Seeking a Foundation for Context-Aware Computing

Context-aware computing is generally associated with elements of the ubiquitous computing program, and the opportunity to distribute computation and interaction through the environment rather than concentrating it at the desktop computer. However, issues of context have also been important in other areas of human-computer interaction research. I argue that the scope of context-based computing should be extended to include not only ubiquitous computing, but also recent trends in tangible interfaces as well as work on sociological investigations of the organization of interactive behavior. By taking a view of context-aware computing that integrates these different perspectives, we can begin to understand the foundational relations that tie them all together, and that provide a framework for understanding the basic principles behind these various forms of embodied interaction. In particular, I point to phenomenology as a basis for the development of a new framework for design and evaluation of context-aware technologies.