top again in
the patent ranking, with Braunschweig in 10th place. In fact, Germany
dominates the complete patent ranking with only two other European
countries - Sweden and Belgium, making it into the list. All the data
for these regional rankings comes from Eurostat, the official
statistical body of the European Union.
Finally, L'Expansion offers searchers a ranking which it calls "Les
entreprises preferees des francais" - companies preferred by the
French. This list allows you to rank the companies by attractiveness
of products/services, by how innovative the companies are perceived
and also by EVA (economic value-added), which shows those companies
known for creating value. As can be expected, all the French rankings
are in French, after all, it's one of the main languages of the
European Community.
Spain
-----
L'Expansion and Actualidad Economica are the two leading Spanish
business magazines, which publish rankings. Both L'Expansion and
Actualidad Economica are owned by the Spanish publishing company
Recoletos, which also produces the web sites for each of these
magazines.
On L'Expansion's web site <http://www.expansiondirecto.com> and on
Actualidad Economica's web site <http://www.actualidad-economica.com>
under the "Servicios" section, there is a hyperlink to Las 5000
Mayores Empresas Espanolas - the Top 5000 Spanish companies. In each
case, the hyperlink takes you to the same database, from which the
ranking is generated. Unfortunately, access to this database is by
subscription only. There are several subscription options available
and online payment by credit card is possible.
However, if all you need is a list of the top 20 quoted Spanish
companies, go to the Bolsafin web site <http://www.bolsafin.com>, a
Spanish financial web portal. Click on Empresas, half way down the
home page and follow the link to Empresas Ibex 35. This hyperlink will
take you to the top 20 quoted companies listed in the Ibex 35 index.
It is also worth noting that a recent issue of Actualidad Economica,
Number 2248, includes Las 1000 Mayores Empresas Europeas - the Top
1000 European companies. At the time of writing, this ranking is only
available in hardcopy, but as the World Wide Web becomes increasingly
important in Spain, it is more than likely that such rankings will be
posted for free on publishers' web sites in the near future.
Switzerland
-----------
A good source for Switzerland is the daily Handelszeitung newspaper
<http://www.handelszeitung.ch>. Under the heading Handelszeitung
Aktuell, you'll find the Swiss Top 500 and the Euro Top 500, in
German, of course.
The Swiss Top 500 is a static HTML table. It gives basic company
data, turnover with percent change, profit with percent change and
number of employees. There are separate lists for industrial
companies, banks, life assurance companies, reinsurance companies and
accident insurance companies.
The Euro Top 500 provides a ranking of the Top 500 largest industrial,
commercial and service companies in Europe. Data is for 1999 and 1998
and includes turnover in Euros with percent change, profit in Euros
with percent change and number of employees.
The Swiss business magazine "Bilanz" is another source of rankings for
Switzerland and compiles an annual ranking of the 100 Best Companies
in Switzerland. However, only the top ten companies from the ranking
are posted on the magazine's web site <http://www.bilanz.ch>.
International
=============
USA
---
America's most famous ranking has to be the Fortune 500, compiled
annually by Fortune magazine <http://www.fortune.com>. Since
publishing the Fortune 500, this magazine has expanded its offering of
rankings and now produces a Global 500, America's Most Admired, 100
Fastest Growing Companies, Most Powerful Women and the Fortune e-50,
to mention but a few. All the Fortune rankings are accessible from the
home page of the Fortune web site, in the "Browse by Fortune Lists"
section. Of all the rankings reviewed in this article, Fortune's are
the most interactive. As well as being able to rank by industry
sector, revenues, profits, shareholder's equity, market value,
earnings per share, total return to investors and number of employees,
searchers can also use the custom ranking option and rank according to
some more predefined options, chosen from a dropdown list. If
that's not enough, click on any of the companies in the lists and
you'll retrieve snippets of information and articles mentioning that
company. For instance, clicking on Exodus Communications in the
Fortune e-50 ranking, retrieves a couple of news stories about Exodus
as well as a hyperlink to the company capsule provided by Hoover's.
