Multimedia Design †iOS vs. Android Essay Example for Free

Multimedia Design – iOS vs. Android Essay iOS ‘i’ stands for ‘Internet’. The term iOS was originally known as iPhone OS and was introduced in 2007 along with the first iPhone hardware device Apple released. It was the term used to describe the software that would operate the iPhone and is derived from the term OS X, which is how Apple describes its operating system for its Macintosh computers. The X stands for 10 which is the newest version of the computer software Apple created to operate the desktop and laptop computers they design. The iOS platform is a mobile-device-based software system that works like a computer system, but on mobile devices like portable phones. It is designed to be smaller, faster and use less power. It also has a touch friendly user interface so it works better when a finger is used to interface with the system instead of a mouse or stylus that has been used in the past to interact with operating systems. The iPhone has run on iOS since its release in 2007. Designed for use with Apple’s multi-touch devices, iOS supports input through direct manipulation. The system responds to various user gestures, such as pinching, tapping and swiping. Other iOS features include: Integrated search support enables simultaneous search through files, media, applications and email. Gesture recognition supports, for example, shaking the device to undo the most recent action. Google Maps direction services. Push email. Safari mobile browser. Integrated camera and video. Integrated media player. Direct access to the Apple Store’s catalogue of applications, music, podcasts, television shows and movies. Compatibility with Apple’s cloud service, iCloud. History 2007: iPhone OS 1 Revealed alongside the original iPhone in January 2007, the first Apple  smartphone operating system was not given a specific name until the following March, with the launch of the first Software Development Kit beta., when it became known as iPhone OS. The first iPhone could not support 3G, the copy and paste function, email attachments or MMS and couldnt run third party apps. Further updates included the introduction of the iTunes Music Store, allowing users to purchase music directly onto their phones (through a Wi-Fi connection) for the first time, and the ability to create their own ringtones. 2008: iPhone OS 2 Coinciding with the launch of the iPhone 3G, the second major update to the operating system saw the launch of the App Store, leading to the introduction of third party apps and games. Full support for Microsoft Exchange and the option to wipe your phone in the event of failing to enter your passcode were other new features, the latter being added in a subsequent update. Google Street View was enabled with the 2.2 update, featuring walking, driving and public transport options. 2009: iPhone OS 3 With the third incarnation for the new 3GS handset, the cut, copy and paste function finally became commonplace, alongside the long-awaited push notifications for third party apps. Video recording, MMS (multimedia messaging service) and voice control were also added, and users were given the chance to purchase films, TV shows and audiobooks through iTunes. Spotlight search enabled more comprehensive search through email, contacts, calendar, notes and within music, and the new voice memo function facilitated the recording and storing of audio notes. Purchasing within apps was also introduced, but only within paid-for apps. The 3.2 version contained a raft of improvements designed for use with the newly released iPad. While not supporting general multitasking, it was made to accommodate the differing resolution of a larger screen than the iPhone, as well as revamping apps specifically for the new platform. 2010: iOS 4 Introduced on June 21 2010, iOS 4 was the first operating system to bear the iOS name, released on the new flagship iPhone 4. Its folder system accommodated the storing of up to 12 similar apps within one mother folder,  while multitasking allowed apps to run simultaneously, such as writing an email while listening to Spotify, and navigation apps continuing to track your location in the background. iBooks, Apples ebook-reading software, and its parent iBookstore was introduced, and the improved 5MP iPhone 4 camera was complemented by tap to focus software and 5x digital zoom. The devices new front-facing camera also facilitated video calling feature FaceTime. 2011: iOS 5 2011 saw the launch of the iPhone 4S and with it, iOS 5. The main new feature was Siri, Apples voice-activated virtual assistant that had previously been downloadable from the App Store as a third party app. Now integrated into the OS, Siri now communicated with other apps to make calls, check emails and transcribe text. Containing more than 200 new features, iOS 5 heralded the arrival of iOS user messaging system iMessage, Twitter integration across a range of apps and online storage facility iCloud, replacing previous system MobileMe. 2012: iOS 6 Tim Cook took to the stage at Apples 2012 WorldWide Developers Conference shocked fans by announcing that Google Maps would not feature in latest incarnation iOS 6, and would be replaced by the companys own inbuilt Maps app. Siri also received a makeover, featuring restaurant recommendations, the ability to dictate tweets or Facebook statuses and film reviews. A year after Twitter integration into Apples native apps, Facebook was added to the fold, and Apple launched its answer to Google Wallet, Passbook, will collated tickets, boarding passes and coupons within the single app. 2013: iOS 7 iOS 7 marked a radical aesthetic departure for Apple, masterminded by Sir Jony Ive, and debuted on the twin release of the iPhones 5s and 5c. The new flattened and pared-back user interface drew praise and criticism in equal measures. The single-swipe control centre feature allowed users to quickly access key settings such as WiFi, Airplane mode, Bluetooth and the newly-introduced torch without having to delve into the Settings menu. Siri was upgraded to both male and female voices, and redesigned to understand French and German. Other changes included a new camera interface with a  square photo mode, full multitasking for all apps and new wallpapers. 2014: iOS 8 Announced at the 2014 WWDC conference in June, iOS 8 will feature new frameworks HealthKit and HomeKit, integrating apps to track health data and the standardisation of controlling internet-enabled home appliances. It is expected to ship on the iPhone 6, which Apple is believed to be preparing to announce at next weeks special event in San Francisco. Other new features include being able to sent audio and video messages by holding down a record button while inside the Messages app, new predictive typing feature QuickType and the new and improved file hosting service iCloud Drive. Features With an easy-to-use interface, amazing features and security at its core, iOS 8 is the foundation of iPhone, iPad and iPod touch. It’s designed to look beautiful and work beautifully, so even the simplest tasks are more engaging. And because iOS 8 is engineered to take full advantage of the advanced technologies built into Apple hardware, your devices are always years ahead — from day one to day whenever. Elegant and intuitive interface From the moment you pick up iPhone, iPad or iPod touch, you know how to use it. That’s because iOS was designed to be easy to understand. The simple-yet-beautiful Home screen invites you to discover each of the built-in apps. So straight away, you’re browsing your favourite websites, capturing a few candids or texting your friends. And no matter what you’re doing or what app you’re using, everything feels easy, intuitive and even fun. Built-in features and apps that make your device — and you — more capable iOS and an ever-expanding collection of features and built-in apps make iPhone, iPad and iPod touch even more powerful, innovative and a joy to use. 1. Photos Every photo you take is ready to edit and share in seconds, straight from your iOS device. And you can search for your favourite photos by time, location and album, or browse by Collections and Moments — smart groupings of your photos and videos based on time and place. 2. Me ssages Messages lets you send any kind of message, any way you want to send it. Tap to add your voice to a conversation. Send a video of what you’re seeing the  moment you’re seeing it. And now you can manage your group conversations by naming them, adding and removing contacts, muting them or leaving them altogether. 3. Music When it comes to your music, this is home base. Create playlists for every mood. Or let Genius do it for you. 4. Maps Apple-designed from the ground up (and the sky down), this built-in app shows you incredible detail — even at full zoom. Maps keeps street names where they belong and keeps you heading in the right direction with spoken turn-by-turn navigation. 