An Architecture to Support Context-Aware Applications

Context is an important, yet poorly utilized source of information in interactive computing. It is difficult to use because, unlike other forms of user input, there is not common, reusable way to handle context. Most context-aware applications have been built in an ad hoc manner. We discuss the requirements for dealing with context and present an architectural solution we have designed and implemented to help application designers build context-aware applications more easily. We illustrate the use of the architecture through a context-aware application that assists conference attendees