Intro to ContextAware Computing

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Intro to Context-Aware Computing

• Jason I. Hong

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Context-Aware Computing

• Shift from explicit to implicit interaction
• Use this implicit input to adapt systems to
  situation

• Where you are
• Who you are with
• What resources
• Lighting and noise level
• Network connectivity
• Social situation
• Body temp, heart rate
• Emotional state
• Personal History
• Daily behavioral patterns

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Proposed Design Space

• Scoreboard public display
• Location-based file system

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Proposed Design Space

• Auto bind PDA to large display
• Turn off cell phone in meeting
• Auto connect laptop to projector
• Auto turn on your computer when you enter building

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Proposed Design Space

• Certain actions more likely in certain places
• Ex. Library functions when in a library
• Streamlined input
• Ex. Send email to all people in room

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Proposed Design Space

• Next time in the library
• Next time I see Marvin
• When Im back at my desk

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Comments on Context-Aware Computing

• Schilit et al paper spurred lots of spinoff
  research
• Context-awareness now a core idea in ubicomp
• Also raised lots of questions
• What does context mean? (rathole?)
• Amazon purchases? What I ate yesterday? Clothes
  worn?
• Designed for a context vs adapts to a context?
• How much can computers realistically adapt?
• Is it even useful to think of the issue as
  context?
• Understandability
• Walk into a room, what will happen?
• Added complexity, will we ever get it right?

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Comments on Context-Aware Computing

• More questions
• Semantics for computer? Or person?
• Subtle but fundamental issue with ubicomp
• Ex. IM status messages
• Ex. context-awareness exhibited by people is of
  a radically different order than that of
  computational systems. People notice a vast range
  of cues, both obvious and subtle context-aware
  systems detect a very small set of cues A
  (hypothetical) context-aware cell phone might be
  able to detect that it is motionless and in a
  dark place with high ambient noise but that is
  very different from the human awareness of being
  in a theatre. (Tom Erickson)
• Where does interruptibility fit?
• Research note avoid nearest printer apps!

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Location-enhanced Computing

• Location-enhanced computing is aspect of ubicomp
  with strongest path to success
• 150,000 in 2002 to 42mil in 2005 (maybe)
• Finding nearest restaurants
• Friend Finder (Checking why spouse is late)
• Navigation
• Tracking kids
• Tracking firefighters and victims
• E911 (by Dec2005, optimistic)
• Lots of work being done with location
• Chaotic, but lots of opportunities
• Follow-up papers will examine location issues more

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Some Research Issues in Context-Awareness

• What is and isnt context?
• How to obtain?
• Ex. GPS vs Badge vs Cell Tower
• Ex. Video camera vs motion sensor
• Accuracy
• GPS (1m)
• vs PlaceLab WiFi (30m)
• vs Cell tower (??m)
• Fundamental issue w/ sensors
• Semantics? Computer or person?
• Where do semantics lie?
• Related to accuracy

• Understandability
• Walk into a room, what will happen?
• Programming
• Highly dependent on tech used
• Is it a single API? Or lots of APIs?
• Privacy
• Richer model -gt privacy?
• Lets go over there and steal his home theater
• How to maximize benefit while minimizing risks?

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Project Schedule

• Fri Oct 01 Form teams (2-3 ppl) and submit 2
  page
• Mon Tue Wed Oct 4-6 Project checkpoint meetings
  
• Mon Oct 11 Prototyping Tools readings
• Wed Oct 20 Prototyping Mini-Project due
• Do a lo-fi prototype of an interesting ubicomp
  app
• 2 page writeup (what you learned)
• Can be part of final project
• Thu, Fri Nov 4,5 Project checkpoint meetings
• Wed Dec 8 Final project presentations

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Some Example Project Ideas

• Connecting devices in the home in the future
• Very likely lots of things will have wireless
  built-in
• How to connect things?
• Ex. mp3s to that tv
• Ex. DVD to that monitor
• Ex. This laptop to that projector
• One idea put visual tags on each device
• Describes what the device is
• What inputs and outputs it has

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Some Example Project Ideas

• Very likely everyone will have a location history
  in future
• What are interesting visualizations?
• Ex. Where was that park in Colorado I went to
  last year?
• Ex. Where was my friends wedding?
• Link to personal calendar? Map? Just list of
  places?
• Useful summaries?

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Some Example Project Ideas

• End-User Programming
• "When my alarm clock rings...", "start the coffee
  maker"
• "When the soap dispenser is empty...", "send
  email to maintenance"
• "When this laundry machine is done...", "send SMS
  to me
• Useful way of thinking of certain ubicomp apps?
• Most useful functions?

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Some Example Project Ideas

• Eventster
• Whats going on tonight?
• Slurp events from the web, geocode them, and see
  whats going on nearby on PDA
• Download events for a large area at a time
  beforehand, and then query as needed (avoid
  privacy issues)
• Use events as part of location history
• Show me all the pictures I took at Richs
  wedding

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Some Example Project Ideas

• An interesting location-based app
• An app or evaluation of ubicomp privacy issues
• A prototyping tool for ubicomp