5. Face Time With a tap, you can make video calls or audio-only calls from your iPhone or iPad to someone else’s. And you can do it over Wi-Fi or cellular networks. So you can be there, even when you’re not there. 6. Safari It’s the world’s most popular mobile browser. Safari puts the focus where it should be: the web. When you open a web page, the address and navigation bars move out of the way until you need them. Bookmarks are easy to add and edi t, and features like Reading List, Shared Links and iCloud Tabs let you get to the content you need when you need it. 7. AirDrop Sharing with AirDrop is faster and more convenient than an email or a text, especially when the person you want to share with isn’t in your Contacts. Just tap to send photos, videos, contacts — and anything else from any app with a Share button — to anyone nearby who’s also running iOS 8 or OS X Yosemite. 8. Health Now your activity tracker, heart rate monitor, and other health and fitness apps can talk to each other. Which means they’ll be able to work even harder for you. And all the information is accessible in one easy-to-read dashboard. 9. AirPlay AirPlay lets you wirelessly stream what’s on your iOS device to your HDTV and speakers via Apple TV. Or mirror exactly what’s on your display to the big screen. Holiday photos, blockbusters, the latest games — you choose how to go large. Hardware and software made for each other. Because Apple makes both the hardware and the operating system for iPad, iPhone and iPod touch, everything is designed to work together. So apps take full advantage of hardware features such as the dual-core processor, accelerated graphics, wireless antennas and more. Multitasking is a perfect example. iOS learns when you like to use your apps and updates the content in them at power-efficient times, like when your device is already in use and connected to Wi-Fi. So the content in your favourite apps stays up to  date without a major drain on your battery. With the App Store, there’s almost no limit to what your iOS device can do. iOS is the platform for well over a million mobile apps — and counting. And every app starts with the right DNA. So we’ve made iOS 8 the biggest release for developers since the introduction of the App Store. It offers new APIs to enable even more amazing features and bold new technologies for game development. And the App Store makes all of these apps easy to access, easy to search and easy to buy using the same account you use for iTunes. Just browse the App Store on your iOS device and download them with a tap. iCloud. Everything you need. Anywhere you need it. iCloud makes sure all your devices always have the latest versions of your most important things, including documents, apps, contacts, calendar events and more. iCloud Drive lets you access all your files from any device. With Family Sharing, all your photos, videos, music and iTunes purchases can be shared easily with your family across multiple Apple devices. Find My iPhone helps you locate your lost iPhone, iPad, iPod touch or Mac. And iCloud Keychain securely remembers your user names, passwords and credit card information so you don’t have to. Easy to update. iOS updates are free. And they’re available to download wirelessly on your iPhone, iPad or iPod touch the moment they’re released. Your device even alerts you when it’s time to get the latest version. So you won’t miss out on all the amazing features in new updates. Safety and security come standard. iOS provides built-in security from the moment you turn on your device. That’s because the hardware, firmware and operating system come with built-in features designed to help your device — and what you put on it — stay safe. 1. Security. Malware and viruses aren’t confined to desktops anymore. They can infect mobile devices too. Which is why Apple takes security seriously when it comes to iOS. For starters, hardware and firmware features are designed to protect against malware and viruses, while iOS features help to secure your  personal information. Touch ID lets you use your fingerprint as a passcode, preventing unauthorised access to your device. When you use a passcode, it automatically encrypts and protects your email, calendar events, contacts, reminders, notes, messages and third-party apps. 2. Privacy. iOS is designed to put your privacy first. If an app wants your location information or data from Calendar, Contacts, Reminders or Photos, it needs your permission first. And you have complete control of how Health and HealthKit use your data. Your conversations over iMessage and FaceTime are encrypted, including predictive text. So no-one but you and the person you’re talking to can see or read what’s being said. And features built into Safari give you the ability to browse privately, block cookies and prevent websites from tracking you. 3. Find My iPhone Activation Lock. Your iPhone is your iPhone, no matter where it is. The same goes for your iPad and iPod touch. Because security features in iOS make it very difficult for anyone who’s not you to use or sell your device. Turning off Find My iPhone or erasing your device requires your Apple ID and password. Find My iPhone can also continue to display a customised message, even after your device is erased. And your Apple ID and password are required before anyone can reactivate it. 4. iCloud Keychain. Most of the websites you visit nowadays require user names and passwords. Remembering them all can be tough, but you can let iCloud Keychain do it for you. It stores your website user names and passwords on the devices you’ve approved, protects them with robust 256-bit AES encryption and keeps them up to date on each device. Then it automatically fills them in whenever and wherever you need them. Password Generator can even suggest unique, hard-to-guess passwords for your online accounts. iCloud Keychain works with credit card information too, so checking out takes no time at all. Accessibility built in. iOS includes a variety of accessibility features that help people with disabilities experience more of what iPhone, iPad and iPod touch have to  offer. The built-in VoiceOver screen reader allows those who are blind or have low vision to hear a description of the item they’re touching on the screen. Made for iPhone Hearing Aids are Bluetooth devices that allow you to experience clearer phone conversations and music, and you can manage them directly from your iOS device. With Guided Access, you can restrict an iOS device to one app, and even limit the amount of time spent in an app. Which can be helpful to people with autism or other attention and sensory challenges. And Switch Control gives individuals with limited physical or motor skills complete control of their device through switch access. iOS also offers many other beneficial accessibility features, such as dynamic screen magnification, playback of closed-captioned video, mono audio, simplified screen gestures and more . iOS knows many languages. iPhone, iPad and iPod touch support keyboard and dictionary functions for multiple languages and dialects. Switch languages on the fly.  iOS lets you take your pick of over 35 system languages and easily switch between them. Because the keyboard is software-based, you can select from over 55 different layouts with support for diacritic marks on characters, and contextual character options for Japanese. VoiceOver reads screens in more than 35 languages, and Voice Control understands over 20 languages. Advantages 1. Camera Camera Shoot in burst mode, only click on capture and then press volume button You can take Picture continuously. 2. Multitasking The phone has multitasking features. User can running two or more Apps at a same time. 3. Airdrop You can do sharing of document and Apps with the desktop by Wi-Fi. You can share document at a time with multiple people. 4. iBeacon iBeacon facility is newly added in iOS7. The sharing of document and Apps by the sensor via Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE). 5. Automatic Update The iOS 7 update regularly with their application. It also has manually update options. 6. High Speed The iOS 7 has provide high speed to idevises . 7. Kids Categories The iOS 7 has children and parents according applications. The new features has a new part of the App Store. 8. Automatic Backgrounds Refresh In iOS 7 Background refresh regularly get refresh. And it refresh its All application. 