Don't miss Fortune's Top Performing Industries and Top Performing
Companies. Both these lists let you rank by "most bang for the
buck". This has to be the best description of ranking criteria yet!
Forbes <http://www.forbes.com>, another prominent US business
magazine, also offers a number of rankings. These are to be found by
navigating to the Companies and People sections by way of the handy
tabs at the top of the home page. The company rankings include:
* 200 Best Small Companies
* The Private 500
* America's 500 Leading Companies - largest US public corporations
* The Platinum 400 - based on growth and profitability
* International 800.
These rankings can be sorted by rank number, company name, state,
industry, revenues or number of employees. Older rankings going back
to 1996 are available from the same web site too, which is useful if
you need historical data for drawing trends, e.g. company profit from
1996 to 2000 or number of employees over the last four years. Forbes
lists can be purchased via their web site for US$495 each, giving
searchers much more flexibility with the data, but at a cost.
Forbes' other rankings include:
* Top 40 best places to be single - apparently this is the first
annual US guide to the best places for singles!
* Best Value Bosses - the first annual CEO value survey. Not
surprisingly, Warren Buffet, CEO of Berkshire Hathaway, who is
famous for his investment judgements, ranks as number one in this
survey. This survey is not easy to spot on the Forbes site, it's
located in the People section under the Forbes Top CEOs list.
* Forbes 400 richest Americans. No prizes for who tops this list -
yes, it's Bill Gates.
The Top 100 IT companies can be found on Business Week's web site in
the Special Reports section <http://www.businessweek.com>. The
complete ranking of the Top 100 IT companies is in pdf format and is
basically the original printed listing from the Business Week
magazine. Business Week's other rankings include:
* BW50/Standard & Poor's Top 500. This is an interactive list of
the Top 500 companies according to Standard & Poor and can be
found in the Special Reports section of the web site. Companies
can be ranked by total return, sales growth, profit growth, net
margin, return on equity, stock price as well as market
capitalization. The BW50 is made up of the Top 50 of these
companies and their rank in the BW50 is indicated in a separate
column.
* The Stars of Europe - Europe's Best & Brightest. Not a strict
ranking as such, but a compilation of the names of European
leaders, who are adept at managing change. The list has sections
on value creators, entrepreneurs, financiers, agenda setters,
survivors and innovators. You'll find this list in the Special
Reports section too.
* The Global 1000 - interactive list, to be found in the Global
Business section of the web site.
* The Top 200 Emerging Market Companies - ranking in pdf format.
The best way to locate this ranking is to do a site search, by
using the phrase "Top 200 emerging", which retrieves the pdf file
and accompanying article. One criticism of the Business Week
rankings is that they are not all located in the same place on the
web site and tend to be posted in the section containing the
online edition of the original hardcopy publication.
For authoritative US business information, many searchers will be
familiar with the Wall Street Journal <http://www.wsj.com>. However,
when it comes to rankings, this source is disappointing. Its online
rankings (100 Small Cap Companies, 50 Largest Private Companies, Top
10 Companies and the Europe 500) are only available to subscribers of
the newspaper, who have a password for the web site. As all these
rankings are static HTML tables, it's probably best to stick with the
Fortune 500 and Handelsblatt rankings, which are much more flexible
and don't cost a penny.
Australia
---------
Business Review Weekly <http://www.brw.com.au> is the place to go for
Australian rankings. On the home page of the BRW site, there's a link
to all the BRW lists. Here you'll find:
* The BRW 1000 - this list ranks the biggest listed, private,
government and foreign enterprises in Australasia by revenue.
Historical data is also available for 1997 through 1999
* The BRW Top 500 Private Companies - the only detailed analysis of
the private company sector in Australia. Data for 1999 is also
available
* The BRW Rich 200 - according to Business Review Weekly, this list
looks at the changing face of wealth creation and examines the
fortune of the wealthiest families and individuals in Australia
* The 100 Fastest Growing Companies
* The Top 500 Foreign Companies - this is the first list of its kind
for Australia and it highlights the role that foreign controlled
firms play in the Australian economy.