9. Out of the way interfaces User can make interface  with friends by different ways. 10. Delete Clutter iOS 7 has delete Clutter and textures automatic. By this facility iOS 7 is safe with any Malware. Android Introducing Android. The worlds most powerful mobile platform. Theres no other software quite like Android. Google engineered Android, and Google’s own apps run best on it. And with millions of apps, games, songs, and videos on Google Play, Android is great for fun, and for getting things done. Android devices come in all kinds of sizes, with all sorts of features, and at all sorts of prices. Each version of Android is named after a dessert, and the most recent version of Android is Jelly Bean. With Android, you’re in control of your mobile experience. Android powers hundreds of millions of mobile devices in more than 190 countries around the world. Its the largest installed base of any mobile platform and growing fast—every day another million users power up their Android devices for the first time and start looking for apps, games, and other digital content. Android gives you a world-class platform for creating apps and games for Android users everywhere, as well as an open marketplace for distributing to them instantly. History V1.0- Marked the first commercial release of Android. At this time it was not widely available but had many new features that were important and still used today. These included Android Market for application upates and for new Applications Web Browser for full XTML/HTML web browsing. Google Apps full set of app by Google(Mail,SMS,Maps etc.) V1.1- This was a update to 1.0 that had many bug fixes and added a few features such as a Maps update. It was only available for ther T-Mobile G1. V1.5 or Cupcake was released in April 2009. It had several new approvements. Among the new features were Widgets for embedded small apps Contacts improvements including the pictures added to ever contact Animations for smooth scrolling and screen changes Bluetooth support update for audio pairing and sharing V1.6 or Donut was released in September of 2009 and had many improvements Voice and Text Improvements Touch Screen improvements Multi select for photos Camera access improvements and faster access Search Option for faster access V2.0/2.0.1/2.1 or Eclair was released in Oct 2009 and had several improvements and looks remarkably similar to today’s Android versions. Bluetooth 2.1 support Hardware and U.I. improvements Calendar improvements for date and not settings Account Sync improvements allow user to sync cultivable account on one phone Multi Touch improvements to allow better multitouch support Screen size and contrast improvements. Include bigger screens and better contrast ratios Android 2.2/2.2.1/2.2.2/2.2.3 or Frozen Yogurt (Froyo) was released May of 2010 and improved on many features. There were many key features in this version of Android including Adobe Flash support for rich web content Speed and memory improvements Cloud messaging support USB tethering Multi Language support Bluetooth dock and car support WiFi hotspots support JIT Compilation for application speed improvements 2.3/2.3./2.3.3./2.3.4 or Gingerbread was released in December of 2010 and as of the time of this writing has become the most widely used Android version. Some of the new features included U.I. or Interface improvements gave it a more simple but quicker interface Virtual Keyboard updated and improved for  a better and faster layout. copy/paste enhancements where a user could just press and hold New Codec support for more audio/video formats Power Management enhancements gyroscope/barometers support input enhancements for game developers V 3.0/3.1/3.2 or Honeycomb was released in Feb of 2011 and was a tablet(and later Google TV) only release. Some of its features included Holographic interface that was optimized for a tablet U.I. Improved keyboard support for larger screens Multi Core processor support Hardware acceleration for faster hardware view gallery in full screen interface System bar for better multitasking that allows you to switch from one app to another. Resizable home screen widgets(3.1+) external keyboard/mouse support (3.1+) FLAC audio codec support (3.1+) Android 4.0/4.01 was first released in Oct 2011 and was a major improvment upon both 2.x and 3.x. It blended both interfaces and had full support for both phones and tablets. Some of the notable features included Folder system improvements making easier to create. Launcher improved to be customizable Tabbed Browsing improved to allow up to 16 tabs facial recognition support to locking/unlocking phone photo editor built in to Android 4.x Android Beam support to share contacts and files Chrome Bookmark sync support Wi-Fi direct support to connect with other users without access point User Interface hardware acceleration for faster access. Android 4.1 Android Jellybean saw full release in early 2012 and improved on Android 4.0 in many ways. It took the common features of Android 4.0 and made it more fluid. Some features include: Browser has improved performance, CPU and memory efficiency Full HTML 5 support to bring Android up to new web standards Calendar is improved and has features blend with one another bidirectional text means more input languages to make the platform accessible to more people around the world. dictionaries are now more accurate and more relevant A update to Android 4.1 is now available. It is still counted as Jellybean but updated to new features that include: Photo Sphere allows you to use take 360 degree pictures among other new camara features Gesture Typing lets you type much faster but takes some getting used to but can make typing much faster. Google Now updated with new features Android 5.0 Key Lime Pie rumored to be the next version of Android. Global partnerships and large installed base Building on the contributions of the open-source Linux community and more than 300 hardware, software, and carrier partners, Android has rapidly become the fastest-growing mobile OS. Every day more than 1 million new Android devices are activated worldwide. Android’s openness has made it a favorite for consumers and developers alike, driving strong growth in app consumption. Android users download more than 1.5 billion apps and games from Google Play each month. With its partners, Android is continuously pushing the boundaries of hardware and software forward to bring new capabilities to users and developers. For developers, Android innovation lets you build powerful, differentiated applications that use the latest mobile technologies. Powerful development framework Easily optimize a single binary for phones, tablets, and other devices. Android gives you everything you need to build best-in-class app experiences. It gives you a single application model that lets you deploy your apps broadly to hundreds of millions of users across a wide range of devices—from phones to tablets and beyond. Android also gives you tools for creating apps that look great and take advantage of the hardware capabilities available on each device. It automatically adapts your UI to  look its best on each device, while giving you as much control as you want over your UI on different device types. For example, you can create a single app binary thats optimized for both phone and tablet form factors. You declare your UI in lightweight sets of XML resources, one set for parts of the UI that are common to all form factors and other sets for optimzations specific to phones or tablets. At runtime, Android applies the correct resource sets based on its screen size, density, locale, and so on. To help you develop efficiently, the Android Developer Tools offer a full Java IDE with advanced features for developing, debugging, and packaging Android apps. Using the IDE, you can develop on any available Android device or create virtual devices that emulate any hardware configuration. Open marketplace for distributing your apps Google Play is the premier marketplace for selling and distributing Android apps. When you publish an app on Google Play, you reach the huge installed base of Android. As an open marketplace, Google Play puts you in control of how you sell your products. You can publish whenever you want, as often as you want, and to the customers you want. You can distribute broadly to all markets and devices or focus on specific segments, devices, or ranges of hardware capabilities. You can monetize in the way that works best for your business—priced or free, with in-app products or subscriptions—for highest engagement and revenues. You also have complete control of the pricing for your apps and in-app products and can set or change prices in any supported currency at any time. Beyond growing your customer base, Google Play helps you build visibility and engagement across your apps and brand. As your apps rise in popularity, Google Play gives them higher placement in weekly top charts and rankings, and for the best apps promotional slots in curated collections. Preinstalled on hundreds of millions of Android devices around the world, Google Play can be a growth engine for your business. Features Take Google with you. Take Google with you on your mobile device: all the Google products you know and love, designed to work best on Android phones and tablets. Search the web The fastest, easiest way to find what you need on the web and your phone or tablet. Enjoy the power of Google search wherever you are. With Google Now, get just the right information at just the right time. Browse fast on your Android phone or tablet with Chrome. Bring your personalized Chrome experience with you anywhere you go. Navigate your World Never get lost as you go to new places and old favorites. Get voice-guided turn-by-turn GPS navigation to your destination, powerful local search with full place reviews and summaries from Zagat editors, detailed maps with 3D buildings, live traffic information and more with Google Maps for Android. Connect Share Stay connected and share epic moments as they happen. Start a group video chat on the go with up to nine people at once with Google+ Hangouts, and never lose another mobile photo with Instant Upload. Be entertained Get all your apps entertainment in one place. Google Play brings you the worlds largest collection of eBooks, millions of songs, thousands of movies and TV shows, and a growing selection of magazines – plus over 600,000 apps and games. With Google Play, you can now read, listen and watch anywhere you want — on your tablet, phone, or on the web at play.google.com — no wires, no syncing and no storage costs. YouTube puts millions of videos at your fingertips, available on the go wherever you are. Create Collaborate Google Drive gives you one place to create, share, collaborate and keep your stuff, accessible on all your devices. With Gmail, get smarter email wherever you are, integrated with contacts and apps on your Android phone or tablet. Your stuff, always available, no wires needed. When you sign in to your phone or tablet with Google, you can access all of your Google stuff (contacts, photos, Gmail and more) quickly and easily. You can also enjoy all of your favorite entertainment across your Android devices and even your computer — no wires, no syncing. Play everywhere you go. Google Play is the easiest way to enjoy all your favorites: more than 700,000 apps and games, millions of songs, thousands of movies and TV shows, the worlds largest collection of eBooks, and a growing selection of magazines. With Google Play, theres no wires, no hassle, just pure entertainment. You can now read, listen and watch anywhere you want—on your tablet, phone, or in any browser at play.google.com. Powerful, simple, and beautiful Millions of people use Android because it’s so powerful yet still so easy. The home screen, apps, and widgets are simple to use right out of the box, but completely customizable. With Android, you can create a unique mobile experience that’s just right for you. Widgets Put the important stuff right within reach and interact with your favorite apps directly from your home screen with widgets — see the latest sport scores, view your favorite photos, check the weather or peek at your inbox all without having to open different apps or leave the home screen. Notifications An easy-to-read notification tray gives you quick access to your calls, incoming texts, and new emails in a non-intrusive way. Multi-tasking With Android, you can quickly and seamlessly switch between apps and pick up whatever you were doing. Juggling multiple tasks at once on a mobile device has never been easier. Voice typing and actions Control your Android device with your voice. Simply touch the microphone on the keyboard and start talking to write emails, SMS, or any other text — more than 30 languages supported. Text appears in real time, so there’s no waiting. Photos and videos Capture special moments with great photos and videos, explore your shots and quickly share your favorites in any way that you want.

The Efficiency of Hybrid Cars Essay -- Hybrid Cars Car Gasoline Effici

The Efficiency of Hybrid Cars   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Transportation is a large concern in today’s modern world. Most individuals have opted to buy vehicles for their personal use. Most of these vehicles consume gasoline and a smaller proportion is hybrid based. These two types of vehicles have many similarities. The two such vehicles require an energy source and both types of vehicles provide an important function to society. That function is to provide people with a reliable form of transportation. Although these two types of vehicles have many similarities, their differences are what distinguish them. Hybrid vehicles are more cost effective, environmentally sound, and safe than the standard gasoline vehicles in the long run. Cost is a key factor to consumers in determining what vehicle to purchase. On average hybrid vehicles cost fifteen hundred dollars more than the standard gasoline vehicle. However, this extra expense is well invested. A hybrid vehicle can reach sixty-one miles per gallon, whereas a typical gasoline vehicle can only reach twenty-eight miles per gallon. Currently gas costs two dollars and ten cents per gallon. The average individual can be expected to drive fifteen miles per year. This amounts to a total gas expense of eleven hundred dollars. If one were to own a hybrid vehicle this expense would eventually pay for the extra fifteen hundred dollars that was required to buy a hybrid car. In two years one would expect to have saved over seven hundred dollars and in t...

The Universe Next Door

Purpose of book 1. outline basic worldviews underlying way we in west think about selves. 2. trace historically how worldviews have developed from breakdown in theistic worldview, moving in turn into deism, naturalism, nihilism, existentialism, eastern mysticism, new consciousness of New age and Islam recent infusion from Middle East. 3. show how postmodernism puts a twist on worldviews 4. encourage us all to think in terms of worldviews with consciousness of not only our own way of thought but also that of other people, so we can first understand and genuinely communicate with others in pluralistic society. Chapter 1Worldview or vision of life is framework or set of fundamental beliefs thru which we view world and our calling and future in it. Vision need not be fully articulated, may be so internalized that it goes largely unquestioned. May not be explicitly developed into a systematic conception of life. May not be theoretically deepened into a philosophy. may not even be codified into creedal form. May be greatly refined thru cultural historical development. Vision is a channel for ultimate beliefs which give direction and meaning to life. Integrative and interpretative framework by which order and disorder are judged.Standard by which reality is managed and pursued. Set of hinges on which all our everyday thinking and doing turns. Worldview is commitment of heart expressed as story in set of assumptions true, partially true, or false that we hold consciously and subconsciously and consistently or inconsistently about basic constitution of reality and provides foundation on which we live, move, and have our being. Commitment – Worldview involves mind and soul and heart. Bible sees as wisdom, emotion, desire, and will, and intellect. Presuppositions expression – expressed as a story of your life. Assumptions T, PT, F, etc. eality is everyone’s own perception of world. Foundation on which we lived expressed by words and actions. We all ta ke some position whether we realize it or not, Chapter 2 Clockwork Universe: Natualism How did theism get replaced with deism? Deism came about to replace chaos with unity of theological and philosophical explanations. Shift from scriptures to reason or human intuition (inner light). Started studying world form based on matter and how things were put together. Orderly, mechanized, clockwork timing with perfect mechanical precision. Science was born. Middle ages directed toward God and studying Him to become good and holy.Theology was born. Some deists Christians some not. To deist God is distant, foreign, alien, and unavailable. 1. Wv? 1 – a transcendent God as a first cause created universe then left it to run on its own. God is not immanent not triune, not fully personal, not sovereign over human affairs not providential. 2. Wf? 2 – cosmos God created is determined, because it is created as a uniformity of cause and effect in a closed system so no miracle is possible . Any tampering or interference by God would be considered as saying His creation is flawed. Locked up in cause and effect clockwork world. Humans cannot change. 