All these lists can be ranked by number of employees, total revenue,
net profit and total assets. Three rankings on the BRW site which are
interesting but require subscription to the site are:
* The BRW Top 500 Public Companies - this analyses top performing
companies across all sectors of Australian industry
* The State of the Nation - lists Australia's best and worst
performing industries
* The 2000 Power Pack - this ranking lists the 50 most powerful
people in Australia.
Finally, check out who's the top entertainer in Australia by
consulting BRW's Top 50 Entertainers ranking. No subscription to the
web site is required for this great list!
Conclusion
==========
As well as the lists mentioned in this article, there are two useful
research tools, which are a great help to locating rankings on the
World Wide Web. First, Gary Price's List of Lists
<http://gwis2.circ.gwu.edu/~gprice/listof.htm>, is a priceless
resource, even though it does have a US bias. The rankings in the
list are really diverse, ranging from the top pork powerhouses and
leading wine producers to credit card companies and the top 10
investment scams. Second, the Corporate Information web site
<http://www.corporateinformation.com>, maintained by Wright
Investors' Service, an investment management and financial advisory
firm based in the USA, is a great starting point to find the Top 10
companies in some of the smaller European countries, such as Belgium,
the Netherlands and Luxembourg. This site also provides short
financial analyses, recent press releases and company contact details.
So whether you're searching for a company ranking, an industry ranking
or a list of the richest people in America, the chances are it's on
the World Wide Web somewhere, but knowing just where to find it is
the tricky part.
> - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Helen Clegg is Market Analyst with RR Donnelley & Sons Company Europe,
in Amsterdam. She holds an M.Sc. in Library and Information Studies
and has worked for a number of organizations in Europe including Bain
& Company, BNFL plc and AT Kearney Ltd. Helen can be contacted at
<Helen.Clegg@rrd.com>. She writes here in a personal capacity.
> - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Related Free Pint links:
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<http://www.freepint.com/issues/060901.htm#feature>
* Access the entire archive of Free Pint content
<http://www.freepint.com/portal/content/>
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>>> FREE PINT FACT <<<
The Free Pint Bar just keeps on getting more and more popular by the
day, and we've just passed some further milestones as evidenced by the
realtime statistics at <http://www.freepint.com/bar/>:
* There have been over 11,000 questions and answers
* The busiest month has just become August 2001
* The 17th day of that month was the busiest day ever
* Over 6,000 people now receive the Bar Digest three times a week
<http://www.freepint.com/regular/>
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FORTHCOMING EVENTS
<http://www.freepint.com/events>
Whilst the first half of September was a busy time for information
events, the second half is decidedly quiet again. Looking forward to
the beginning of October ...
EUSIDIC (the European Association of Information Services) are holding
their Annual Conference this year in Baden-Baden, Germany. The theme
is the evolving information value chain and the challenges faced by
producers, publishers and users of information published
electronically.
This year's second Online Information for the City from Learned
Information takes place on the 10th and 11th October in the City of
London. It focuses as usual on information managers and end-users
from financial and city-based organisations.
If you know of any information-related events around the world
then please do send us details via the link below.
Details of these and many other forthcoming conferences and
exhibitions in the online-information and Internet industries can be
found on the Free Pint Events page <http://www.freepint.com/events>.
If you're organising an event then submit details via this page.
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FREE PINT GOLD
This time last year we covered Web resources for diverse topics
including mental health and aeronautics/aerospace. The book review was
about the importance of providing excellent customer service on the
Internet, which is something we pride ourselves on at Free Pint.
* Free Pint No.70, 7th September 2000 "A Web of Mental Health" and
"Top Sites on the Web for Aeronautics and Aerospace Science and
Technology". <http://www.freepint.com/issues/070900.htm>
Free Pint two years ago, in the issue dated nine nine ninety nine,
had articles from two of our most popular authors. Richard Eskins from
Manchester Metropolitan University provided a super overview of how to
find drivers and other important files for your PC on the Web. Whilst
Free Pint Regular Martin White looked at Intranet and Extranet sites.