3. Wv ? human beings though personal are part of clockwork of universe. Deism says we are just puppets and no free will. No one has special relationship with God. 4. Wv? 4human being may or may not have a life beyond their physical existence. Destroyed triune and led to naturalism and nihilism. Warm still believed in afterlife cold did not. 5. Wv? 5 – thru innate and autonomous human reason and the methods of science, we can not only known universe but can infer at least something of what God is like. Cosmos, this world, is understood to be in its normal state; it is not fallen or abnormal. Deism human reason is autonomous and not from God.Learn about God from universe. Theists believe God revealed Himself in nature but also with His word. Deists God no communicate with man/architect and designer only. 6. Wv? 6ethics is intuitive or limited to general revelation because universe is normal it reveals what is right. Weather disaster is natural events. Deists do not consider human reason or universe itself to be fallen. Normal state. 7. Wv? 7 history is linear for course of the cosmos was determined at creation. Still meaning of the events of history remains to be understood by the application of human reason other data unearthed and made available to historians. . Cold deists use their own autonomous reason to determine their goal in life, warm deists may reflect on their commitment to a somewhat person God and determine their goal in accordance with what they believe their God would be pleased with. MODERN DEISM Sophisticated scientific deism – cold deism God is embodiment of laws of physics. Sophisticated philosophic deism – there is something out there but is it God? Popular deism – belief in a being, force, or intelligence. Cold deism God is simply abstract force bringing world into existence. Warm deism God is clearly personal and even friendly. Monotheistic therapeutic deism – . God exists who created and orders the world and watches over human life on earth. 2. God want people to be good nice, and fair to each other, as taught in bible and by most religions, 3. Central goal of life is to be happy and to feel good about oneself. 4. God does not ;need to be particularly involved in one's life except when God is needed to resolve problem 5. Good people go to heaven when they die. UNSTABLE COMPOUND 1. Autonomous human reason replaced Bible and tradition as authority for way reality was understood. 2. Autonomous human reason replaced bib and tradition as authority for morality. . Deists rejected biblical notion of Fall and think universe is a s it should be. 4. Universe cannot be reordered, human action is determined. 5. Today find more aspects of deism to question. Chapter 4 Naturalism Deism (God is reduced) connects theism (God exalted) and n aturalism (no God at all). BASIC NATURALISM 1. WV ? 1 Prime reality is matter. Matter exists eternally and is all there is. Cosmos rules. God does not exist. Nothing comes from nothing. Something always was and was matter of cosmos itself. 2. Wv ? 2 cosmos exists as a uniformity of cause and effect in a closed system. 3. Wv ? human beings are complex machines personality is an interrelation of chemical and physical properties we do not yet fully understand. 4. Wv ? 4 death is extinction of personality and individuality. 5. Wv ? 5 thru our innate and autonomous human reason, including the methods of science, we can know the universe. The cosmos, including this world is understood to be in its normal state. 6. WV ? 6 ethics is related only to human beings. Theist God foundation of values. Naturalist human beings foundation of values. For ethics to matter has to be personality along with consciousness and self-determination.Naturalists say ethics is autonomous and situational and came from human experience, need, and interest. Also say all humans have a sense of moral values that come from culture and growing up in environment. 7. Wv ? 7 history is linear stream of events linked by cause and effect but without an overarching purpose. Natural history begins with origin of universe. 8. Wv ? 8 naturalism itself implies no particular core commitment on the part of any given naturalist. Rather core commitments are adopted unwittingly or chosen by individuals. NATURALISM IN PRACTICE: SECULAR HUMANISM Humanism says overall attitude human beings are of special value.Emphasis on value of individual person. Term used since Renaissance. NATURALISM IN PRACTICE: MARXISM Scientific socialism. Marx believed human history began with people living in family like tribes. No private property. Individuals identified with community as a whole. Technology developed and division of labor develops and controllers of tools and resources society depends on enables them to exploit others. Class struggle since primitive tribes with classes dominated by those controlling means of production. Classless society will result with less competitive individuals working for good of all.

Overview On The Rest Of The Chapters Finance Essay - Free Essay Example

Sample details Pages: 16 Words: 4716 Downloads: 6 Date added: 2017/06/26 Category Finance Essay Type Cause and effect essay Did you like this example? This chapter provides overview about the thesis topic that will be addressed. It also demonstrates the relevancy of the study and its need and purpose and defines its objectives. This chapter includes a preliminary literature review which helped in directing the research path. Overview: Every equity investment decision must be based on solid grounds. This requires a substantive knowledge regarding investment methodologies, assessment tools, and a good sense of know-how. The academic side provides finance people with the technicalities and methods, such as the discounted dividends, discounted cash flow analysis, discounted abnormal earnings, discounted abnormal earnings growth, and price multiples (Palepu, Healy and Peek, 2010). Damodaran (2005) categorize equity valuation approaches to include discounted cash flow valuation, liquidation and accounting valuation, relative valuation and contingent claim valuation. Each approach generally will yield differing equity value based on the projections of its future returns and assumed risks, or based on its current and past performance (Penman, 2001). The choice of equity valuation method used will affect the assumed value of equity versus the asked price, thus affecting the decision of whether to invest or not. The on going debate in academic world about the superiority of one method over other presents mixed results. Jorgensen,Lee, and Yoos (2011) examination suggest that residual income valuation is more accurate than abnormal earnings growth model. On the other hand, Supattarakul and Khanthavit (2011) found that both dividend discount model and residual income model underestimate equity value. But in general, most academic literature describes dividend discounted model as the method of choice by finance professionals (Palepu et al, 2010). Don’t waste time! Our writers will create an original "Overview On The Rest Of The Chapters Finance Essay" essay for you Create order Preliminary Literature Many researchers have inspected different facets of sell-side and buy-side analysts.Palepu et al (2010, p. 407) define sell-side analysts as analysts at brokerage houses, while they define buy-side analysts as analysts that work at the direction of fund managers for various institutions. Ashton and Cianci (2007) investigated the motivational and cognitive determinants of the earnings forecasts difference between the two types. Groysberg, Healy, and Chapman (2008) found that buy-side analysts provide less accurate and more optimistic forecasts. Analysts and investors are provided by the literature with many valuation methods to choose from. Foerster and Sapp(2011) advocate the use of Gordon Growth Model, while Supattarakul and Khanthavit(2011) suggest that dividend discount modelprovides more accurate valuation than the residual income model. Steiger(2008) advocates the use of Discounted Cash Flow methods (DCF), although warning of associated massive assumptions which can create bias and modify the value of equity. These articles, among others will provide the base for academic world preference of equity valuation methods. Most of the literature advocates the use of DCF methods. However, practitioners have different views (Bing, 1971, Dukes et al, 2006). Researchers have attempted to fill the gap between literature and finance practitioners of thechoice of equity valuation methods. Pereiro (n.d.) found that 73% of financial advisors and 50% of banks and insurance firms in Argentina use DCF methods, which are lower than the 100% preference in USA. Dukes et al (2006) also found that DCF methods are used less frequently by practitioners compared to other methods. This research fits between existing works as it will examine finance practitioners preference of equity valuation methods in the emerging market of KSA, thus establishing an addition or contradiction to the works of Pereiro (n.d.) and Dukes et el (2006). The articles will aid the author in di scovering the views of academic world to equity valuation method preference, while answering the research questions of practitioners preferences. They will act as theoretical and conceptual basis for this research. Need for the study: As a CFO dealing with many investments ranging from projects appraisals to venture capitals and private equity, equity valuation is crucial in the authors line of work. Equity valuation can be conducted using various methods, such Discounted Cash Flow Model (DCF), Discounted Abnormal Earnings, and Price Multiples (PM). In finance world, the choice of method will affect the value of equity, and consequently will affect the decision to invest or not. Based on this relation, it is important to understand why finance professionals and investors choose one method over others, or whether they utilize a combination of methods and base their decision on a weighted average. Objectives of the study: The author intends to describe the relationship and examine the cause-effect reason of practitioners equity valuation method preference. This research is based on collection of facts and then deduction of reasons behind the preference. It also aims to investigate if such preference changes with the introduction of additional criteria. Methodology: The author intends to generate a quantitative research that utilizes surveys and questionnaires. The sample includes finance practitioners from various sectors in Saudi Arabia. Finance practitioners include those working in investment banks, CFOs, fund managers, financial analysts, and private equity advisors. Overview on the Rest of the Chapters: Chapter 2: Review of the Literature Examining the literature relevant to the thesis problem, reviewing different researches and studies that were conducted about the thesis topic, the research questions are formulated accordingly. Chapter 3: Methodology Describing the methodology, the approach that is used to conduct the study, the tools that are used in collecting data and the limitations faced during the survey implementation. Chapter 4: Descriptive Statistics Explaining the collected data and illustrating them in tables and graphs, then summary of the descriptive statistics findings are presented. Chapter 5: Inferential Statistics Performing statistical analysis for many factors to study their effects on the outcomes of descriptive statistics Chapter 6: Analysis of Data Analysis of data is performed, based on the statistical analysis that yielded descriptive and inferential statistics. The findings of the statistical analysis are linked to the findings in the literature revirew. Chapter 7: Conclusions and Recommendations Stating the conclusions drawn from the research, the implications of the results and then giving the recommendations based on the conclusions that were made. CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW Chapter two explores the literature that is relevant to understanding the development of, and interpreting the results of this study. It includes the definition of the financial terms used, the purpose of this literature review is to provide the reader with a general overview of the valuation methods and all the techniques involved in the equity valuation. 2.1. STOCK DEFINITION AND CHARACTERISTICS: 2.1.1. Stock Definition: A stock is a security that represents ownership in a corporation and has claims on part of the corporations assets and earnings per share. There are two main types of stock: common and preferred. A stockholder (a shareholder) has a claim to part of the corporations assets and earnings. In other words, a shareholder is an owner of the company. Ownership is determined by the number of shares a person owns relative to the number of outstanding shares. For example, if a company has 1,000 shares of stock outstanding and an investor owns 100 shares, that investor owns and has a claim to 10% of the companys assets. Stocks are a major component of investor portfolios because historically they outperform most other investments over the long run (Bauman, Scott, Conover and Miller, 1998). 2.1.2. Methods to Value a Common Stock: 2.1.2.1. Value Definition: In general, the value of an asset is the price that buyer is willing and able to pay to a willing and able seller. If both, the buyer and seller, are not willing and able then an offer does not set up the value of the asset (Capaul, Carlo, Rowley and Sharpe, 1993). 2.1.2.2. Types of Value: There are several types of value, such as: Book Value: It is the carrying value on the balance sheet of the firms equity. Tangible Book Value: It is the book value minus intangible assets such as goodwill, patents, etc. Market Value: It is the price of an asset as determined in a competitive marketplace. Intrinsic Value: It is the present value of the expected future cash flows discounted at the decision makers required rate of return. 2.1.2.3. Investment Styles: A. Value Investing The fundamental goal of value investing is, quite simply, to buy a stock when it is low and sell when it is high. Seems easy, right? Though it may seem like common sense, the vast majority of investors do not do this. Very few use this strategy effectively. Some of the greatest investors of all time, such as Warren Buffett and Benjamin Graham, used a value approach in their investing careers. Value investors want to see that the company is making money and that the stock is cheap relative to the value of the company. There are many ways of determining this, but perhaps the most widely used method is to look at the price-to-earnings ratio (P/E) of the company. This ratio allows the investor to quickly determine the value of the stock relative to the amount of earnings generated by the company. The lower the ratio, the better the bargain the investor is getting. B. Growth Investing: Growth investors attempt to purchase stocks that have high expected future growth rates. Some growth investors are more disciplined with regard to the price they are willing to pay for future growth. They seek growth at a reasonable price (GARP). While their emphasis may be different, GARP investors are essentially equivalent to value investors who seek future earnings growth. The fundamental goal of growth investing is to buy a stock no matter what its price is and sell it for more. Those who choose the growth approach consistently underperform the market. In the last 20 years, the SP 500 has obtained compound annual returns of 13% per year. Also in the last 20 years, small-capitalization companies (smaller than 2 billion dollars) that were considered growth obtained compound annual returns of 8.8%, worse than all other types and over 40% less that of value investment returns of 15%. C. Blend Investing: It is a mutual fund style that employs a combination of value investing and growth investing. This blending can happen in two ways. First, they can select growth stocks on a value basis. If their assessment of the growth stocks they buy on a value basis is correct, they get returns from both growth and the eventual adjustment of the stocks prices to their intrinsic value. Second, blend funds also may make pure value and pure growth investments, thus making their portfolios a blend of growth and value investments. The value/growth blend approach to investing requires the use of the valuation metrics described previously as well as a utilizing certain growth criteria. While most of the valuation metrics utilize hard facts, the growth aspect is much more difficult to understand. No one knows what will happen in the future. If someone says they do, run for the hills. If an investor views the world economy as a whole, though, he or she can get a pretty good sense of macro-economic tr ends likely to be significant in the next few years. This is not an exact science, and requires much research and a vast amount of economic knowledge. When performing this test, it becomes apparent that there are several industries that will most likely see prolonged growth in the next decade. 