* Free Pint No.45, 9th September 1999 "File finding, file filing" and
"Intranets and Extranets".
<http://www.freepint.com/issues/090999.htm>
Three years ago we were introduced to running newsgroups locally, and
finding legal resources on the Web.
* Free Pint No.21, 3rd September 1998 "Tricks with local newsgroups"
and "Legal Resources on the Web".
<http://www.freepint.com/issues/030998.htm>
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FREE PINT FORTHCOMING ARTICLES
[Provisional]
* UK Charity Information Jobs * Legal Sources *
* Wales * Climate Change and Emissions * WAP *
* Academic, Economic and Social Science * Virtual Reference *
* Plastics and Rubber * Taxonomies * Technology Transfer *
* The 3 I's of Information * Effective Problem Solving * B2B *
* Women in Business * Communities of Practice * UK Taxation *
If you have a suggestion for an article topic or would like to write
for Free Pint then please contact me or sign up for the monthly Author
Update on the Web site at <http://www.freepint.com/author.htm>.
Rex Cooke, Editor <rex@freepint.com>
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GOODBYE
I really hope you've enjoyed today's Free Pint, and will pass this
copy on to others you think might also find it of use. Do also join us
at the Bar if we can help with your tricky research questions.
Remember to check out becoming a Free Pint Regular to receive the
weekly Pub Crawl and keep up to date with what's happening in other
publications. Full details are at <http://www.freepint.com/regular/>.
See you in two weeks!
William Hann, Founder and Managing Editor
<william@freepint.com>
(c) Free Pint Limited 1997-2001
<http://www.freepint.com/>
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CONTACT INFORMATION
William Hann, Founder and Managing Editor
Email: <william@freepint.com> Tel: +44 (0)1784 455435
Rex Cooke, Editor
Email: <rex@freepint.com> Tel: +44 (0)1342 316027
Simon Collery, Content Developer
Email: <simon@freepint.com> Tel: +44 (0)1865 434143
Address: Free Pint Limited, FREEPOST (SEA3901), Staines
Middlesex, TW18 3BR, United Kingdom
(Please add a stamp if you would like to pay for postage)
Tel: +44 (0)1784 455466
Fax: +44 (0)1784 455436
Web <http://www.freepint.com>
Subscriptions <subs@freepint.com>
Letters & Comments <feedback@freepint.com>
Authors <http://www.freepint.com/author.htm>
Latest Issue Autoresponder <auto@freepint.com>
Advertising <http://www.freepint.com/advert.htm>
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Free Pint (ISSN 1460-7239) is a free newsletter written by information
professionals who share how they find quality and reliable information
on the Internet. Useful to anyone who uses the Web for their work, it
is published every two weeks by email.
To subscribe, unsubscribe, find details about contributing,
advertising or to see past issues, please visit the Web site at
<http://www.freepint.com/> or email <admin@freepint.com>.
Your registered email address is listed at the bottom of this message.
Please note: Free Pint is a registered trademark of, and published by,
Free Pint Limited. The publishers will NEVER make the subscriber list
available to any other company or organisation.
The opinions, advice, products and services offered herein are the
sole responsibility of the contributors. Whilst all reasonable care
has been taken to ensure the accuracy of the publication, the
publishers cannot accept responsibility for any errors or omissions.
This publication may be freely copied and/or distributed in its
entirety. However, individual sections MAY NOT be copied and/or
distributed without the prior written agreement of the publishers.
Write to Rex Cooke, Editor <rex@freepint.com> for more details.
Product names used in Free Pint are for identification purposes only,
and may be trademarks of their respective owners. Free Pint disclaims
any and all rights in those marks. All rights reserved.
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About this Newsletter
- Publication Date: 5th September 2001
- Plain text
- Link: https://www.jinfo.com/go/newsletter/95
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