2.2. Others Findings: Palepu et al (2010) identify three general categories of analysts based on the purpose of their investigation. The individual investors, the sell-side analysts and the buy-side analysts value equity for differing objectives. Equity itself has various classifications, such as Initial public offerings, common stock, and privately held stocks. These factors, combined with the industry of valuation target, affect the choice of equity valuation method. Demirakos, Strong, and Walker (2001) investigated how UK investment banks value equity, and found that industry of valuation target affects the valuation method preference. Roosenboom (2007) indicated that although the choice of method used depends on industry type and firm age in case of IPOs equity valuation, valuators tend to use a weighted average of a combination of methods, giving each a rank depending on the associated factors. Roosenbooms (2007) examination of IPOs valuation by underwriters suggests that industry also play a major part in method choice, as multiples valuation is used for valuing technology, rabidly growing, and profitable companies. Mature industries and older firms IPOs are associated with dividend discount model; while economic value-added method is associated with high aggregates stock market returns IPOs. The gap between academics and practitioners regarding valuation methods preference has been identified by Dukes, Peng and English II (2006). Their results indicate that, contrary to common belief by academics, finance professionals tend to use other methods while using dividend discount model only as a check of otherapproaches (p. 99). This study comes in line with the results of Bing (1971) some forty years ago, indicating that the gap between reality and theory is still wide. METHODS THAT THE MAJORITY OF FINANCE PROFESSIONALS PREFER AND THEIR CRITERIA OF THEIR SELECTION: When trying to figure out which valuation method to use to value a stock for the first time, most investors will quickly discover the vast number of valuation techniques available to them. There are the simple ones to use, such as the comparables method, and there are the more implicated methods, such as the discounted cash flow model. Unfortunately, there is no one method that is best suited for every situation. Each stock is different, and each industry sector has unique properties that may require varying valuation approaches (Nguyen, 2011). Analysts and investors are provided by the literature with many valuation methods to choose from. Foerster and Sapp(2011) advocate the use of Gordon Growth Model, while Supattarakul and Khanthavit(2011) suggest that dividend discount modelprovides more accurate valuation than the residual income model. Steiger(2008) advocates the use of Discounted Cash Flow methods (DCF), although warning of associated massive assumptions which can create bias and modify the value of equity. These articles, among others will provide the base for academic world preference of equity valuation methods. Most of the literature advocates the use of DCF methods. However, practitioners have different views (Bing, 1971, Dukes et al, 2006). Researchers have attempted to fill the gap between literature and finance practitioners of the choice of equity valuation methods. Pereiro (n.d.) found that 73% of financial advisors and 50% of banks and insurance firms in Argentina use DCF methods, which are lower than the 100% preference in USA. Dukes et al (2006) also found that DCF methods are used less frequently by practitioners compared to other methods. This research fits between existing works as it will examine finance practitioners preference of equity valuation methods in the emerging market of KSA, thus establishing an addition or contradiction to the works of Pereiro (n.d.) and Dukes et el (2006). Studies show that the methods that a re becoming increasingly popular are those based on cash flow discounting. These methods view the company as a cash flow generator and, therefore, assessable as a financial asset. Some of the more popular valuation methods available to investors and the appropriate use for each model are as follows: Dividend Discount Model (DDM): The dividend discount model (DDM) is one of the most basic of the absolute valuation models. The justification for using dividends to value a company is that dividends represent the actual cash flows going to the shareholder, thus valuing the present value of these cash flows should give you a value for how much the shares should be worth. So, the first thing you should check if you want to use this method is if the company actually pays a dividend. Secondly, it is not enough for the company to just a pay dividend; the dividend should also be stable and predictable. The companies that pay stable and predictable dividends are typically mature companies in mature and well-developed industries. These type of companies are often best suited for this type of valuation method (Nguyen, 2011). Discounted Cash Flow Model (DCF): if the company doesnt pay a dividend or its dividend pattern is irregular, the company use the discounted cash flow model. Instead of looking at dividends, the DCF model uses a firms discounted future cash flows to value the business. The big advantage of this approach is that it can be used with a wide variety of firms that dont pay dividends. The first requirement for using this model is for the company to have predictable free cash flows, and for the free cash flows to be positive. Based on this requirement, small high-growth firms and non-mature firms will be excluded due to the large capital expenditures these companies generally face (Nguyen, 2011). Comparables Method: this method if there is no ability to value the company using any of the other models. It doesnt attempt to find an intrinsic value for the stock like the previous two valuation methods do; it simply compares the stocks price multiples to a benchmark to determine if the stock is relatively undervalued or overvalued. The rationale for this is based off of the law of one price, which states that two similar assets should sell for similar prices. The intuitive nature of this method is one of the reasons it is so popular. The reason why it can be used in almost all circumstances is due to the vast number of multiples that can be used, such as the price-to-earnings (P/E), price-to-book (P/B), price-to-sales (P/S), price-to-cash flow (P/CF), and many others. Of these ratios though, the P/E ratio is the most commonly used one because it focuses on the earnings of the company, which is one of the primary drivers of an investments value (Nguyen, 2011). P/E multiple can be used for a comparison if the company is publicly traded because the price of the stock is needed and there is a need to know the earnings of the company. Secondly, the company should be generating positive earnings because a comparison using a negative P/E multiple would be meaningless. And lastly, the earnings quality should be strong. That is, earnings should not be too volatile and the accounting practices used by management should not distort the reported earnings radically (Nguyen, 2011). These are just some of the main criteria investors should look at when choosing which ratio or multiples to use. If the P/E multiple cannot be used, they can simply look at using a different ratio such as the price-to-sales multiple (Nguyen, 2011). Despite the large number of valuation methodologies that exist, there are five that are used in over 95% of SME valuations. These are: capitalization of future maintainable earnings; discounted cash flow; net realizable assets; industry method; and, cost to create. So how these SME choose their valuation methods (Rady and Nunez, 2012) Capitalization of future maintainable earnings v alues a business at some multiple of its maintainable earnings, with the multiple being determined by the risk rating of the business. Most SMEs have a multiple somewhere between one and five times. This approach is commonly used for mature businesses where there is a history of reasonably stable earnings. The discounted cash flow method is commonly used for businesses where there is a defined time life to the business and where cash flow is reasonably predictable. Net realizable assets approach ignores the existence of any goodwill and assumes that value exists principally in the realization of the assets held by the business. This approach is commonly used for farming businesses or businesses where there is significant investment in plant equipment or other assets. Some heavy engineering or road transport businesses may use this approach. The industry method is the least scientific of all the approaches and is sometimes criticized for its lack of rigor. It assesses value by a simple formula that will be calculated against some factor of the business such as revenue, gross profits or recurring income. It is only used for small businesses and it seeks to reflect market activity. For an industry method to exist you need to have a reasonably large number of businesses in the sector, have ongoing turnover of these businesses and where some level of market information is available. The businesses all typically have a very similar business model. Examples of business sectors where an industry method does exist include newsagents, pharmacies, cafes, real estate agents and financial planning practices. The cost to create method is a more recently accepted method that has emerged due to the large number of micro businesses. It values a business on its tangible assets plus a limited premium for goodwill based on the fact that a buyer would prefer to pay such a premium for having the business established rather than incurring the cost, risk and time of tryi ng to establish a small business. This goodwill premium is normally limited to up to one year net income. WHAT ARE THE REASONS FOR CHOOSING ONE OR A COMBINATION OF METHODS? No one valuation method is perfect for every situation, but by knowing the characteristics of the company, there is ability to select a valuation method that best suits the situation. In addition, investors are not limited to just using one method. Often, investors will perform several valuations to create a range of possible values or average all of the valuations into one. The majority of financial professionals prefer using many different methods and then comparing the results, which is likely to be the wisest way to approach stock valuation. This is similar to the approach that a person uses if he/she is valuing, for example, a house, hence, he/she might check out what similar houses in a neighborhood have sold (a relative approach) while also assessing the quality of materials via a survey (similar to intrinsic valuation). Severe market dislocations demand to adjust valuations, thus, to reassess the metrics by which those valuations are derived. Economic and absolut e measures allow the analyst to filter out much of the noise in the market place and provide a theoretically sound means of determining the basic value. (Pablo Fernandez 2004). As a matter of fact, valuations are mainly relative, though, in practice most valuations are relative valuations.  This is most likely because multiple-based methods are simple and easy to relate to. According to Damodaran, a finance professor at NYU, almost 85% of equity research reports are based upon a multiple and comparables, and more than 50% of all acquisition valuations are based upon multiples (Damodaran, 2006). He also notes that, even discounted cash flow valuations used in consulting are often relative valuations masquerading as discounted cash flow valuations (the objective being to back into a number that has been obtained by using a multiple) (Damodaran, 2006). Its important to recognize that relative valuation is weighed down with issues. Firstly, it relies on accurate comparisons but no two firms are ever exactly similar in terms of their risk and growth profile. Secondly, when the companies, which a person is using as a benchmark, are themselves mispriced, relative valuation can lead him/her badly adrift. If the market, for example, is trading at a P/E ratio that is very high by historical standards, then a stock can appear cheap in relative terms but still be priced unsustainably. For the reason, as proved by experts, the best approach is likely to combine relative valuation with a healthy dose of intrinsic valuation (Reuters, 2012). DOES VALUATION PREFERENCE CHANGE WITH EXPOSURE TO ADDITIONAL EXPERIENCE? So as indicated earlier, not all businesses are valued in the same way. And as shown, there are over twenty different valuation methodologies, and applying different methods will not produce the same result. To know what a business is really worth, there is a need to identify the most appropriate valuation methodology to apply to the business (Knight, 2012). The Valuator either will have the necessary industry background or will gain the industry knowledge through research. The Valuators understanding of the business is necessary for the purpose of understanding key value drivers and risks, as well as the expected future operating results of the entity. Appropriate research will uncover variables that might impact value and affect the Valuators conclusions. At this stage, the Valuator often will assess the need for additional specialists to assist with various aspects of the valuation. The Valuator will actually assess and select from a number of different valuation approaches. The selection of the appropriate approach is based on the nature of the business, its asset base, historical performance; future expected operating performance, and other factors (Knight, 2012). It is important to note that the valuation of any entity, whether public or private, is determined at a point in time. Thus, it is the factors that exist at the valuation date and the markets future expectations at that point in time that affect the value of a business. The economic laws of supply and demand come into play in the pricing of publicly traded shares. The stock price of a publicly traded share is impacted by many issues. The issues tend to be forward looking (Knight, 2012). Unlike publicly held shares, private companies are valued in a notional setting without the direct impact of market influences. However, market and general economic conditions are considered by Business Valuators in assessing the risks and the ability of the entity to achieve expected results. A busines s valuation in a notional setting is conducted by an experienced Business Valuator with the insight and experience of an organizations senior management team (Pontoni, 2011). Valuations of privately held businesses typically are performed for purposes of strategic planning, divesting of business interests, acquisitions, corporate restructuring, succession planning, and resolving matters between shareholders and spouses(Pontoni, 2011). The Valuator will assess the future sustainable earnings of the business, often requiring some level of judgment on the part of the Valuator. The Valuator often will turn to the businesss historical performance and financial forecasts, adjusting for cost structures and revenue streams that are not normal to the operations (Knight, 2012). Redundancies must be considered in any valuation. Fair market value and normalized earnings/cash flow are adjusted for these redundancies, which may be apparent or hidden. Assessing the value of redundancies r equires experience and significant judgment (Pontoni, 2011). Inherent in the value of a going concern entity is commercial goodwill, which is attributable to the product or service, the location of the operations, the systems and processes of the operations, the customer base, and other key value attributes. The difference between the going concern value of an entity and its tangible asset base is considered goodwill. In order for goodwill to retain any value, it must be transferable with commercial value. Personal goodwill typically rests with the individual and is not transferable, and therefore has no value. The Valuator uses his/her judgment along with managements insight to assess the transferability of goodwill (Knight, 2012). A business valuation is a complex process for uncovering the true value of an enterprise through a series of questions, research and techniques. A trained and experienced Business Valuator is critical to the process (Pontoni, 2011). 2.6. CONCLUSION: Understanding the true value of the business requires first of all determining what valuation method is most appropriate. This can only be done by understanding the business and its underlying characteristics. For most businesses, by a process of elimination, the one or two most appropriate methods are determined. Failing to select the right valuation methodology can result in an assessment of value that is highly inaccurate. Valuation methodology is not simply determined by the industry or sector the person is in. It is also influenced by the size, age, profitability and other characteristics of the business. Even though several financial ratios and factors are involved with the equity-valuation process, the final figures can provide a relatively accurate assessment of a companys financial status and revenue prospects. In choosing a business valuator, consideration should be given to the practitioners credentials and experience. The purpose of the valuation often will dic tate the type and/or level of experience required by the business valuator.  However, many valuators have experience across a broad number of industries. Typically, business valuators deal with a broad range of industries since the purpose of the valuation is usually not industry specific.   Certain industries such as mining and oil and gas require certain industry expertise so there can be some industry specialization. 2.6.1. RESEARCH QUESTIONS: Based on the findings in the literature review, the research questions are formulated and are investigated accordingly in the Saudi Arabia context, these questions are: Which method do the majority of finance professionals prefer in Saudi Arabia (bankers, CFOs, fund managers, private equity investors, financial analysts, and others)? What are the reasons for choosing one or a combination of methods? Does such preference change with exposure to additional experience (education, work, research, magnitude of the investment, volatility of the market, perceived risk)?